Soca, Yung Bredda find place in calypso tents in 2025

BLENDING tradition with innovation, D’Kaiso Dynasty, formerly Kaiso House, has made a calculated effort to add more soca to its package, which was previously dominated by calypso.

It is all part of a strategy to present the best package to audiences which have been declining over the years.

Artiste Yung Bredda, who would have been scoffed at and ostracised in the past by traditionalists, is now being embraced.

Tent manager Melissa Williams of the rebranded tent explained why.

“We saw it fit to rebrand and restructure with our strategic direction for the calypso organisation and more so, to consider and begin to activate that more profitable management model.

“One of the ways we see the manifestation of this plausible management model is that it should consist of what we call a very attractive entertainment package.

“We recognise that tents overall have been suffering from audience decline, so one of the key strategies, we believe, to expand our audience, is diversity and representation.

“More importantly, we see our role as not just promoting calypso, but the byproducts of calypso.”

While recognising and still observing tradition, having in its cast legends like Brother Valentino, Brother Mudada, Poser and even Winston ‘Gypsy" Peters, who is clocking 72 years of age, Dynasty is also embracing the modernised byproducts of the calypso.

In essence, it has created a platform aimed at being representative of all the derivatives of Trinidad and Tobago’s indigenous art form.

“Soca has been in the tent before, but we are being very deliberate in the package we present, inclusive of soca, chutney soca, spoken word, even rapso, because this is us."

The tent will open its doors on February 13 with a star-studded cast of vintage mixed with modern material, at Radisson Hotel, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain.

Acts will include former calypso monarchs such as Karene Asche, Chuck Gordon, the father-and-son combination of Duane and Ta’zyah O’Connor, Yung Bredda and Kernal Roberts, former chutney soca monarchs Rikki Jai and GI.

In recognition of its role as a developer, Williams said there is a platform to spotlight young and upcoming artistes. To this end rising star Aaron Duncan, Akeisha and the duo Reece and Nel will also be a part of the cast.

Saying 2025 has been dubbed the "year of calypso," Williams has pledged to push aside that stigma and have it take its place at activities throughout the year.

“We are tired of calypso being seasonal,” said Williams, and the rebranded D’Kaiso Dynasty, Trinbago Unified Calypsonians’ Organisation’s (TUCO) flagship tent, is making the bold move to change that.

Part of its strategic direction is to take TT’s cultural artform to the world, using calypso and its many components, as the vehicle to make this happen.

“We can only be the best of who we are, and that is what would give us our distinct competitive advantage, not only in TT, but across the globe. The world is not looking to us to see another version of America or any other country, but...us, where we are authentic to our national identity.

“We must be bold and have confidence to unapologetically and aggressively promote our national identity because its second to none. One of the ways we are promoting that is through our cultural artform.”

Noting the current challenges with the economy, Williams said they can be part of the creative economy.

“We know for a fact that power in our distinctive competitive advantage lies in our cultural identity and in our cultural products. D’Kaiso Dynasty is really that vehicle to help us transport that strategy as we contemplate taking our indigenous cultural artform to the world.”

Divas Cabaret blending tradition with modern

Also blending tradition with modern is the Divas Calypso Cabaret International tent, which is celebrating the 90th anniversary of the first female calypsonian to sing in a commercial tent, tent manager Dr Rudolph Ottley said. That honour belongs to Lady Trinidad who performed in 1935.

The tent which will feature an all-female cast, including Stacey Sobers, Abbi Blackman and Karen Eccles, will open at the Belmont Community Centre, Jerningham Avenue, Queen's Park Savannah, on February 6. All the shows there are cooler events.

Judges will visit the tent on February 12, and there will be a pre-Valentine’s night show at Sensational Sammy Seafood, Arima.

Tent to crown its own monarch

A clash with Kaiso Showkase comes on February 15. On February 20, Divas Calypso Tent Monarch competition is scheduled to take place. Ottley said it is a traditional event which used to happen in the tents at one time, when each tent would crown their calypso queen or king.

“I just want to revive this tradition among our cast members who will compete on the night for first prize of $5,000.”

External judges, who are yet to be decided upon, will adjudicate on the divas who will all be competing for the crown.

The tent was formerly based at Kafé Blue, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain, and Ottley said having Kalypso Revue at the nearby SWWTU premises, on the same compound, proved challenging, so it had to seek an alternative venue.

Kalypso Revue

Although it is a long season, the tents are not staging many shows. As a result, senior calypsonian Devon Seales, whose home base is Kalypso Revue, said, “I am performing at all the tents where I get the opportunity to do so, because, let’s face it, artistes only have two good nights – opening night and judges’ nights."

He said he will be performing with D’ Kaiso Dynasty, Kaiso Karavan, Revue and one of the special shows with Spektakula on February 12 at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA), Frederick Street, Port of Spain.

Revue will open on February 6 at the Arima Velodrome with a cast, including Seales, Pink Panther, Sugar Aloes (who manages the tent), Makeda Darius, Skatie, Alana Sinnette, Michelle Henry, Singing Sonia and Sasha-Ann Moses.

Kaiso Karavan

La Joya Auditorium, St Joseph, is the venue for the opening of Kaiso Karavan on February 1 and will feature extempo artiste Lingo, Squeezy Rankin, Lady Syntax and former National Women's Action Committee Calypso Queen Sexy Suzie, Johnny King, Stinger, Cardinal, Blackie, Tiny, Dirty Curty and Ninja. Judges’ night, February 9, will be held at Spots Entertainment Centre, Malabar Extension Road, Malabar.

Klassic Russo

Klassic Russo enjoyed a bumper opening night at City Hall, Port of Spain on January 29.

Opening batsman was Andre Nelson with a gem called Colours of Calypso. Twiggy, at 65 and still relevant, earned three encores as did All Rounder, singing a dirty ditty about why he would not change his name.

He was joined by extempo great Gypsy, who was in the audience wearing his National Carnival Commission (NCC) chairman's hat, as they dabbled in a kind of war, to the enjoyment of the audience.

Shirlane Hendrickson told the Newsday on January 30, “We had a great opening. The audience was great. We had a wonderful mix (cast) of elders, young ones and new faces. Everyone gave their best.”

Staying vintage, and performing one of his well-loved songs, You Can’t Buy an Extempo, Contender invited visually-impaired extempo artist Niall Manswell to demonstrate how stringent the exercise is when you have to stand and compose on the fly, and sing in rhyme and time, the topic randomly given to you.

Icon’s Calypso Tent

Grand opening of Icon’s Calypso Tent is slated for Sanderson Park, Fyzabad, on February 8. Showtime is 8.15 pm.

The tent is led by Cro Cro and among the cast are Heather Mac Intosh, Short Pants, Sekon Alves, Durango, Marinda Joseph, Organiser, Bianca Hull.

Judges will visit the tent on February 11 at the Garden Theatre, Queen’s Hall, St Ann's.

A special Valentine’s night is in store for lovers at Kafe Blue, Wrightson Road.