Trinidad and Tobago’s Soca monarchs Fayann Lyons and Bunji Garlin still have their sights set on successfully introducing their band One World Rebellion to Jamaica’s Carnival celebrations.
After a packed start in December 2018 in New Kingston, fans were not expecting to hear organizers announce that the group was pulling out of the 2019 road march festivities less than three weeks before the scheduled date.
“A lot of restructuring is going on,” Lyons said star. “We understand that what happened was not what it was, but at the end of the day, Jamaica is also home to us. We are a Caribbean people, so Jamaica can ask us to come back, not for 2023, but perhaps following the year.”
of Raze Soca artiste explained that outside of the issues causing the cancellation then, other considerations must be made after the pandemic. Noting that the carnival in general is a big investment for the countries and regions that are involved in it, she said they were specific as it related to future plans.
She said, “Groups that have been around for many years are better able to mobilize in the event of something. However, after a pandemic like the one the world saw, we have seen some lose or relinquish ownership of their groups. It has not been easy”.
Lyons shared that they partnered with sections in Barbados and anticipate that for Carnival celebrations in Trinidad and Tobago, they will be full.
“I’ve been participating in carnival for so many years. It lets you learn not to expect anything, but just do your job. The universe can be so strange. Instead, I say prepare, keep your feet on the ground , but keep yourself flexible. It’s a good idea to set goals, but you can put yourself in a situation where you need to know to change things more than a little,” she said.
We are currently preparing for the new soca season, selecting dates for the release of soca songs, which, she said, is also a timely and complicated task.
“When you put out soca songs for the season, as an artist you want to be sensitive, because it’s you and 15 million other people putting music out there. It’s a coordination process, even selecting the beats of how loud soca versus soca- s with power. And also, because you’re working with multiple manufacturers who don’t necessarily consult with each other, it’s important to time the releases,” Lyons said.
Enhance, her first official release for the 2023 soca season, is a conversation piece where a chick talks about making a woman’s husband a better person. It has amassed over 15,000 streams on YouTube since September 27th.
