Brandon overcomes grief with calypso, sports

Brandon Anthony Luces, 11, aspires to be a soldier when he grows up, because of the discipline that goes with the job.

“I am a disciplined young man,” he said.

Brandon is overcoming the loss of three influential men in his life who have all died within the past six years by focusing on sports and culture.

He is involved in cycling, football and basketball. He also plays the drum, the pan with Old Tech Steel Orchestra and is mastering the art of stilt-walking with Junior Bisnath of the Kaisokah Moko Jumbies.

Last month, he added singing to his packed portfolio when he entered for the first time and won the 2020 Calypso Monarch competition at Coffee Boys Anglican Primary School, San Fernando, where he is a standard four student. He performed Black Stalin’s Better Days.

“I also won second place,” he said, explaining he was a back-up singer for one of his classmates who placed second.

Brandon was also given an opportunity to perform his winning piece at Jazzart, on February 27, at the Pleasantville home of Providence Brown, who was a flautist with the Ras Shorty I Love Circle, and his wife Caitleen. He also had the pleasure of meeting Ras Shorty I’s (Garfield Blackman) son Sheldon Blackman.

Asked about his interest in calypso when so many children prefer soca, reggae and rap, Brandon said he simply loves the stories that calypsoes tell.

“The stories they tell have meaning. My favourite calypsonian is Black Stalin. I love the positive message in his music.”

His grandmother Avril Luces, with whom he lives at Pleasantville, said, “Anything musical he loves. Everything he loves I encourage him to participate.

“I have him in a lot of activity to keep his mind off his loss,” she said.

On December 21, 2017, four days before Christmas, Brandon’s father Bevon Luces, 28, died when the motorcycle he was riding skidded off the road. He was to take Brandon Christmas shopping.

Three years before, Brandon’s grandfather, former national cyclist Ken Luces, died from natural causes and his uncle Brent was shot to death in 2015.

“Losing my dad was hard. He was everything to me. We were close like that. I think about him all the time,” he said.

He recalled his father was going to buy him a bike when he died.

Influenced by his grandfather, Brandon started riding at three and has been a member of the club Rigtech Sonics ever since, participating in cycling events and winning medals.

The right wing player was also voted MVP for his school’s football team. He hopes to pass for St Benedict’s College, when he writes the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) exam on April 2.

“I think it is a good school and I could win a football scholarship over there.”

His grandmother said he has been doing well at school. “It has been really tough for him. Many times he would just break down and cry because he misses his dad. My heart melts but God is so good to him. I know his dad is looking down on him. He is very involved in the First Church of the Open Bible and spent the Carnival weekend at the church camp. He has a lot of love and support from friends and family.”

Like Black Stalin sang, she believes better days are coming from Brandon.