Recap of Trinidad Carnival 2009

Trinidad Carnival is deemed to be "the greatest show on earth" and many who travel there every year will concur. To many the cost of such experience is Priceless!

This season Faye Ann made history , grabbing four prestigious, Machel titles , namely ; Groovy Soca Queen, International Soca Monarch Queen, Road March Queen and also People's Choice. Congratulations goes out to her and her Alysum Family.

There are few who will agree that Faye Ann did deserved those titles, her performance of Heavy T Bumper where she bought out Calypso Legend Calypso Rose was impeachable! Many rumors were going around Port of Spain saying that she must bring out her father during her performance of Meet Superblue. If you did not know SuperBlue is Faye Ann's Father and a well acclaimed artist, being one of the most popular during his time. Well Faye Ann bought out the icon towards the second verse of her song, but no one expected her to place the microphone next to her 8 month pregnant belly and have a prerecording of a baby voice singing a verse of Meet Superblue. If she did not have the crowd then well that just sealed the crown for her ! The crowd went wild and it was certain the show belonged to this woman.

Sneak Peak at the Winning Performance






Iwer Goerge, who came in as one of the crowd's favorite that night, almost fell short as he struggled to gain that huge crowd appeal (which Faye Ann had) . He made a quick reference to one of the rumors circulating the Caribbean about Machel and Shuwayne and from then he caught their attention and at that point we could judge he would be comfortable at second place , if Faye Ann beau (Bunji Garlin) did not come out to mash up the stadium.

Former Soca Monarch King , Bunji Garlin , came on stage having known what the outcome would be that night. He was comfortable placing second ahead of Iwer George. So he stunned the crowd with his lyricist skills as he sang "Clear de Road". And as predicted, Bunji and Iwer tied for second place.

Non Trinidian artists like Skinny Fabulous made an impact with his "Head Bad" tune as the crowd chanted de chorus "On de Spot". Unfortunately due to lack of air play the crowd did not respond so favorable to other non Trinidian artists.

On the road, Skinny track was one of the few non trinidian songs that got immense air play along with Lil John "Floor on Fire" track featuring Machel.

Destra came out strong this year not only with Bacchanal but Obessive Winners featuring the two soca queens Densie Saucy Wow and Alison Hinds. Destra Bacchanal trailed second in the Road March for 2009.

Machel, the King of Soca came out with plenty tracks, but he along with many disco jockey's focused on "Wild Ants" but ”Tusty" by Blaxx came ahead placing third in the Soca Monarch and Road March.


What makes Trinidad Carnival stand out more is the fetes leading to it. Many may have opted for all inclusive parties and others smaller parties, but this is all part of the Trini experience.

J'overt is the true commencement of carnival , and whether playing with a band or not, it kicks off the two day street affair. Revelers put on their paints, mud , chocolate or old mas costumes and chip all the way into Port of Spain keeping one of the traditional aspect of Carnival alive.

The two day masquerade comprises of many bands ranging from small, medium and large. Each part of Trinidad showcase their own Carnival but most people (especially foreigners) take part in the one held in the capital , Port of Spain. Many persons are not interested in the bands that make it on the list of Band of the Year , the most popular party bands are IslandPeople, Tribe , Harts , Evolution just to name a few .

If you want more detail of Carnival 2009 , you can log onto www.torontolime.com and follow Carnival 360 or you can log onto www.mustadseedmedia.blogspot.com for a day to day revelation of Carnival 2009.


Written by Rochelle Noel
Published : www.yomagazine.net

Lil John Births Dirty Soca

Many may know Lil John by his hit singles “Get Low” , “ Lover or Friends” or even “What you Gon Do. When he emerged on the music scene he was crowned King of Crunk with his hit making lyrics and beats. This year Lil John has emerged on the soca scene creating the much needed buzz for the Caribbean. According to www.jahkno.com, Lil John “started out as a dancehall selecta or deejay, as a member of the Four Seasons Sound System during the '90s.”, which makes his move into soca not a surprising one at all!

His latest single “Floor on Fire “featuring Pitbull and the king of soca himself, Machel Montanto, was released weeks ahead of the greatest show on earth, Trinidad Carnival. This single, not only has been receiving immense air play but has created history, as being the first track of its kind to rupture on the Soca Scene. http://www.jahkno.com/ describes “the success of the production has evolved the track into a full-fledged riddim, with numerous Caribbean stars voicing on it, including Kevin Lyttle and Mr. Vegas. As a result, a new breed of soca is being introduced …”
Trinidad Carnival was expected to be the backdrop of the video shot of this single which is to be featured on his upcoming album “Crunk Rock” In many reports, Lil John is convinced that this single will go worldwide depicting the beauty of Caribbean Music

Lil John has given this genre his unique flavor and anticipation of who next to jump on the dirty soca genre scene has heightened, for the success of “Floor on Fire” so far is opening many more doors for our Caribbean artists in the mainstream culture.


Written by :Rochelle K.Noel

Published: www.yomagazine.net

Day to Day Trinidad Carnival 2009 !

Trinidad hosted yet again its biggest street parade of the year Carnival February 16th to 17th and I had the opportunity to share the experince with Nurse Karen out of Toronto and we teamed up to give our day to day experinence in the Land of "Oil and Music"

Carnival Wednesday : Bacchanal Wednesday
http://mustardseedmedia.blogspot.com/2009/02/one-de-scene-my-first-experience.html

Carnival Thursday : Express Yourself UWI Splash
http://mustardseedmedia.blogspot.com/2009/02/on-de-scene-express-yourself-university.html

Carnival Friday : International Soca Monarch
http://mustardseedmedia.blogspot.com/2009/02/on-de-scene-faye-ann-crowned-de-queen.html

Carnival Weekend : Jouvert To Carnival
http://mustardseedmedia.blogspot.com/2009/02/on-de-scene-from-jouvert-to-carnaval.html

So Till the Next Mas !

Rochelle K.Noel