Music Matters: The Caribbean Edition

Laura and Nigel speak with musician, journalist and NYU professor Jason King, a Trini to the bone, who ponders on the possibilities and tracks the trends for a post-pandemic music future. A multi-disciplinary genius, King discusses industry disruptions that have existed and notes the current state of the global industry that could guide Caribbean music practitioners to a resurgent future in music.

Laura and Nigel chat with Dominican super-producer, Krishna "Dada" Lawrence to get a handle on the wider Caribbean music scene. Dada outlines the possibilities for Caribbean music outside of Carnivals and festivals, and provides a wider context to the business of music by outlining his successes as a music producer of numerous hits and road marches in the festivals of the Caribbean, and his role a...

Laura and Nigel return for the first of the "lock down podcasts" during the global COVID-19 pandemic. They speak on the decimation of the live music industry and the rise of the virtual concerts online with pioneering radio station owner and music producer Kenny Phillips of Trinidad and Tobago. Production values, the local music industry and the new normal of online access to a deep catalogue of C...

Laura and Nigel have a revealing conversation with innovative music producer, Keron "Sheriff Mumbles" Thompson on his outlook on the status of new music from Trinidad and Tobago. Together, they delve into the ups and downs of the recent music for 2020 Carnival season. His perspective, fashioned by constant explorations in the wide world of music, adds another element to the idea of soca as a new w...

Rawlston "Charlie" Charles is the most significant pioneer in the recording and wider distribution of soca music and calypso music in the US and the World via his Charlie's Records and his studio in Brooklyn from the 1970s onwards. His place in the history of the music's proliferation is secure. "Charlie" was back in Trinidad and Tobago to premiere his documentary at CARIFESTA XIV and he chatted w...

Laura and Nigel reminisce on the various music festivals they have visited in the islands, and chat with Dr Suzanne Burke, culture sector researcher at The UWI who gives perspective to the hosts' observations on the role these destination music festivals have in nurturing all areas of a regional live music industry. CARIFESTA XIV is recalled as a case study of private vs public sector approaches t...

Laura and Nigel speak to Trinidad-based music entrepreneur and educator Farley Joseph about his research and findings on Caribbean music industry's readiness and potential to fit into the global digital music landscape. An interesting conversation that tackles the nagging problems of weak industry advocacy, slow and ineffective uptake of modern tech solutions, and importantly, recommendations are...

Laura and Nigel chat with manager/music producer Anson PRO Soverall who manages rising soca star Nailah Blackman to find out his strategy for making a superstar out of this young singer, the grand-daughter of the chief innovator of soca, Ras Shorty I. Anson gives listeners some strategic ideas he uses to make a soca star and break them internationally.

Laura and Nigel interview Trinidadian music super-producer Kasey Phillips, now relocated to Los Angeles, to get a behind the scenes view of what it takes to build a Caribbean music genre in the largest music market in the world.

Laura and Nigel chat with acclaimed jazz musician Etienne Charles from Trinidad and Tobago about how he built his international career. His forays into the business of music in the United States are examined to understand how building a personal music corporation is necessary for sustained growth and success in the industry beyond the borders.

Laura and Nigel speak with UK-born Trinidadian music industry professional Keith Kirk about the prospects of soca in the global digital marketplace. Keith, who has worked with the major labels, Sony, Universal as well as BMG in metadata support and music rights management, keeps it real and gives a direct analysis of what is happening now and what has to be done to further expand soca's musical fo...

Laura and Nigel have a wide ranging discussion with Simon Baptiste, CEO of Question Mark Entertainment of Trinidad, and manager of Kes The Band among others, about the possibilities for the spread of soca music in the global marketplace. With insights gained from networking with A-list music executives, as well as his experience working with labels in Jamaica and developing a regional entertainmen...

Laura and Nigel continue, in the SOCA SESSIONS, the conversation on what is soca and what needs to be done to increase global uptake. Music producers Martin 'Mice' Raymond and Keshav Chandradathsingh give input along with sound engineer Robin Foster on what still needs to be done.

Laura and Nigel chat with modern soca producer and manager Anson Soverall, veteran sound engineer and expert Robin Foster, and pioneering soca producer and composer Joe R. Brown in a panel discussing and searching for a standard definition for soca, the sound of Caribbean Carnivals and the soul of calypso. In the first edition of our Carnival special The Soca Sessions we discuss soca, its roots an...

Laura and Nigel have a candid conversation with Melissa Jiménez, General Manager of the Trinidad & Tobago Music Company Ltd., a State-Owned company, as a follow-up to Episode 5 in which the live music industry in the Caribbean was discussed with a specific reference to the Live Music District (LMD), a publicly funded initiative of the State to enhance the music industry there. The State's track re...

Laura and Nigel chat with Meagan Sylvester of the Trinbago Unified Calypsonians Organisation (TUCO) about the role and business of calypso in the 21st century. Calypso, the Mother music of the Caribbean, has a recording history of over a century predating recorded jazz music, but the music business evolution and global spread of the music has declined since the late 1950s, aside from a few outlier...

Laura and Nigel discuss this new generation's efforts at breaking indigenous music, soca and calypso, into the international marketplace beyond simple placement on digital platforms. They chat with artist/songwriter Jimmy October about his "New Calypso" and producer David 'Millbeatz' Millien about his "Caribbean Wave" as genres and new ways of defining Caribbean music for the world to acclaim.

Laura and Nigel discuss the Bajan soca industry after the recent Crop Over on the island of Barbados. As a conclusion to the cycle of 2018 Caribbean Carnivals and the festival music, they have a better overview of soca in the Caribbean from the prevalence and popularity of competitions as a gauge, and the new sub-genre of bashment, to a wide-ranging interview with legendary Bajan soca star, Red Pl...

Laura and Nigel sit down with Muhammad Muwakil and Lou Lyons of FREETOWN Collective to discuss their new album, Born In Darkness, and to chat about that album in the context of the modern music industry. As a bellwether of new full length album production in T&T, Muhammad and Lou explain how this project interacts with the current music ecosystem and how they have positioned themselves to buffer f...

Laura and Nigel discuss the state of the live music industry in Trinidad and Tobago in the context of the government's plan to create a Live Music District in Port of Spain to act as a tourism magnet for visitors to the island. The experience and results of the State's efforts are gauged, together with a Jamaican perspective on the softened live music industry there, to come to a fuller understand...

Laura and Nigel chat about the reality of the slightly behind-the-curve business models and thinking about broadcast media, and its role in distributing music and creating economic rights for artists, composers, producers and performers in the Caribbean. Laura's recent trip to Jamaica to cover its Carnival showcased how the modern music "merchants," the soca artists of today are distributing their...

A professional in the areas of media, music and entertainment with experience at international levels, Josanne Leonard served as policy adviser on the Caribbean music industry to various global and regional bodies. She talks with Laura and Nigel on the music industry in Trinidad and Tobago with links to the wider Caribbean music industry and preferred strategies going forward in light of the ongoi...

The Globalisation of Soca is a podcast where hosts Laura Dowrich-Phillips and Nigel A. Campbell continue the discussion on the relative global spread of this music born in Trinidad. The wider international thrust by singers, DJs and producers from America, Europe and Africa to put the music on the same public consciousness as reggae and dancehall, for example, is considered.

SOCA: A Caribbean Phenomenon is a podcast where hosts Laura Dowrich-Phillips and Nigel A. Campbell discuss the spread of soca music from its base in Trinidad and Tobago to encompass rhythms and musical cues from other islands in the Caribbean. Producers, singers and fans from all the islands make this music more than Trinidad Carnival music.