Party time at UWI

WITH less than one month to Carnival, Kees Dieffrenthaller and Neil "Iwer" George made it no secret that they are after the Road March title with their newest collaboration Stage Gone Bad.

Performing at UWI fete’s 30th anniversary on January 26, the pair sounded the battle cry leading partygoers in a chant of “Bad for the Road.”

Both artistes, in the past two years, had high-profile campaigns for the Road March title against reigning champion Machel Montano. In 2018, George’s Savannah placed second to Montano’s and SuperBlue’s Soca Kingdom. In 2019, Dieffrenthaller's Savannah Grass placed second to Montano’s Famalay collaboration with Skinny Fabulous and Bunji Garlin.

Also making an appearance during Dieffrenthaller's set was Aaron “Voice” St Louis who performed the pair's popular groovy soca Dear Promoter. Dieffrenthaller, with Kes The Band, brought the curtains down on the fete with a 40-minute set that included hits like Savannah Grass, and I Shall Return.

This edition of fete, themed White Diamonds, paid tribute to late president and fete founder Professor George Maxwell Richards. Richards, who served as UWI St Augustine Campus principal from 1985-1996, created the all-inclusive UWI fete in 1991.

Ravi B and Karma brought the energy in a set that featured Nisha B, Swappi and SuperBlue. In his signature rag-waving style, SuperBlue gave a charged performance of his 2013 Road March and Soca Monarch winner Fantastic Friday.

Earlier in the afternoon, calypso legend David Rudder treated partygoers to a string of his classics from Trini to d Bone to High Mas, while patrons sipped on Angostura cocktails and munched on a variety of food including bake and shark, doubles, roti and Asian cuisine from Passage to Asia.

Other entertainment also came from Dil-E-Nadan, St Lucia’s Motto, Shurwayne Winchester, College Boy Jessie and Patrice Roberts. During Robert’s set a brief technical difficulty caused sound to be lost on stage but she carried on in an acoustic performance of her hit Carry On. The Laventille Rhythm Section was also on hand.

Among partygoers were Elizabeth Montano and Richard’s widow, Dr Jean Ramjohn-Richards.

Monies raised from the annual fete goes to the UWI Development and Endowment fund which provides scholarships and bursaries to UWI students in need. Over 3,000 scholarships and bursaries totalling $17 million have been distributed to UWI students since in the fete’s inception.