The Rounds: Celebrating carnival, Scorpio B-days, Creole Day and Independence!

Originally aired on "Soca Therapy", Sunday, October 25th, 2009 @ 6:45 pm
Flow 93.5 FM in Toronto

In this edition:
- Celebrating Soca Scorpios - Toronto / International
- LA Carnival / Jacksonville Carnival - USA
- Machel at Antillia Carnival - USA
- Sunshine Awards held on Saturday - USA
- Notting Hill Carnival Doc Screened - UK
- Soca Mix in Fader - USA
- Creole Day - Dominica, St. Lucia, Haiti
- St. Vincent Independence - St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Good Evening Soca Lovers,
I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Sometimes I feel like we’re speeding through the 2009 calendar. Coulda sworn it was Summer just the other day...and now...it’s Scorpio season. Soca or Die 10 goes down on Saturday celebrating the birthdays of Dr. Jay, Marxman and a few other soca scorpios including yours truly. But we’re not the only ones. This past week Trinidad’s Jadee, and St. Vincent’s Problem Child had birthdays too, and Lil Bitts has a birthday on Saturday.

If we’re not celebrating one thing, it’s another. West Indians in southern California enjoyed fetes and revelry last weekend for Los Angeles Carnival. This week, the fun moved back to Florida for Jacksonville Carnival yesterday.

Next on the docket is New York City’s Antillia Carnival which will launch in Manhattan on November 5th with a performance by Machel Montano HD. This year’s uber posh preview of Trinidad Carnival will be hosted by former miss Universe Wendy Fitzwilliam, and male supermodel Tyson Beckford.

Last night, New York City also playee host to the 21st annual Sunshine Awards, which recognizes Caribbean achievement in the performing arts. Nominees were chosen from many islands and many creative fields. Where soca is concerned, Shurwayne, Bunji and Fay-Ann all were nominated for best new song, while Alston Beckett Cyrus was honoured for his lifetime contribution to the artform.

As Black History Month in the UK comes to a close this week, a new documentary that showing off the beauty and artistry of Nottinghill Carnival will be screened this week. It’s called "Sequins, Soca and Sweat," and it follows six mas bands through their hectic carnival preparations.

Here in Canada, a well known Montreal club DJ was featured on a major music magazine’s website. Ghislain Poirier’s 25 minute soca mix was selected as this week’s Ghetto Palms feature on Fader dot com. Even through Poirier isn’t known exclusively for soca he has been touring extensively in 2009 promoting raising awareness of the genre and his Soca Sound System EP. We like that kinda thing!

I’m Nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Before I go, I’d like to wish a happy Creole Day to all my Lucian, Haitian and Dominicans on the outside. And to my Vincy Massive Happy 30th anniversary of Independence.

For more info on anything I mentioned here, check me out online at Nurse dash Karen dot com, or follow me, Nurse Karen on twitter. Now, back to de docta!