Dillon's Sister Event, "Trinidad & Tobago Carnival"

Dillon's Sister Event, "Trinidad & Tobago Carnival"

WHO              Dillon Roads
WHEN            Sunday, July 1, 2018
WHERE          A Beach above Roissy
DJ                   Dillon Roads

 


 


 

by Sadie Xue, Roissy Journaliste
Photography by Journaliste Team

I had the opportunity to sit with Dillon Roads to talk about her Sister Event: Soca Vibez Beach Carnival

Sadie: Dillon, I can see the excitement on your face after your successful event! I promise not to keep you long but first can you briefly describe your event?

Dillon: Soca Vibez Beach Carnival is not a typical carnival in the sense of rides and tickets, but a phenomenal celebratory festival held notably in Trinidad and Tobago which is where the music "soca" comes from. The dances were mostly salsa and reggae influenced to go with the Carribean theme, and a trivia competition was held in which there were four winners. I also got to debut as a DJ at Roissy that night which was so much fun.

Sadie:  How did you come up with the idea?

Dillon: Last year my friends and I went to this Caribbean yacht party where Soca music was what the DJ was playing. I ending up falling in love with the music and started researching it and learned about the festivals held in Trinidad and Tobago. Also "Carnival" was all anyone seemed to talk about at the party. It seemed like a good opportunity to explore the music more and then share it with the community.

Sadie:  What was your favorite part?

Dillon: Forgetting to set the fireworks off? Hehehe I don't know? ALL OF IT. It was just so wonderful. I enjoyed every minute of it especially the DJ-ing, it was such a fun experience for me to feed off my Roissy family and speak to them. I guess that was my favorite part.

Sadie:  Now that it is over, how do you feel it went?

Dillon:  AMAZING! So happy with how it turned out. I couldn't have asked for a better .

Sadie:  Wonderful, congratulations on your event and thank you for taking the time to speak with me.


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So what exactly is the Mardis Gras of the West Indies?

Excerpts 1-3 from https://www.everfest.com/e/trinidad-and-tobago-carnival-port-of-spain-trinidad-and-tobago

1. ###### About the Festival ##########

"The worldwide phenomenon of Carnival — that raucous party that occurs just prior to Lent in the Catholic tradition — has many manifestations depending on where it’s celebrated.

But while Brazil gets all the attention for its party, the Caribbean island of Trinidad puts on an epic celebration of its own that’s not to be missed. Every year on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, this tiny island nation lets loose in a unique and colorful burst of tropical love that’s a year in the making during the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival."

2. #######Origins of the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival#####

"Carnival in Trinidad is a true hybrid celebration, originating when West African slaves began mimicking (and mocking) the lavish ballroom festivities of their French masters with their ornate costumes and dances.

The West Africans adopted the elaborate masks and costumes while creating their own music using household items like sticks and pans. Eventually, the complex rhythms and melodies of this improvised orchestra evolved into the calypso music that forms the backbone of Trinidad Carnival to this day.

In the middle of the 19th century, slavery was outlawed but the tradition carried on, mixing calypso music with French influences to create another hybrid, the Caribbean-based genre of music known as soca."

3. ##### A Feast for the Senses ########

"The modern incarnation of the Trinidad Carnival is a bawdy, rum-flavored feast for the senses: dancing, eating, drinking, sweating—generally speaking, the biggest party (also known locally as a fête) that you can imagine.

Carnival is definitely not a spectator sport. You could stay on the sidelines if you tried, but what’s the point?

Participate in the masquerade by purchasing an outfit or designing one of your own.

Remember, this is the Caribbean: the emphasis is on sexy.

Make sure you look the part.

Feather boas, sequins, brightly colored undergarments and other such revealing clothing are the standard here. The less inhibited, the better!"

// For inspiration on what to wear, try this link I found of the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival in 2016!!
Video: Carnival is Here - Trinidad and Tobago Carnival 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjC-GmQTk3E&feature=youtu.be

4. ########### The Power of Soca Music ###############

For hundreds of years the Caribbean islands were inhabited by three main indigenous tribes - the Arawaks, the Ciboney and the tribe that gave the island its name: the Caribs.

Then Columbus shows up in 1492 and things changed forever.

Whereas Spain originally claimed the entire region as its own, soon bloody battles would rage over the Caribbean islands, with France, Spain, England, Netherlands and Denmark all claiming various islands as their own.

Meanwhile, the tribes native to the islands were being annihilated. As the people were wiped out, so was their way of life.

What remained was a burning desire within the indigenous Carribeans to stake out new identities and forge past their imperial pasts.  

Music became a catalyst for change of the Carribean spirit and identity.

Popular genres like Trinidad and Tobago's calypso or Dominican Republic's bacata and merengue emerged but the one genre of music that became popularly associated with Carribeans was Jamaica's reggae.

Jamaica's reggae was just as popular among younger generations in the 1970s as was funk and soul which came out of the USA.

In fear that calypso was dying due to rising popularity of reggae, soul and funk, and in an effort to revive it, a new form of music emerged that took its stylistic origins from chutney, cadence, and more popularly, funk and soul.

This music would go on to become the most popular genre in the Carribean today.

It is the music of Trinidad and Tobago known as soca.





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