Booster Shot: 2010 Barbados Music Awards Results and Review

Curious to know who took home the hardware at Sunday's Barbados Music Awards?  Don't worry...I got you. I've posted an article from this morning's Barbados Advocate that will answer all your questions.   Congratulations to all awardees and honorees!

Barbados Music Awards celebrate five years in style

1/12/2010

The fifth Barbados Music Awards was a fantastic event.

Patrons arrived at the Sir Garfield Sobers Gymnasium on Sunday night bedecked in the latest fashions for a five-hour show which paid tribute to Barbados’ music community, the late Michael Jackson and featured international star, Fantasia Barrino.

Red Plastic Bag, Edwin Yearwood and the band Krosfyah captured the majority of the awards that night. Red Plastic Bag won Song of the Year, Soca Mid-Tempo Single (Male) and Best Social Commentary. Edwin Yearwood won Entertainer of the Year and Soca Up-Tempo Single and the band Krosfyah won Band/Group of the Year and Band/Group of the Decade.

TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE CLICK THE LINK BELOW:
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=local&NewsID=8349

Photo: Courtesy "The Barbados Advocate"

Read more...

The Rounds: Soca Monarch prize money slashed

In this edition:
- Trinidad Carnival Update (Trinidad and Tobago)
- Barbados Music Awards (Barbados)
- Toby Dee wins St. Croix Party Monarch (USVI)
- Slammer Cutter video launches this week (Canada)
- Birthdays:  Don Trent  (Barbados), Nigel Nicholas (St. Lucia)


Good Evening Soca Lovers,

I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Uh Oh, big trouble for little Trinidad. Has anyone else noticed that Carnival 2K10 has not officially launched? Usually, Trinidad and Tobago’s National Carnival Commission puts a formal start to the festivities sometime before the close of December.

But even though there’s tons of new music, thousands of costumes in various states of construction, and high priced plane tickets are running low. It’s not officially carnival time in T&T. On Friday, The Ministry of Culture made a few announcements explaining a few budget cuts that will effect the way carnival is done this time around.

I won’t run it all down for ya, but I will say this. It just became 37 per cent less lucrative to be a soca artist. The Top Prize for the international soca Monarch competition will be reduced in 2010 from $1 Million TT to the equivalent of $100 000 US. That’s basically TT 400 grand less.

There’s a little good news though. The prize for Groovy Monarch has gone up 25 per cent, but it’s still peanuts in comparison. None the less a positive step for the more commercially viable expression of soca.

The Barbados music community is celebrating its achievements in 2009 at the 5th annual Barbados Music Awards. The fancy pants gala pays tribute to late pop superstar Michael Jackson (who isn’t Bajan, in case you were wondering) …it will feature performances from people like Edwin Yearwood, Jaico, and Fantasia Barrino of American Idol fame. But the most interesting guest in my opinion is Jo Jackson…as in Michael’s Daddy. Huh? Check my blog this week for the results.

Slammer Cutter and Nurse Karen in Trinidad ( Feburary 2009)

Good news, Toronto’s Slammer Cutter has completed his video for "Bad Weather". You’re gonna love seeing the “HangOver Man” dressed up like a weather man. Awww, so cute!!! Check for "Bad Weather" online on YouTube and Facebook this Wednesday.

Toby Dee is smiling ear to ear this week as he celebrates his Party Monarch win at Cruzian Festival last Sunday. He remains the only Monarch in St. Croix history, having won the title all three years since the competition was added to the carnival.

Before I go, allow me to wish happy birthday to groovy artist Don Trent from Barbados who will be 24 on Thursday. Then Friday we send some birthday love to St. Lucia as artist / producer Nigel Nicholas of Slaughter Arts turns 29 on January 15.

Nurse Karen and Nigel Nicholas in St. Lucia (July 2009)

I’m Nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. For more info on any of the storied I’m following, check out Nurse dash Karen dot com or follow me, Nurse Karen on Twitter. Now, back to de Docta!


Love and Soca!

Nurse Karen
Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NurseKaren

Read more...

Booster Shot: TC wins soca artist of the year at BMAs

Congrats to TC (Terrencia Coward) on copping a big award at tonight's Barbados Music Awards...(still in progress)

She will go down un history as the 2009 Soca artiste of the year  much to the surprise of many attendees.

Edwin Yearwood took the award for soca up-tempo single of the year.

Detailed results this week.



Love and Soca!

Nurse Karen



Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device

Read more...

Booster Shot: Barbados Music Awards this Sunday!

The island of Barbados will be honouring its top achievers in the field of music this Sunday, January 10th at the 5th annual Barbados Music Awards. While I've personally never attended the event myself, many of my Bajan contacts have not hesitated to express a few choice words about favouritism and bias that seems to be present in most Caribbean awards gala's these days. Produced by Who's to say if that's the case here, but I still applaud the organizers for staging a top quality event that does much to celebrate an emerging industry that nurtures creative persons in a vast array of genres and disciplines. For a nation of fewer than 300,000 inhabitants, Barbados has endless reasons to feel proud when it comes to music.

The night proves to be a good show with performances from  Edwin Yearwood, Livvi Franc, Jaiko, TC and Ruby Tech.

Boasting international success in Pop with Rihanna, and now Shontelle, in Gospel with Joseph Niles, in Jazz with Arturo Tappin, and soca with the likes of Alison Hinds and Rupee, the musical heritage of Barbados is proud.

Where soca and calypso are concerned, here are your nominees:

SOCA UP-TEMPO SINGLE
Edwin Yearwood - In De Middle A De Road
Mikey - I in Dat
Timmy - Tim De Tool Man

Soca Mid-Tempo Single (Male)
Blood – Back It Up
Mikey – I In Dat
RPB – Something’s Happening

Soca Mid- Tempo Single (Female)
Alison Hinds – Chocolate and Vanilla
Natahlee – What We Do
TC – Hot Sun and Rhythm

Best Social Commentary
John King – My Caribbean
RPB – Home Drums
Sheldon Hope – Last Days

Best Collaboration
Alison Hinds & Richie Spice – King and Queen
Ayana John & Elephant Man – Pose
Kirk Brown, Justin King & Tejay – Shawty Get Low

Song of the Year
Edwin Yearwood – In De Middle A De Road
RPB – Something’s Happening
Shontelle – Battle Cry

Album of the Year (Artist / Group)
Ayana John – Ayana John
Krosfyah – Kings of the Groove
Shontelle – Shontelligence

Album of the Year (Compilation)
Monsta Piece – AWOL
Tone Deaf Studios – Chaos
Various – Soca Tite Choonz

Producer of the Year
Anderson “Blood” Armstrong
KB Sharp
Peter Coppin

Songwriter of the Year
Edwin Yearwood
Mr. Dale
RPB

Backing Vocalist of the Year
Indra Rudder
Lisa Howell
Ria Borman

Soca Artist of the Year
TC
RPB
Edwin Yearwood

Band/Group of the Year
Krosfyah
Strategy
Fully Loaded

Entertainer of the Year (Male)
Edwin Yearwood
Kirk Brown
RPB
Blood
Buggy

Entertainer of the Year (Female)
Alison Hinds
Shontelle
Rihanna
Ayana John
TC

Song of the Decade
Rupee – Tempted To Touch
Edwin and Khiomal – Sak Passe
Biggie Irie – Nah Going Home
Alison Hinds – Roll
Rihanna – Umbrella

Band/Group of the Decade
Krosfyah
Strategy
Massala
Fully Loaded
The Merrymen

Entertainer of the Decade (Male)
Edwin Yearwood
RPB
Rupee
Anderson “Blood” Armstrong
L’il Rick

Entertainer of the Decade (Female)
Alison Hinds
Rihanna
Toni Norville
TC
Natahlee

2010 BMA Honourees
Cornerstone Awards
Arturo Valentino
JoAnne Sealy
Andrea Gollop- Greenidge
ANTHONY BRYAN
Natahlee
Herring
Biggie Irie
John Sealy
John Roett
Tony Thompson

Lifetime Achievement Award
Tony Hoyos
Living Legend
Marvo Manning
BMA Award of Excellence
Terencia “TC” Coward
The 5th anniversary awards gala will feature a special tribute to the late Michael Jackson (who boasts no Barbadian heritage from all reports). Tickets can be purchased right up until Sunday at 7pm for a cool $200 BBD, that's $100 US for a seat in the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium.

If you end up going, lemme know how it goes down!

Love and Soca,

Nurse Karen

For more information on the Barbados Music Awards, check out www.goldcoastrecords.com

Read more...

The Rounds - August 19, 2007

Good evening Soca Lovers, I’m nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s rounds. Grenada carnival wrapped up on Tuesday. And Congratulations are in order for Berbice. Traffic was THE chune heard most often on the road, beating out Ah Cyah Hear by Lava Man, and Tall Pree’s Trees.
Sadly, There won’t be any carnivals in the West Indies for a little while now, but THEY can’t expect the rest of us to stop de jumping. Yuh gah be real athletic to keep up with all the carnival action, so ah feel we ought to light a torch and send it rrround the world just like they do for the Olympics. So from Grenada, we passing we soca torch to Ottawa, then it’s going to Boston and Notting Hill, England. We blazing right back to Barrie, Ontario on September 1st. They will be hosting their first ever CaribFest just north of Toronto. Then dat torch lighting up the sky in Brooklyn a few days later.
I’ll be completing MY personal carnival marathon for the Summer in London and New York. Next Monday, you’ll find dis Vincy Vixen on the road with Poison UK before crossing the ocean for the 5th Annual International Soca Awards.
I f you haven’t cast a vote yet, now is the time to show your support for our very own reigning BEST INTERNATIONAL Soca DJ…Dr. Jay de Soca Prince. He’s looking to take the title again this year, but that can only happen if you take the time to VOTE. Head over to triple W dot Soca Awards dot com and show dem boys exactly why Toronto IS Soca City.
Well, if back to back wins isn’t reason enough to believe dat Dr. Jay is a soca Olympian, how about this? VP Records is bringing the 7th edition of D’Soca Zone to a record store near you. The two disc collection of soca favourites from the year gone by, features a bonus CD mixed and hosted by de docta he-self. So if you’ve been wondering where to LEGALLY buy songs like We Ready to Go, Hott Spot or Flames. Here’s your chance.
Speaking of great BAJAN chunes…A date has been set for the 2008 edition of the Barbados music awards. If you love the creativity and sweetness of Bajan music of EVERY genre, January 27th is THE night. The Sir Garfield Sobers Complex will come alive to celebrate the very best.
I’m Nurse Karen and those were Doctor Jay’s rounds. Please text your comments to 9-3-5-9-35. Now back to de Docta!

Read more...

The Rounds - January 15, 2006

Dr. Jay’s Rounds
Karen Richardson
January 14, 2006

Good Evening Music lovers. I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds.
Here at Soca Therapy, the good doctor and I work tirelessly to do one thing. We want you gain a deep and crucial love and appreciation for Soca music. Now music makes the world go round…and if you think I got the saying wrong - think again! Music is music…and it’s all love!

First stop this week is to the lush island paradise of Jamaica. There in its salubrious hills, reggae veteran Freddie McGregor is getting set to take his grammy-nominated career to the world of reality TV. The television docutrip aims to educate people on the similarities in the music, culture and festivals of Jamaica and Trinadad. “Freddie’s first” is an effort to unify the two island nations. He’ll begin taping during Carnival in Port of Spain next month. And it’s all about the music people. McGregor will be releasing his first ever soca collaborations as he hits the road with Poision, in their mas’ section called dreams.

As we travel south through the bubbly blue Caribbean Sea, we encounter a sandy gem called Barbados. There, just last week, the glitteratti converged on Bridgetown for the Barbados Music Awards. For a tiny little place, that country produces more than its fair share of great music. Some of BIM’s brightest stars ascended the stage to get their shine: Joseph Niles in Gospel, Rihanna in Pop, Rupee in Soca…and the Queen of Soca herself, Ms. Alision Hinds took home the hardware for best R&B recording. Errks! Yeah, you heard me right. Roll….roll it gyal, roll it gyal…is only considered to be Soca north of Miami…but we love the music same way!

Last stop this week is the twin island cultural mecca of Trinidad and Tobago. Long considered the New York of the Caribbean, it’s air waves blast musical styles that kiss every corner of the globe. For our purposes here we love Trini bad because it’s the birthplace of Soca and Pan. As they warm up for carnival, Dr. Jay promises to keep you in the know with the latest releases and blazing soca monarch contenders. This year’s theme is the World Cup of Soca. When the Monarch is crowned he or she will take home $400 thousand TT, tickets to see the national football team at the FIFA world cup in germany and a BRAND NEW CAR. Ah tell you, if that is not reason enough to love this music, I couldn’t tell you what is.

I’m nurse Karen and Those are Doctor Jay’s Rounds. Send your comments to Soca at FLOW 935 DOT COM. Ah gone.

Read more...