Musicians perform for charity

At the end of a concert held to raise funds for his cancer treatment, Omavi Langevine (@canvas_poet on Instagram) said, "When I came in I started crying. But they were not sad tears, I am just very overwhelmed, to be honest. Sometimes receiving love does be so – because it is so rare. Sometimes we are accustomed to giving it, but receiving can be really overwhelming."

The concert, hosted by Jerome "Rome" Precilla, featured musical performers Kalpee, Jivanna, Zayna McDonald Shannon Francois, Marge and Nihilet Blackman and Lights the Band merged their musical vigour with Freetown Collective at Rise, and poetic flow of Kyle Hernandez, the concert. The concert was held on June 29 at the Big Black Box at 33 Murray Street, Woodbrook.

Langevine, a writer, poet and musician, is being treated for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) which is defined by cancer.org, a website managed by the American Cancer Society, as a form of cancer starting in the bone marrow.

On a gofundme.com page set up by his friend Jenice Anthony, Langevine shared a snippet of his experience since diagnosis in a written post. Gofundme allows people from anywhere in the world to make donations online.

In the post, he said, "I celebrated my 31st birthday on the 22nd of February 2019. Approximately 11 days after I was admitted to a local hospital in Trinidad for a low blood count level. What I initially thought to be anaemia in the month of January, turned out to be a rare and aggressive case of leukaemia. I had a bone marrow biopsy done and was officially diagnosed with AML on March 11, 2019."

The partipating artistes agreeed to perform for free, and all proceeds go directly toward assisting him with the cost of treatment which could save the life of the poet, who believes his journey is far from over.

Kyle Hernandez opened with poetry, followed by Zayna McDonald singing songs from yesteryear, including Frank Sinatra's Fly Me to the Moon. Shannon Francois gave a soulful performance which included two of her original songs, after which Nex Chapta turned up the energy with high-energy roots rock reggae music.

Nihilet Blackman and her all-female band Lights the Band got the audience rocking, followed by the sultry of Jivanna, then Marge Blackman. International recording artiste Kalpee graced the stage with three of his original songs, including singles Colourful and Thinking bout You. Performances were closed by Freetown Collective – ending the line-up with a mixture of slow and steady and high-energy songs. One concertgoer said, "For a minute the performance by Freetown Collective turned the concert into a rave."

Each performer expressed how happy they were to perform for free to benefit a fellow performer.

Rome said he was invited to host the event because the original host was unable to make it. After hearing about the reason for the concert and hearing more about Leangevine, he was happy to be part of the production.

"When I came here and saw Omavi and everyone here, I knew this is a person who is loved."

Langevine said, "I am glad for all the support. It shows that people care and it is so mind-blowing. I don't know how to say thank you enough to everyone."

He said he has always been passionate about sharing in a way that may inspire and encourage others. In spite of being challenged in terms of physical strength, he shared a piece of poetry he wrote before getting sick – saying it is as if he wrote knowing he would need it one day. "Sometimes we write prophetically to help ourselves."

One morning while being treated in Cuba he recalled the words, "Dear broken heart, I know what loneliness feels like. When the walls of your mind close around you like prison bars and the only voice you hear is the torture of your own in an echo, say to yourself 'I am loved.' That I am the art of healing plastered across these walls in abstract beauty. When waking up to mornings feel like punishment for your present situation and you would rather be buried under a tomb or blanket and pillows hoping to find resurrection...when your feet can no longer find the strength to stand, so the only option left is for your knees to kiss the floor in a prayer of supplication. Find the strength to be proud of yourself, oh broken heart..."

The audience, who were previously dancing and singing along with the performers, were silent, many moved to tears as Langevine shared gratitude and poetry.

He has received over $10,000 of the $120,000 goal via his gofundme.com account thus far. This amount was raised by 108 people making donations within a month.

Performer and friend of Langevine, Jivanna, made a call to action for those in the audience to spread the word among their family and friends for additional financial support, as even after funds were generated by the concert, there was still some way to go.