IslandMix - Soca, Reggae, Zouk and Caribbean Entertainment

would a modern day Ras Shorty I be able to take it to the "next level" (whatever you consider the next level to be) without being attacked, screamed at, ridiculed for tinkering or trying to water down the music?

Ras Shorty I was one of a few people who were responsible transitioning calypso to soca, and I'm going by the views of socaheads from the past 8 yrs. Did music fans put up less resistance then compared to now?

"We Ting" will never move ahead, you have way too many fool in sweet T&T like that damn fool SOS 'bout save " We Ting." Music on a hold is always changing, so I am sure he ( Ras ) had major resistance back then.


Soca will always remain third class genre of music unless a concerted effort is made to change the seasonal aspect of it and get rid of these fakea$$ promoters.

Yes, true dat. Ras Shorty I received much resistance for the 2 or 3 years or so that he was trying to push the "Soul of Calypso" theme. He sang "Sweet Music" in the Calypso Fiesta semis in 1976, and was ridiculed for singing American Music. It became a huge hit especially after Carnival that year. Even the following year, when Soca blew up in TnT it was criticised by the traditionalists. So the man had a lot of gumption to keep believing in himself.

On POINT.

This is why I sometimes have to SMH when the UNINFORMED talk about SOCA. Because they're of the BELIEF that there was HARDLY any RESISTANCE to the CHANGE that was taking place back then....it is the same MENTALITY that they SUBSCRIBE to TODAY as we're now WITNESSING the EVOLUTION of the ART FORM.

Now, IMAGINE if the TRADITIONALISTS have had their WAY, back in the DAY, the SONGS that we LOVE to say R CLASSICS would not have EXISTED.....surely not in the FORM that made them classics.

True True.
It not easy to be an artiste in any genre. He had resistance. They want to label it American, and dem kinda thing. I big up Ras for his contribution. The earliest Trinbago pan men faced so much resistance too. I have to see if i could get some of his cds. He had more powerful songs than the ones played repeatedly.

So, are you saying if we keep listening to some of these modern day socaheads, nothing will ever change in the music again?

amen.