It’s more special for one o’ we

AS TOLD TO BC PIRES

My name is Destra and no one has been looking forward to Carnival 2023 as much as me.

I’ve been looking forward to this Carnival so much because this year is 20 years since my first album dropped in 2003, 20 years of the iconic song, It’s Carnival.

Last year we had A Taste of Carnival, which was interesting. And a lot of people enjoyed it and were happy for the relief.

But this is the first time since the lockdown we are doing Carnival in a natural way, going to parties and cooler fetes, interacting with people.

I wouldn’t go as far as saying it’s the mother of All Carnivals, but it’s clearly a special one.

I do love performing as much today as when I started, because I never stopped.

Even when Trinidad wasn’t seeing me as often, I was always performing overseas. So for me, 20 years has gone by really, really fast. I was, like, what? It’s Carnival is 20 years old?

Time flies when you’re having fun, I guess.

I appreciate BC Pires saying I’m a very special singer. I get that feeling of being adored by the fans – not so much all the time, in the industry – but, for the most part, I’ve racked up a lot of respect in the 20 years, in terms of people saying I’m a great singer or entertainer.

One or two times you’re going to find one or two people saying the off, negative thing. But you’re always going to have people trying to distract you from being focused.

You wouldn’t be doing a great job if you didn’t have haters (although I don’t like that word).

Initially, harsh personal and maybe undeserved criticism used to bother me a lot. When you read assumptions made about you that you know are not true, and you know these people don’t know you, it could affect you.

I learned to stop reading the “comments” sections. People can say whatever they want, so I can’t fault anyone for having their opinion of me based on what they perceive a situation or outcome to be.

I try to stay true to myself, pray a lot and rely on my family to keep me grounded. I’m surrounded by people that are real, people who tell me, “You shouldn’t have said this or worn that!” Their criticism is coming from a place of love.

If social media is being mean to me, I go back to my foundation. As long as they feel the thing is blown out of proportion, I’m good.

Since my entire family is from Laventille, I guess most of my foundation is from Laventille.

Now that I’m in a position to give my daughter the kind of life I did not have, before rewarding her with something she wants, I teach her the values I learned growing up: you have to work hard, nothing in life comes easy.

At school, her friends all know I’m a strict parent, a mean mummy (but not in a bad way). It’s really hard for her to get me to say yes to stuff. I ask her, “What you got in your last test?” I keep markers. Because of that, she’s on her best behaviour.

I don’t ever take away my daughter’s phone – because she never has her smartphone during the school term in the first place!

When she started secondary school, I got her one of those “me too” phones, because she had to leave her iPhone at home!

Use your computer to do schoolwork. But no social media, Googling or YouTubing! As long as you bring home good grades, you can have all your devices back for Christmas, Easter or summer vacation. And as much TV as you want!

But during term, no devices at all. Me too phone and that’s it!

My faith is important to me, but I question a lot.

I do believe in Jesus Christ, maybe because I grew up in church.

Yes, there has always been sadness in the world, from the very beginning.

But in my own times of trouble, I have found comfort in believing. When I’m in a bind and I put my trust in God, I see things manifested in front of my eyes. I tend to not try to overanalyse it.

BC Pires suggests it’s hard to believe a caring, powerful god would refuse to intervene in human suffering.

But if God intervened in all our lives at every moment we did something wrong, it would have no humans. Because we are all “sinners.”

If God were to intervene in our own lives, I don’t think we’d like every intervention, either. It goes both ways.

David Rudder has been a hero of Laventille my entire life. Everyone in my household was fascinated by him. Hearing him singing The Hammer, my uncles, pannists with Despers, and I remember, as a child growing up, experiencing the funeral of Rudolph Charles David describes in that song.

So it was a very special song to put on my Laventille album, where I put so much of myself in the songs. To do that iconic song over, with the iconic songwriter, as a grownup, with David as one of my colleagues, was something amazing for me to achieve.

I’ve come close but I’ve never got the coveted Road March and Soca Monarch titles.

Iwer George told me, “You’re never a king or queen in your own town, but you’ll get the love outside.” He was right.

But I also feel that whatever’s for you, is for you. So I take comfort in thinking that, if those titles or any other accolade were meant to be mine, I would have them.

But who knows? Maybe some day.

The rumour that this would be my last Carnival is just not true. What the rumour is supposed to say is that this will be my last soca album for a while, and only because I want to focus on producing a Christmas album, an international album, a steelband album and a Gospel album.

It takes so much out of you to create an entire album. I did not say I was never going to sing another soca song. I’m just not going to do another soca album until I’ve achieved those album milestones I want to achieve.

I don’t know why, when I said, “This is my last soca album,” people heard, “This is my last Carnival!”

The state of the country? I grew up in an area where there was a lot of crime so it’s not that I’m normalised to certain things.

I could acknowledge that things have gotten worse.

I’m not aligned politically to any party or government. I will never give a politically charged comment or response.

Shake the Place, the song Machel and I did this year, was supposed to be an anniversary present to all those people who took the time to acknowledge that It’s Carnival is 20 years old, when Machel and I both forgot!

When I reminded him, he said, “Oh shoot! I’m celebrating 40 years in soca but also 20 years of the most iconic soca song!”

And I said, “Yeah, what we gonna do about that? Remix the song?”

And he said, “No you can’t touch a masterpiece! We’ll do something new.”

And people are saying it could be a contender for Road March.

But I’m not going to say such things. ‘Cause 20 years ago, I said and hoped for that!

A Trini is a very happy person that can turn pressure, pain and sadness into joy and festivity. And I’m not talking about Carnival alone. No matter what problems they’re having, a Trini can still say, “Every day is a holiday!”

A Trini will always find some sort of release.

Trinidad and Tobago for me is pride. Flying the flag high everywhere I go, that’s what I feel.

Read the full version of this feature on Friday evening at www.BCPires.com