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By NIGEL TELESFORD

“Come free up yuhself!” is the message coming from Legends’ band leader, “Big Mike” Antoine this week, even as the popular mas-band prepares to officially launch their Carnival 2004 presentation, Freedom tomorrow, at The Anchorage, Chaguaramas.

“Freedom is all about embracing the positive aspects of life,” Antoine explained. “With so much negativity around us; with so many negative elements present in our lives everyday, we felt that for Carnival 2004, we should all be released from these burdens. We have already begun production on a number of sections which have been strategically designed to liberate the masquerader’s mind and body from the pressures of everyday living.”

Early drops from next year’s soca storm drizzle through the speakers of a radio as Legends’ staff assemble materials and portions of costumes at their Carlos Street headquarters in Woodbrook. A healthy-looking plate of food set before him in his office, Antoine wastes no time in ingesting its contents—much like the way his organisation devoured the competition at various international festivals throughout the year.

The Legends legion recently brought home awards and accolades from: their seventh consecutive win at Boston’s Carnival; their fifth consecutive win at New York’s annual Labour Day Parade; their third consecutive victory at the Long Island festival; their first win in St Kitts, as well as rave reviews and placements among the top five bands in Barbados’ Crop Over and London’s Notting Hill Festival among others. Of course, we can’t forget that this band also produced the King and Queen of Carnival 2003 and was announced to have copped the prestigious Band of The Year title yet again—before the results were officially challenged by the NCBA.

“I believe that we bring an energy and a love to every Carnival that we participate in,” explained Antoine, “so there’s no secret to our success really, because its no secret that we love what we do and we enjoy showcasing our culture to the world. I grew up in Carnival, so I embrace it as my culture first and foremost and secondly, as the lucrative industry it has become—which we need to expand and market to the world.”

Antoine is pleased that the NCC has reclaimed the reins of control over our annual festival and looks forward to bigger and better Carnivals “with the support and assistance of the bandleaders and the major players, of course”. He envisions a Carnival committee comprised of TIDCO and Government representatives, bandleaders and the media-at-large, which would be responsible for designing and implementing a global marketing strategy for “The Greatest Show on Earth”.

“We need to assemble and discuss plans for the future,” he insisted. “We are the mother of all Carnivals and yet, we have sat back and allowed smaller festivals in smaller states to become more recognisable and more popular than ours. This is not because theirs is better, but simply because they have done better marketing. We must rectify this situation as soon as possible, so that Carnival can be allowed to grow to its ultimate potential.”

Over the years, the Legends family has attracted and maintained a following of between 2500-3000 masqueraders on the road for Carnival Monday and Tuesday. It’s a figure that Antoine describes as “a manageable group of family and friends” and he is quick to thank them for their loyalty and dedication to the Legends legacy.

“People wonder how we are able to make such an impact on-stage,” he said, “and how our presentation is always so well-organised. The truth is that our masqueraders are the ones who make it happen: we have some players who just like to perform and put on a show for the people; the judges and the world—and they do this on their own because they understand how to play mas and they take a sense of pride in our portrayals.

“If you see us on the road,” added Antoine’s business partner, Juliette de la Bastide. “We’d probably look like chaos. All our masqueraders have the freedom to roam about the band and to jump in any section they desire while we’re on-route to the judging points, but when it’s time for the business of presentation, there’s an unwritten and unspoken code of responsibility that takes precedence above all else.”

In the vein of Freedom, sections with names like “Temptation”, “Perpetual Motion”, “Liberty”, “I Had A Dream” and “In The Wilderness” will be unveiled to the public at their launch on Saturday, along with designs for their well-known “Strong Men and Rude Girls” section and their alliance with the San Fernando-based “Shut Up and Wine Crew” as well.

Legends 2004 will feature five music trucks on the road, with live entertainment provided by the internationally-renowned talents of Bajan bombshell, Allison Hinds and Square One, as well as local winer-boy, Eddie and the band, Triple X. Security will be of the typical Legends’ standard of excellence, with professional and personalised service available to all masqueraders and Antoine has promised several more all-inclusive sections next year, for those with drinking concerns.

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wow finally a decent looking costume from Legends!

i love the wings....
kind of a club village thingy happening there.

its the powerxfour costume with wings......

The wings are cute.

Legends don't exactly stray too far from the same-o same-o do they.

__________________
"If u put a small price on ur value.. rest assure that the world wont raise ur price! Love U 2day!" ~ Rev. Run

"If you keep believing in yourself and seek enthusiasm inside your soul, things will get simpler, more spontaneous." ~Paulo Coelho

"Knowledge is like the wind, once you obtain it, you can go anywhere." ~Yellow Hare(Native-American Chief)

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit
the floor each morning the devil says:
"Oh Crap, She's up!"

girl u know I looking at this and saying wait I got this shite home

the same exact rasshole..... i asking BIG MIKE.. if i could just pay fuh de wings.... and new head piece.. cause dat mash up on spring garden.

heres a pic of some more

Legends costume looks so ordinary to me. They to make a major change. Poison here I come.

is it just me or are these the costumes from last year?

That looks like Bedazzled to me.

__________________
"If u put a small price on ur value.. rest assure that the world wont raise ur price! Love U 2day!" ~ Rev. Run

"If you keep believing in yourself and seek enthusiasm inside your soul, things will get simpler, more spontaneous." ~Paulo Coelho

"Knowledge is like the wind, once you obtain it, you can go anywhere." ~Yellow Hare(Native-American Chief)

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit
the floor each morning the devil says:
"Oh Crap, She's up!"

THOSE ARE NOT THE FREEDOM COSTUMES...

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