The Rounds - March 4, 2007

Good evening soca lovers, I’m Nurse Karen and these are doctor jay’s rounds. So, It’s Sunday again and you’re back for some good old fashioned Soca Therapy. Is a good ting too. For those of you who are lucky enough to be holding tickets to the big return fete this Saturday…you better start to train those muscles from now. March 10th promises to be a real workout and ah tell you, the Kingdom of Soca will have you wukking tings you never thought about in years. Arms gah be strong fuh Open De Gate with Shurwayne Winchester, de vocal chords mussee healthy if you plan to reach the heavens for Fireball. and keeping up with Maximus Dan, Nadia Batson and Biggie Irie is no small ting, neida…because you’re not going home till the morning comes.
Last week, one of our texters told us that the Guyanese posse will be out in the hundreds to party at de Return. Well if you think you think that is plenty, you should have seen the streets of Georgetown, Guyana this past Mashramani Day. Brand new Road March Queen, Vanilla proved to have the most popular melody to hit the streets. Her song “Queen of the Band” has made her Queen of the Road for the very first time. The 24-year-old from Hopetown Berbice, joined the team at Kross Color records as a graphic designer. The owner needed a female to sing a jingle on short notice and Vanilla’s flavour could no longer be kept secret. That opportunity led to background vocals and now centre stage. The new artist competed in the Carib Soca Monarch competition this year, but didn’t place…and guess who eh kay!?!? The judges and dem could eat they heart out.
The new reigning Soca Monarch of Guyana is John “Slingshot” Drepaul. He managed to knock the crown off the cute little head of Adrian Dutchin. From what I hear Slingshot is no stranger to fighting up for Guyana. He once fractured a limb singing at a local food aid concert, and last week “may God bless he soul” de man go and break three bones in his lower back while taking part in the Float Parade. NOBODY could tell me dat man is not patriotic!
I’m patriotic too. Proud to be Canadian. Proud to be Caribbean and proud to be…African. For the next two Sundays, if you miss me, I’ll be gone to Ghana, West Africa. While black history month may have passed, it’s never to late to learn about the part of the world from which the roots of this culture originally took shape. I will be visiting the Gold Coast to celebrate the nation’s fiftieth year of independence from Britain. I will be learning about leaders and freedom fighters, and definitely enjoying the tropical heat and the beautiful beach.
I know some of you are wondering what on earth all this has to do with soca music. Plenty come betta dan dat! The beautiful music we call soca was created by, performed by, perfected and popularized by people whose veins pump African blood. Ghana was the last stop for hundreds of thousands of black men and women who were snatched forcibly from their homes. They would eventually populate the Caribbean for 400 years as slaves. As we enjoy the rhythms in our music and the beauty in our masquerade, please remember that all of this celebrates a heritage that was paid for on the backs of our African ancestors. It’s ours to enjoy, so long as we in our freedom keep within us the same light of faith that guided them through a much darker time.
I’m nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Please send your comments to soca at FLOW 935 dot com. Spread the Love…