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DARK CLOUDS and a steady December drizzle, with intermittent bursts of heavier showers all the way from Arima to the Hasley Crawford Stadium, threatened to dampen the anticipation and excitement for the Evolution of Sound Concert.
As I wended my way into the venue, however, as though on cue, "Jah Cured" the threat, and the heavens became bright with scattered stars. And although the entire show got pushed back because of the rain, distant relatives from all over Trinidad began to fill the stadium from half past 9 to embark on a musical journey of what could only be described as the most phenomenal production Trinidad and Tobago has seen thus far.
Not to be overshadowed by the main acts, local performers from all over Trinidad took to the stage, taking the opportunity to show the crowd exactly what our country has to offer, and entertain us they did. Favourites included Orange Sky, whose mix of rock and conscious made them one of the perfect opening acts to set the right mood. Performing songs that told a story filled with only positive messages, including "Rough and Tumble" and "Love Each Other," not to mention the special tribute to Bob Marley, had everyone bubbling with excitement.
Following Orange Sky was a succession of acts that graced the stage for all of one song each, but they managed to hype up the crowd with their comical lyrics and antics. Among the most memorable of these was Queen Omega, who had the crowd in a frenzy when she sang about weed - go figure! (As I mention weed, let me just say that for such a strong police presence, the level of secondhand weed smoke I inhaled was enough to get anyone in the crowd flying high.)
Hailing from Laventille was the group Shines, whose rap about the police of Trinidad and Tobago had the crowd hysterical with laughter. Then there was Timstarr, Meet Source, 3Suns, Vmax and Sef Gains, all of whom rapped about current events relevant to Trinidad and Tobago, which had the crowd squealing in agreement with the messages they were preaching.
The most entertaining opening act, however, had to be the Makamillion Family; this group charmed the crowd with their stylish outfits, cute dimples and rude lyrics, especially when Adana showed that she was definitely "badder" than everyone. As great as these opening acts were, pretty much everyone got impatient waiting for who they really came to see, Jah Cure, Nas and Junior Gong...in that order!
While waiting, I had the opportunity to talk to some of the younger fans in the crowd. Two in particular were rather interesting. After losing their parents in the packed stadium, Kristoph and Peter, both 14 and attending ISPS, were perched against a railing with huge smiles and heads bobbing to the music being played by the DJ, waiting for the real show to begin.
Now, these were not your stereotypical fans; they didn't have dreads, nor did they don the Rastafarian colours of red, green and yellow like so many others in the crowd, and unless you spoke to them you would never know how much they loved Junior Gong and his music.
When I asked them why they were there, I got reactions such as, "He's the baddest man alive" and "He's Bob Marley son! He bess!" "What about Nas?" That's when Peter signaled for me to wait while he went into his wallet and pulled out a $1 bill signed by Nas, something he acquired when he encountered the rapper at Irie Bites the day before. I had honestly never seen someone so happy to own a $1 bill before!
Other fans such as Justine Madira, a form-five student of A.S.J.A. Tunapuna and Jean-Luc Duval from C.I.C. spoke about how Junior Gong's music gave them the opportunity to get the feel for a different culture and how they were able to relate to his music and that each song by the artist always told a different story.
Looking into the crowd, it was absolutely clear to see that Damian Marley was the person everyone was here to see, from clothing with his face on it to flags with his face on them. Marley seemed to be present everywhere, even though he hadn't performed yet.
Finally, at half past 12 in the morning, it wasn't Jah Cure that took the stage. Damian and Nas stormed the stage, and let me tell you, they were definitely, without a doubt, worth the wait. Performing songs off the album "Distant Relatives," they gave the entire stadium what seemed to be multiple epileptic episodes.
To say that they sent the crowd crazy would be an understatement. The junior Marley is by no means merely following in the shadows of his father; he is in his own right an iconic symbol for the masses. Singing songs that promoted positive messages to not only the youth but to the leaders of the world, it was as if he was a preacher and we were the congregation. I haven't seen crowds of people so united and patriotic since Trinidad and Tobago found out they were participating in the World Cup.
Listening to the crowd's reaction, I realized that not one person missed a single lyric of any song the duo sang. If only we were able to memorize our schoolwork the way we memorized lyrics to a Junior Gong song, we'd all be geniuses! Then I heard a familiar voice, and when I looked over, there was Peter screaming Nas' name and waving his autographed $1 bill in hopes that the artist would see and remember him as the fan he met the day before.
Women were literally jumping to reach the stage, wanting to touch Damian or Nas, as if that one touch would be the most defining moment of their lives. Lighters were lit throughout the crowd as if it were a vigil, and never before have I seen so many people do the signature gun wave that Russell Peters once joked about in his skit on Jamaicans.
Nas and Damian shared the stage perfectly; performing duets back-to-back made cameras go off like crazy, and for a moment I was blinded by the extreme flashes of light. They also did individual performances, with each stepping into the background while the other performed.
Nas performed old tracks such as "Hate Me Now," and as for Mr. Marley, "Here comes Junior Gong flying high like Superman" was all he needed to sing to create the biggest domino effect of screaming fans Trinidad has ever seen. As expected, Damian covered songs by his father, the late Bob Marley, "Exodus" at the middle of the set and "Could You Be Loved" as an encore.
The two-hour performance was better than listening to the Distant Relatives album from your iPod, which by the way has definitely made my Christmas wish list and should be on yours as well if you don't already have it! There was no way anyone could top that performance - which made the crowd wonder, where exactly was Jah Cure?
Unfortunately, someone high up thought it was a good idea for Jah Cure to close out the concert, and while I am a fan of him and his music, his performance and late entrance at 3:20 in the morning left much to be desired.
Not only was the crowd tired, we were all a bit perplexed as to why anyone would have Jah Cure perform after the main act of Junior Gong and Nas had already come and gone. Suffice to say it wasn't terrible, as he performed popular hits such as "Love Is," "Jah Bless Me," "To Arms of Love," "Unconditional Love" and more.
His music and performance promoted a much mellower vibe than those who performed before him and continued the vibe of the night, promoting music that sent messages of love, respect and spirituality.
All in all, nothing I write here could possibly begin to do justice to the actual experience of attending the Evolution of Sound Concert.
The concert's goal was to carry all who attended on a musical journey they would never forget, and I must say that goal was more than achieved, if only other things could be done so well.
Everything from the atmosphere to the music and stage presence of all performers made this event a memorable moment in the music history of the Caribbean that will be impossible to forget!
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