IslandMix - Soca, Reggae, Zouk and Caribbean Entertainment

Alright i know i going to get cuss for posting this to all yuh but i was recently talking to some people about Soca artist and why is it that when they decide to explore r&b, and reggea musical style of singing that the Caribbean people feel them is selling out on the music if anything people should be happy to know that our artists are so versatile and talented to explore these different styles of music i would think so.

why is it okay when the artists decide to explore singing in other languages and incorporate various musical style in their music? but as soon as they start to sounds a little pop like or dancehall like everyone is all in up in arms!

there have been many bands who when they first started out their musical career used to sing pop , dancehall style songs and it was okay back then but now it is not okay i dont understand why it is so.

also the point came out that most of the people feel that there will not be one soca artist who will be signed to a major record label and stay true to soca because they will in times decided to explore other types of music is it wrong to think this way because for myself i like where soca is we dont need to have our artists signed to major labels , Trinidad is the capital of Soca Music and if anything is to be done to take soca to the next level is should start there the homeland of Soca Music .

TnT should be where it all starts............... creating a major record label for soca in the Caribbean before we can expect it to get the respect it deserves on an international level i know it is easier said then done but that is just my two cents on this topic i am so tired of hearing as to what is wrong with soca let we try to realized that our soca artists are trying to make a living doing what they love and some of them i am sure people look at them as selling out but they are only human.

We cannot or should not blame some of them for wanting to explore different music if they are learning to respect it i find it is okay because nothing will change until it is meant to be changed. We cannot expect the international market to do anything for soca unless it first begins in the Caribbean!

I was agreeing with you until you said Soca music should start in Trinidad. What is that all about? So if it dont start there it wont elevate. Thats one of the attitudes and mentality that soca dont need. Its too much Trinidad this, and Grenada this that just kills! WE ALL SHOULD COME TOGETHER! You really think 1 island can elevate soca?

hey sup chandra buddy, long time no talk.

i think at this point soca should just reach if it reaching. all the credibility and roots to where it started and so on will become known eventually (i think). 4 me personally if an artist is true 2 the form when they make it and soca becomes the next breakthrough all the best 2 them and good they opening doors 4 the other artists from the region.

salty

p.s.
so what if u get cuss? u'r not a soca chat poster until u get cuss and u already a vet. keep talkin!

alright i hear what you are saying but please understand that the soca music from every island is beautiful thing in it right

i used to feel that way about why everything soca wise revolves around tnt and it used to get me vex but u know what i have learned not to let it .

the birth place of soca is considered to be tnt and most artist on the soca scene usually end up in tnt to persue the music i am not saying all the artists but most of our soca artist you will find them in tnt because it considered to be the mecca of soca music and i think that we must learn to give credit where it is do and put pride aside sorth of say.

That is the reason why i felt like it should start in tnt but i did not say that it will or could not happen in any other caribbean island. If it is meant to happen and where it is meant to happen as long as it is in the Caribbean it would be a wonderful thing .

and no one island cannot elevate soca music if that was the case it would of happened a long time ago, but it has not soca is not only about tnt there are many islands that contribute and yet they dont get the respect they deserves when it comes to soca that they should and i am not naive i do know that trust me i hear it alot not being from tnt and it used to get to me because i used to let it get to me at one point, but when we can learn not to think of soca music as from a particular island but from the Caribbean in general then and only then will it evelate to the next level.

With all due respect horizon....it all starts in TRINIDAD..thats is the MECCA...point blank!!! yes all the respective islands have thier niche markets but to get adiquate and appropiate exposure for you material and your career you must go through trinidad....or you will only be practically known only in your own island by your own countrymen..in todays soca world that is not benificial enough to one's career...you must expose yourself to every and any soca market in this world....but you must go through trinidad...thats just the reality...yes in a perfect world every islands music should be able to get recogntion on their own...but it ain't a perfect world!!! antigua for example doesn't have the type of resources influence or the power available to promote it's music worldwide on its own....we need an avenue...trinidad is that avenue..especially now they have somewhat opened up thier market a bit.
the problem i have is with the over-partiotic attitude some trini's have!! where they think its only trindadians know anything about soca!!! even here in toronto they have nuff trini dj's who only play trini' soca cause dem just being over-patiotic...that i have a problem with!!! also we from the other islands should not be over-patriotic either....give credit where cridit is due and critisize who need critisizm!!!

respect

If Im not mistaken Wadadli, But I thought Burning Flames broke that barrier of having to go throgh Trinidad to be successful? Flames was never marketed there unless someone have an update! Trinidad has the best market in the islands but they is some artist that never market theyre stuff in tnt. And do well. Especially most Bajans. Correct me if im wrong but did Krossfyah market in tnt? I think square 1 did but im not sure with Krossfyah. First year wanski came wit more gyal he was big everywhere. Its recently he market in tnt and his first year was better than presently being market there. As long as you got that x-fcator it really dont matter where its at. ya know!

Well sorry Harizon but Wanski was marketed through Trinidad, remember he went and released that Tune the end of August after Antigua's carnival in Trinidad and when he came to N.Y he had a Trinidadian manager touring with him through this medium his song More-Gyal got maximum exposure. Even to this day he attributes his success to Trinidad, they were just very smart in the way the break it in trinidad everyone normally wait's until just before trinidad carnival start to go release their song there what he did was go months before and the song was hot so ke knew it was gonna have a hold. Flames, Swallow and Shorty they were all very big in Trinidad so I would have to say this attributed to their success also, not that they were inter-dependent on it but it didd help alot..

Chandra: real...good...question

Are we gonna sit around on our collective asses and let someone else continue to press and distribute soca on a mass scale, or will there be a record company to come out of t&t or any imo of the soca-heavy islands to come to the forefront?

Is there another company on the level of a VPRecords distributing soca? Shouldn't there be?

I think we should still be feeling the sting of having someone in America copyright the mass production of pan. Someone...do...something!!!!

well shan1 beat me to it but let me just add that burning flames songs were known yes but they never had that real IMPACT in the soca WORLD until they did that tune with machel and xtatic (band meet band). thats when they really arrived at a level that was adiquate and significant. yes worky worky and swinging engine was big international tunes...but guess what...if you were not antiguan or from the leeward islands you thought those were byron lee's songs!!! it was basically only "small islands" people who knew of them in any real significant fashion!!!
I am involved in the business and do buisness with alot of soca dj's and radio dj's in a number of cities and i'm telling you burning flames didn't have the REAL international impact until 1998 when "show down" with xtatic was released for trini carnival!!! it wasn't until then that they got the REAL recognition and respect in the business...and it was then radio dj's and sound systems started playing them...old material and new!!! before 1998 you would never hear a flames tune get significant play in a tini or bajan soca dance or club..but after that BOWY you heard all kinds a shit from dem play..all rudeness mek me and piece a iron get play after that!! the REAL SIGNIFICANT and adiquate recognition only came at showdown with xtatic!!!

respect.

Once again.. here we go posting syte that is UNTRUE and acting like is facts!

Flames never MARKET deyself in Trini? Yuh MAD or wha?

Boss, Burning Flames used to be considered one of the hottest soca bands ever in Trini and performed here regularly for a few years well...

At a point bands down here (Xtatik was a baby band then in the 80's) was catching dey ass to keep up with Flames and Spice and Co...

Eventually things evolved with soca bands here and they began holding their own with the likes of Flames when bands started getting more hype performance wise...

This was right around when Onyan left the band... after that point OUNGKU opted NOT top come to Trini much again, but their MUSIC was and IS still marketed here.

I see a band mash up a fete dis vwery weekend with "Rush" and Oknika Bostic tune on dat sme riddim with bunji is one of de biggest tunes for Carnival.

"I Command You (D Magician)", "Gym Jam", "Swinging Engine" and "Workey" (too name but a few) are considered classic coa in Trini and does till mash up fete to this day.

And if doing "Showdown" with Xtatik was not marketing to Trini then what is... Oungku was in every damn fete with Machel singing he ass off!

*steups!*

As for KROSFYAH... dread, is only in the last five or six years Krosfyah not in endless fete in Trinidad! Obviously you have nver been to Trinidad Carnival cause if you used to be here you would know dat from de year Edwin sing "Oh lawd she body have a hole..." Krosfyah was booked for fete upon fte, so much so they they came tio trini every year amnd stayed for the entire last MONTH of Carniuval cause they had booking every damn NIGHT!

How de ass you go say dey ent Market deyself here?

Look.... doh get me vex here today eh. I keep saying this over and over... doh just dream up ting, talk from FACTS - facts that can be proven and validated by people who are actually THERE!:

Now THIS is a positive and sensible point. If only more soca lovers and Imixers thought this way...

We really need a label (or several labels) promoting soca on the level that VP has been doing for Reggae.

Ironically, VP has been taking an interest in Soca in the last few years - they have been responsible for albums like 3Suns " Word On The Street" last year, Machel's "Any Minute Now" (among others) as well as compilations like Soca Gold.

At this rate, if we don't get together, VP go start breaking Soca artists internationally too, in the ake of what's going on with Kevin Lyttle and Rupee...

And then all allyuh Soca lover go vex cause al;lyuh find de direction dem artists going too far away from "real" scoa... whatever the hell that is.

I supporting yuh Mystic! Record label time for soca!!!! Leeww promote we ting and build we ting we damn self!

Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeee eeee!

Plenty Imixers and other soca lovers thinkin along these lines...i'm sure!

In my opinion, what this forum and the rest of the industry goin through is a not-so-simple and sometimes unpleasant weeding-out process...but it'll bear fruit. Allyuh just continue building through the sharing of ideas and information. :)

Muzikk there is a difference between performing in tnt and being market there! Im not sure what is the real meaning of "market" but I feel the members claiming Burning Flames success because of tnt, and if tnt aint promote dem they were to be unknown which is clearly not true. Oungnku is one of Machels idols in the game bedrin. Oungnku sings his ass off at every fete. Not because he doing a fete with Machel.

Pure bullcrap Harizon!

Burning Flames has been MARKETED here big time.

The band PERFORMED everywhere - performance is the BEST form of marketing.

Their music was played non stop for years and contnues to play today... more marketing.

I had a Burning Flames poster from when Onyan was still in de band promoting the album from dat year that I got at one of their performances, where they kept hyping their album and telling people go buy it. That is not marketing?

Come on man - get real!

I never claimed Flames success is solely because of TNT, but no-one can deny how big an impact their doing "Showdown" with Xtatik had on their career internationally...

Also, one has to remember that all the major acts try to represent at TnT carmnival vecuase every year all the top promoters come down to TnT to see who's hot for the new year and book acts...

So even though I am not brazen enough to say it's ALL: about TnT, give we some props nah! Big things a gwan here...