Jamaican Carnival Wrap Up by DJ Franco

A quick look at one of the most celebrated period on the Jamaican calendar

“What do you think of the different set of promoters that ran the events this soca period, from your perspective did they all live up to the promotion?”
There has been an influx of promoters and I’d put them in 3 categories:
1. Secular promoters trying their hand at the soca/carnival experience
2. Seasoned, experienced local promoters
3. International soca promoters

Events largely fulfilled what they advertised and a few even exceeded expectations. There was definitely more diversity this year with the addition of new jouverts (e.g. Ash Jouvert), new stage shows (e.g. Kes’ Tuesday on the Rocks) and new premium fetes. Dancehall – soca hybrid events were also added and I believe well received. Combined, these features helped to make Carnival in Jamaica a more rounded experience. It should also be mentioned that this year’s carnival also exposed gaps in our entertainment infrastructure. The sheer number of parties held over the 2019 carnival period basically pushed production companies to the limit. If we are to sustainably grow, investment in more infrastructure is required – from venues that can safely operate within the confines of the Noise Abatement Act, to additional production equipment (speakers, trussing, housings, generators), to provisions being made for dedicated police and security during the season.

“As a Disc Jockey do you think more and more Jamaicans are enjoying soca in its purest form?”

This carnival season has taught me that the love for carnival/soca music continues to grow. It also reinforced that there has always been an underlying love for the genre from people of all backgrounds in Jamaica. The main issue hindering wide scale appreciation of the genre is that current soca music isn’t easily accessible to the masses – you sort of have to know where to go to hear the music. If we can get to a middle ground where people can enjoy soca music at a relatively inexpensive cost or maybe next to free, just as we experience dancehall or reggae music any and everywhere, then the genre’s base will expand.

“As a tourist product what more do you think can be done to grow the Carnival in Jamaica experience?”

The Jamaican government needs to realize that this is an opportunity to take our tourism product to the next level – specifically urban tourism since these series of events take place in Kingston. Using other Caribbean islands as a test case, you’ll notice that there has been a concentrated effort on the part of various governments to go to each carnival around the region and world to promote their carnival. They’re promoting their unique carnival product to people in carnivals who love the music and culture, aka ‘carnival chasers’. The governments have established a presence in the heart of that demographic and are pushing their local carnival. Jamaica needs to do the same. Chose ambassadors who represent Carnival in Jamaica and send them around the region/other carnivals to promote our product. Marketing efforts should focus on appealing to the carnival chasers and efforts need to be government funded.

“What do you think of the multi route format employed by the different bands, do you think one route would be better for the overall product?”

Ideally, I’d love for there to be 1 parade/1 route where all the bands are in unison chipping behind each other. This however, is quite impractical as the number of masqueraders has grown to what now exists. Security wise there are a few issues. If bystanders know there is one specific route, as in the past, they’ll flood to these areas. In heavily congested areas, pickpockets and stormers will become an issue since there is often a limited number of security personnel relative to the number of masqueraders and active bystanders; especially in the West Kings House and Half Way Tree areas. Because of these concerns, I agree with the band leaders’ choices to take alternative routes to secure and allow for the unbothered experience of their masqueraders. Another issue with the increasing number of masqueraders is the size available for the lunch spot. Venues used in previous years can no longer fit the mass influx of patrons. Bigger infrastructure is now needed and if they don’t exist on the preexisting routes, then new routes need to be made. Equally important is having a route that can handle the flow of the (road) march. Masqueraders should be able to chip at an even rate throughout the carnival without worrying if there will be another band ahead that will require having to stop or slow down the march for a 10 – 15 minutes. All these reasons suggest having different routes makes logistics sense.

“What was your Top 5 Soca songs on road in Jamaica?”
1. Machel, Skinny Fabulous, Bunji – Famalay.