On de Scene: Express yourself University Splash

Written by Rochelle!

So last night, carnival Thursday , Chaguaramas hosted one of the many events on the carnival calendar , the University Splash also known as UWI Splash . Now people, I  go give you a little view of what went down at the UWI Splash when I was there. The Nurse will give you the backstage information and the last performances, which were Fay-Ann and her beau, Bunji Garlin.

Now, I arrived at the Hanger at 10 p.m. because I was under the impression session starting on time. Imagine when I reach not even the doors were opened yet. As to what the hold up was, that is question remains unanswered.

After waiting just over twenty minutes by the entrance, security began to allow patrons to enter. On entry the different sponsors had their sample drinks or snacks giving away, which came in handy because the bar wasn't even ready to open for business at the time entry of patrons begun. 

All the students were meeting up , you could see people entering with their flags awaiting to represent their country and crews once party started. But hear that!!! Party eh start till about 1 a.m.! No joke ! Throughout the wait the diso jockey was keeping de crowd moving. Now to make the wait more interesting ah tell you a heavy rain burst, but that didn't stop the students from partying , so party start full swing in the rain as people chant to whatever soca track was playing.

When the MC summon the crowd , informing them that the event was just about to start ; One could well imagine the opening act would kick things off for Macheal Montano HD. Well if you thought like me, you thought wrong because the man himself open the show, and he had the crowd in the palm of his hands.

Overall I must say what give me an extra kick was when I heard the intro for Skinny Fabulous "Head Bad" track . I mean Kubiyashi, (the producer on this track) has one of the most infectious intros I have ever heard and from that I begun jumping up and down as he performed. Unfortunately, he left early to rest up for today's big International Soca Monarch. Machel bought many down memory lane while incorporating his recent tracks bringing on stage Busy Signal and Patrice to perform on whichever track they were featured.

However the highlight of the Machel Montano HD was seeing Chiney. Gosh that tune BAD! Now if you eh know about Chiney , He is the most recent winner of Soca Star (Local Trinidadian Competition) and something about the track had me  stun  because this was my first tme witnessing Chiney's performance and I was impressed!

By 3 a.m. Machel said his good-byes to the crowd as he exited with his Road March contending track "Wild Ants" , but it seem Machel burn the crowd or was it the over 2 hours wait for the show to start! Who knows but it was quite evident when Destra and her band took the stage. She self admitted whether Machel burn the crowd.

 

Of course she bought out the two soca queens to perform the "Obsessive Winners" track and that turned the crowd around. All the entertainment of each performer wine and just the chemistry had the crowd chanting the chorus as these exceptional women sang this track. So at this point Destra had the crowd exactly where she wanted them and just finished them off with her Road March Contending track "BACCHANAL" and the crowd seemed like they were ready to take the streets for jouvert!

Now Bunji and Fay-Ann were due to perform next, and it was already after four, but I am sorry I ran outta patience from waiting longer than normal for Destra and her Band to come on but particular waiting so long for the show to start in the first place. 

So I will make the Nurse give you the 411 on how that event ended ; but be assured I wasn't the only annoyed patron leaving then. Many of the students were heading back to campus and other non students were beginning to leave. 

By now you may have gathered I was not too impressed with the time delays and I have no facts as to why exactly UWI Splash began at the latest it has in the past 5 years. 

So looking towards exciting news, I hope you all ready for today Fantastic Friday and going out to support this splendid event!

 I go now hand it over to the Nurse so she can tell you what she was up to this Carnival Thursday 2009.

Peace, Rochelle.

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Booster Shot: Blakey checked into rehab

This afternoon,Vincentian calypsonian turned drug addict, Blakey, was checked into the Turning Point Rehabilitation Facility in St. Lucia. After several months of significant progress under the careful watch of family members and his musical team, Blakey will continue treatment in the care of qualified medical professionals

Meeting a reformed Blakey for the first time at Insomnia 2008 (Arnos Vale, St. Vincent)

When Project Blakey began in St. Vincent in the Spring, many people believed it to be a gimmick. A soca artist (Skinny Fabulous) and a producer (Kubiyashi) took a homeless drug addicted vagrant, brought him to the studio and made him an instant star. Blakey's "No More Long Talk" rose to the top of the nation's charts over night, and an alcoholic crack fiend was accepted as a legitimate performing artiste. The duet with reigning Soca Monarch Skinny Fabulous has begun to take hold outside of the archipelago, now in the #4 position on the Toronto-Lime.com soca chart.

Producer Kubiyashi

Throughout the Vincy Mas season, Blakey did his best to remain sober out of respect for the persons who took interest in his welfare. However, he suffered a major relapse on Carnival Monday which drove him back temporarily to both the bottle and the pipe.

Those who recognized Blakey's latent charm and previously unappreciated talent have continued to financially support him on his journey. Along with the aid of Skinny Fabulous and Kubiyashi, Blakey's stint in rehab was made possible through contributions from local businessed Tha Hook Up and Pulse, as well as the Vincy Soca Dans and Vincentian glamour model Odini Sutherland.

Hanging with Skinny Fabulous in Toronto

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Nurse's Lounge: Glow oh no!

OK, I can't sugar coat this one. Glow turned out to be a boring fete this year. I think half of SVG must have known in advance, because they mostly stayed home.


This review in no way reflects on the performances. In my opinion, they were great. I taped a tiny bit of Zoelah, but then I started goofing around with my girls. Sorry, eh.

For what it's worth, Here's Miss Z.

The crowd was all concentrated on one side of the stage...um the side closest to the bigger bar. On the other side was a set of bleachers were the music fraternity decided to make the most of it. Oddly enough it was a really nice lime. Everyone looked great in their white. Thanks to a less than exciting vibe in the air, we all stayed pose-worthy cute the whole night through.

If you're wondering how cute, it would be my pleasure to show you!


Bomani





Winston Soso





Kubiyashi





Gideon James





Problem Child

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The Nurse's Lounge: The Night Before the Flight

The Nurse's Lounge: The Night Before the Flight

June 25, 2008

Why does packing take me sooooooooooooooo long?

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The Rounds: Kevin Lyttle mourns the loss of his beloved mother

Good Evening Soca Lovers, I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds.

Antigua and Barbuda has a brand new International Music Festival coming June 12 -15. It’s called Romantic Rhythms and it features the likes of Keyshia Cole, Brian McKnight and Kenny Rogers! Shaggy and Maxi Priest will be showing love reggae-style, and in the soca arena, Miss Destra Garcia and Atlantik will balance out the Caribbean vibes. Here's a shot of me with the guys from Atlantik. We were liming at Glow in St. Vincent. You'll notice they aren't wearing the right colour!

If you draw a straight line going east from the Caribbean, you’ll eventually hit the gold coast of Africa. There you’ll find a group called 5Five that’s making a lot of buzz with their song African Gurlz. The local music in Ghana consists of two infectious styles called Highlife and Hiplife. They aren’t all that different from popular Caribbean sounds, because those very African Rhythms are the foundation of OUR modern music. The 5Five hit is a foray into the genre of soca music, and this week the duo is ecstatic to be nominated for FIVE 2008 Ghana Music Awards. We wish them good luck, whether they win Discovery of the Year, Hiplife Artiste of the Year, Song of the Year, Pop Song of the Year, OR Hiplife Album of the Year – Any win is a big forward for Soca Music internationally. And I support dat!

I was fortunate to travel to Africa for the first time last Spring. I was in Ghana during the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of independence from British rule. Here's a picture of me at the Cape Coast slave castle. That was a very emotional day.

The Summer Olympics will be taking place in Beijing this year(if the boycotts are unsuccessful), and today the torch made its circuit through London England. The Royal city made sure the relay acknowledged every element that makes it a world class destination. One of those elements is the annual Notting Hill Carnival. When the torch made its way to Ladbroke Grove at 10 o’clock this morning, a mini-carnival was waiting there for it. That’s the area where Europe’s largest outdoor festival takes place every August. For FOUR hours, Londoners reveled in Caribbean food and music as they looked ahead to the Olympic games.

And this is me, playing mas at the REAL Notting Hill Carnival...

Happy belated birthday greetings go out to a couple of top Caribbean musicians! Kees’s big brother Jon Dieffenthaller turned 29 on Monday. He’s the guitarist from Kes the Band. Over in St. Vincent, Alex “Kubiyashi” Barnwell, was ringing in his Champagne birthday on the very same day. He burst on the scene in 2005, with the Lava Slide Riddim, A production that featured tracks by soca artistes from six different countries. But you probably know him best as the producer of Zoelah’s smash hit Go Down Low.

Last Summer, Kubiyashi was hanging in Toronto for Caribana. Here we are at CIUT 89.5 FM. Kubi's being interviewed on the World Wide Wake Up Show by Jester and Chief.



Lastly, the entire Soca Therapy family wishes to express our deepest sympathy to Kevin Lyttle and his family in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and abroad on the passing of his mother earlier in the week. The mother and son shared a unique bond…and she will definitely be missed. Here's a shot I snapped of Kevin in happier days. He had just performed at Maddzart's Wild Out in Wred party in SVG in 2006.

I’m Nurse Karen and those were Dr. Jay’s Rounds. Please send me your comments online at the Nurse Karen Etc blog at triple w dot mustardseeds dot net. And don’t forget to download the podcast. Now back to de docta!

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