Booster Shot: Tizzy Exports Her Wine to France

Well, would you get a load of that?  What possibly could an Antiguan, or any West Indian have to teach the French about Wine? Well, the French certainly have us beat when it comes to Champagne, Chardonnay, and Merlot...but who better to teach the "Tizzy Wine", that Tizzy herself!

More evidence of important strides for Eastern Caribbean Soca artistes!  See what I mean in the press release below.

Love and Soca,

Nurse Karen

Tizzy exports her ‘Wine’ to France

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE St. Johns, Antigua - Tanzania “Tizzy” Sebastian returned to Antigua earlier this week from her first appearance in France where she headlined the Karibbean Bounce Carnival in Bordeaux .

 

Bordeaux a city known internationally for its wine got its first taste of the “Tizzy Wine” on Saturday, March 6^th. “We knew how popular ‘Expose’ was but I was surprised how well known her other hits like ‘Tizzy Wine’ and ‘Bounce’ are in France ” said Tizzy’s manager Rohan Hector. Apparently a youtube video of Tizzy demonstrating her signature dance during a radio interview went viral spawning the dance craze in France .

 

Tizzy and her band El-A-Kru have become fixtures on the entertainment circuit throughout the Caribbean and Caribbean Diaspora since she received the award for “Best New Female Soca Artist” at the International Soca Awards in 2007. Having already performed in London , Saturday’s performance became Tizzy’s first in continental Europe .

 

Her popularity in France was clear as she was approached by fans asking for autographs while sightseeing in Bordeaux prior to the show. “People were running up to me in the streets to show me their ‘Tizzy Wine’” Tizzy answered when asked about her reaction in France . “It was amazing being onstage and having people who do not even speak English, singing our songs word for word.”

 

The show was a success with an above capacity crowd turning out to see Tizzy’s energetic performance. Forced to improvise when her microphone stopped working in the middle of a song, Tizzy taught the crowd the ‘Tizzy Wine’ until her microphone was replaced. She received several encores, the promoter himself said “she was very good, they loved her.”

 

“I believe Tizzy will be the first female artist to take soca Global,” says Brad Hemmings, CEO of Caribbean Entertainment Tizzy’s agency that has also booked reggae and soca artists to perform in exotic places such as Russia , Australia and the Middle East .

 

Tizzy is scheduled to return to other countries in Europe this summer of on her De Road Show Tour which included stops in Guadeloupe and St. Thomas prior to France and continues on to Calgary, Canada this week. 

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The Rounds - October 21, 2007

Good Evening Soca Lovers, I’m nurse Karen and these are Doctor Jay’s Rounds. It’s another hot Sunday in Toronto, and to mark the occasion, I’ve brought you some equally hot news.
Guyana’s ministry of culture, youth and sport has decided to bring back the Guyana Music Festival that was first started in 1952. Next year, Guyana will play host to the Caribbean’s ideas expo, Carifesta Ten...and the government is praying for a cultural renaissance. The initiative aims to provide more support for the nation’s music industry, and better training for its next generation of entertainers.
St. Lucia’s 2007 groovy soca monarch is not just Goin Down de Road, he’s been jet setting over to gay Paree. Teddyson John and his pan-caribbean performance band, BlueMango just took their act to the 2007 Cibrations Caraibe Jazz festival in Paris France. The band whose members come from Barbados, Martinique, French Guiana and Saint Lucie, received rave reviews after opening for John Legend at the Internationally renowned St. Lucia Jazz festival earlier this year. And now it’s paying off. The group got to take their sound to a festival featuring Caribbean jazz expressions, in Euro’s afro-music mecca!
Another soca artist who’s NO stranger to having his business all over the world, was just invited to speak at Washington D.C.’s historical Howard University. Machel Montano was booked to provide the keynote address at a program called Soca 101, organized by the school’s Caribbean Students’ Organization. Invited, but de big star mussee catch a little stage fright. The educational event went on with no Machel to be seen. He sent his regrets, and I’m told he made an appearance on campus the next day to sign autographs.
When I think of Machel Montano, the last thing that comes to mind is SHYness! Whether he on stage sending a mampie flying in the air, or if he’s just proving dat he’s a real winer man, dat boy oozes confidence. On Friday, Machel and de HD family proved THAT to be true at the ever popular Zen night club, when a couple of bullet proof vested trini cops threatened to shut down de session. Why, you ask? LEWD CONDUCT! Everybody knows, is a regular day in the life of a roadmarch king when the artist gets on stage only to have the girls in the front row INSPECT THE QUALITY OF HIS FAMILY JEWELS. Machel tell de police to lock him up if they want to, but is not he fault de gyal dem getting on scandalous. In the end, the incident produced nothing but hearty laughter from all in attendance…and earned Mr. Montano Nurse Karen’s 2007 award for the King of Commess. Machel, I love you bad jed. You make my job so much easier.
Look out for him in 2008 with a brand new roadmarch contender called Unconditional Love, and a groovy follow up to One More Time that he previewed for the giggling crowd at Zen.
I’m Nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Please text your comments to 9-3-5-9-3-5, now back to de doctor.

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The Rounds - June 17, 2007

June 17, 2007

Good Evening Soca Lovers, I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds for Father’s Day 2007.
It’s another hot weekend in the city. And when it’s hot, you have to find creative ways to keep that temperature in check. For some, that meant strolling down to Barbados on the water to see Rupee. While others preferred to chill out in they short pants on the Palazzo Patio for another soapy foam fete. No matter how allyuh stay cool…is good once you doing it with soca.
The coolest thing out of St. LUCIA right now is the Lehgo Me Riddim. This infectious production is the work of a guy named ACE who managed to get Bunji, Faye Ann, Qpid, Skinny Fabulous and Zoelah each to give it their own special touch. My personal favourite is a track called “Presha Boom” by St. Lucia’s own Ricky T. And is not just me who feel de chune wikkked, yah kna. EVEN though Lucian carnival is just barely underway, VP records is already in talks with Ace and Ricky T about putting that bad boy on the next soca gold compilation. If it dey dey…guess who go be first in line to buy it?
In case you ARE looking for new music to buy, you might want to consider the new Scrappy Album. In 2005/2006 Scrappy earned himself the Montserrat Soca Monarch Crown, but I’m sure some of my Montserratian crew would remember him as a two-time JUNIOR CALYPSO monarch. Well he’s all grown up now, and he’s celebrating his 25th birthday with the release of his third album “Soca Is Life”, out on Faluma Digital in Europe…and through iTunes everywhere else.
Speaking of Europe…Trinidadian Fireman Bunji Garlin is packing his bags for a seven city European tour alongside Germany’s biggest soca sound system…The Soca Twins. From June 28th -- July 10th Bunji will be racking up the air miles from Germany to France, Sweden to Italy. And iWayne ( you know - the reggae artist who said soca is devil music)…he go be home ..wid he Mummah.
On a more serious note, a budding soca artist died tragically on Thursday night in Trinidad. Eric Cyril Stephenson otherwise known as Sphinx was gunned down at home in Petit Bourg. You may remember Sphinx from songs like “Wine on You” from 2004 and his 2005 duet with Kes called “Doh Buss No Gun”. The talk is…that Sphinx was known to local police for drug trafficking, and witnesses of the shooting death say that he seemed to know his killer.
On thing I know – dat kinda schupitness has got to stop! Just turn up de sweet soca music and stay cool. Don’t let a little sunshine give you a hot head!
I’m nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Text me your comments at 9-3-5-9-3-5, now back to de Docta!

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