BARBUDA'S FIRST CARIBANA - Antigua & Barbuda

Another great moment in my life was
when I accepted the Lord, after I had
the stroke. The Lord was there for
me, and I felt like singing praises all
my life. I’ve slipped up, I’m human,
but I pray the day will come when I
will be able to make amends.
Q: What advice would you give to
another calypsonian on accepting
defeat?
A: Defeat is rough, but I’ve got hit
in the calypso arena, and there
were times when I said I would
quit, because I just couldn’t see the
guys beating me. But anybody who
knows Obstinate will tell you I’m a
good listener. I spoke to some of
the guys who competed year after
year, and when you get defeated,
you’ve got to brush yourself off and
go back to the drawing board.
Q: How do you see calypso in 20
years?
A: Right now, to me, calypso in
Antigua is a dying art. We don’t
have the support. You have a show
with local performers, and they can’t
full the place… the people are not
supporting. The young people are
more into hip hop and soca, not the
real hard calypso, and people are
not going to the tents; they have to
be sponsored to survive. So, I’m
watching that trend. I don’t know if
it will change 20 years from now, but
right now, to me, it’s dying. I think
it needs dedicated calypsonians,
and people who will write the songs,
perform them, and be serious about
what they are doing. I’m telling
you, this is 50 years of Carnival,
and you’re still interviewing King
Obstinate, you still have to go
interview Short Shirt, and Swallow.
You still hearing the same names.
The other guys are there, but
they’re not generating the interest.
Right now, you sing a song and it’s
a Carnival song. After Carnival, the
songs die. I hope I don’t sound too
negative, but it is what I am seeing.
I could be wrong.
Q: Are the women really taking
over?
The male calypsonians… their thing
get away from them. The women,
I think, are more serious. They’re
getting the better writers, which is
the key. We held on to these writers,
and they didn’t get away from us. I
held onto Chalkdust, because he
was a good writer, and Reality in
Montserrat… Dr Ramsey, he has
great ideas, and he writes well.
Short Shirt held on to Shelly Tobitt;
Swallow is a good writer in his own
right. But those of us who put more
emphasis on performance, we found
good writers. Today, the fire is not
there, the passion for calypso… that
I still have. If you tell me I have to
compete, I go to fight, I go there to
win, but I don’t see that today.
Instead of….”my humble thanks, to
you Papa” – it’s our humble thanks
to you, Obsti.
come celebrate
our
golden jubilee