RJ:
Actually the Chutney Monarch was two weeks ago,
but I did not compete. I had to take a little break from that aspect
of the arena. I just came back from India. I had to decide whether
I was competing in that competition or go to India and I chose to
go to India.
JC: What did
you do in India?
RK:
I was on a six city tour. I was invited by the government
of India to come and showcase chutney and calypso. More so chutney
because the chutney that I do has its origins in a state called
Uta Pradesh. The goverment realized that East Indians in another
part of the world had preserved the culture. So, they invited us
to come over and keep it alive.
JC:
Yeah, alot of their stuff is going Hollywood. How were you received?
RJ:
India is a beautiful country and the people are beautiful.
We were received so warmly as if we were part of the flock. It was
interesting for them to see East Indians in another part of the
world singing Bollywodd music, chutney music, and soca music. I
can't speak Hindi and I don't understand it if you speak it to me,
but I can sing it. That's the fascinitaing thing that they find.
We can't speak Hindi, we don't understand it, but we in the mix
and they love it.
JC: So chutney has its origin
in this place in India?
RJ:
Yes. My forefathers left India in 1845 and when they came
to Trinidad they brought all of the songs, all of the music, all
of the instruments. So, what has been happening for the last 150
years is that some of the old songs have been kept alive through
my grandmother and great grandmother. It's been passed onto my mother
and now to me. So, it's a contnuation that we might not understand,
but it's something that we don't want to lose. |
JC: I
know it's passed down through the generations, but are there schools
and so here because in Guyana we have quite a few?
RJ:
Yes, there is a school down here called the Mahatma Ghandi
Institute and they teach dance, music, vocal. So, in addition to
getting from the older generations you can now go and learn from
a new.
JC: How did you start in
the whole music thing?
RJ:
I started off in 1986 with a band in Princess town. Just
by chance I went to a show one day and the band was playing all
instrumentals. I knew all of the songs and asked if they needed
a singer. I went and auditioned and that was it. I started off doing
calypso before I even started doing anything Indian.
JC: And then what happened?
RJ:
After two years with the band I switched to another band JMC Trevany
and then after two years I went solo. I did Sumintra, Keep It Pumping
and now I am here. Jump In Unity, Jump on a Bumbsee, Scorpion Sting
Meh. It's been a nice fifteen years.
JC: And you write most of
your stuff?
RJ: I write alot of my stuff
now. In the early days I used to buy songs from people, but now
I try to write most of my stuff.
JC: I notice two of the
same last names on lyrics for the songs.
Rikki Jai:
That's my mom.
Jouvay.com: Cool. I know
you have to get ready for your show, so thanks for the time, good
luck and we'll have to catch up another time. Maybe I'll make it
to Sando. |
Of Interest.  Fresh
Caribbean Talent in the bay: Hailing from St. Croix,
USVI home of reggae sensation Midnite, Binghi Ghost was raised
with all the ingredients to make him a reggae force to be reckoned
with. The culture of the island and the direct linkage to old,
west African customs and cultures, has given Binghi Ghost all
the tools to develop his music. As he likes to say..."forward
ever, backward never". You must experience one of Binghi
Ghost's performances for he truly feels the music and lets it
envelop him in its pulsing rhythms and melodies. Coming soon to
Slims.
Official
website on Street Scholars Records.
 Fresh
from Trinidad: Friday April 2nd at Brittania Arms (1087
De Anza, San Jose) from 9:30pm. Sunday April 11th at Babobab (2238
Mission Street) from 7-10pm. Trinidadian musician Lemo who toured
as the bass player for Atlantik (Ronnie Macintosh and Destra Garcia
on vocals) in 2003 is ready to work on his own projects in the bay.
The Calypsonians is a classy, fun musical set that focuses on the
traditional music of Trinidad and Tobago.
Read/listen.
New restaurants/chefs (email
us if you have suggestions or if you have comments on the restaurants):
| Peter
from Miami writes: One of my very dear friends, Sheldon,
and probably the best chef/baker in South Florida, has just
entered the world of entrepreneurship: Kid's Island
Bakery and Breakfast Shed
6305 Miramar Parkway, Miramar, FL
(between 62nd Ave & 64th Ave) |
I am a Caribbean caterer in the
San Francisco bay area. Please find more info at my website
at www.catered4u.com
Sonja Sulcer
Catered
4 U
|
PawPaw's
Restaurant is located on 1453 Dwight Way, right off of
Sacramento in Berkeley, CA. . It's neo-soul food with a caribbean
flair and an emphasis on seasonal and organic ingredients.
Come and relax, have a seat next to our fireplace and listen
to some good music. |
 Thank
you for allowing us this opportunity to spread the news about
CharityMalls.com. CharityMalls.com is a shopping portal that allows
online shoppers not only the opportunity to find great bargains,
but also simultaneously raise money for their favorite Caribbean
charities. Launched in January 2004, the website boasts over 250
merchants (with stores like Macy's, Travelocity, Dell and even Wal-Mart)
and over 15 charities (with at least one from every Caribbean territory).
Charities receive between 40%-70% of all income generated. Charities
range from Habitat for Humanity to Food For The Poor.
As an added convenience, CharityMalls.com allows shoppers the
capability of adding their favorite Caribbean charity (if not
already listed). Once this request is received, CharityMalls.com
verifies the information is correct and the charity is usually
listed within 24 hours. The proceeds raised by individual shoppers
are then sent directly to that shopper's favorite charity on a
quarterly basis. Visit CharityMalls.com to book your flight, reserve
that car, or even send money via Western Union. Do good, without
doing anything extra! For more information, please visit www.CharityMalls.com
 This
Caribbean calendar features 100 pictures taken during Trinidad
carnival and provides a carnival calendar through September. Photographer
Ray Llanos whose pictures can be seen on jouvay.com (Machel at
Ashkenaz and New York and Miami carnival 2K3) teamed up with a
small group of family and friends in the fall of 2003 to form
caribbeancalendars.com. After locating a printer in Trinidad who
was willing to work on the calendar from noon of carnival Tuesday
so that the product could go on sale on Ash Wednesday as the mass
of 47,000 visitors left the island, things were set in motion
to make this project a reality. Check their website out and get
your glimpse of Trinidad and note that caribbeancalendars.com
will make a donation to the phiva.net
Caribbean HIV/AIDS awareness project.
|
At
twenty five Ian Alvarez aka BUNJI GARLIN is taking the music world
by storm with brilliant lyrics laced in an uptempo ragga-soca
style that truly captures the essence of this new generation.
His hit songs include Send Dem Riddim Crazy, In de Ghetto, Snake
Oil, By D Bar, Soca Bhangra, and Warrior Cry from his four CDs,
Chronicles (1999), Revelation (2001), Black Spaniard (2003) and
Graceful Vengeance Part 1 (2004). 
aordinaire whose intricate and deep
peices of art fill galleries, homes and treasured places throughout
the world. He's Trinidad's master artist who people make documentaries
of, who authors make books of, who Ministers turn to for advice
on culture and who youths flock to for advice on living. He took
time out to explain the meaning and importance of the Afro-centricity
of his art, to discuss the "dread" direction in which
Trinidad carnival is heading and even discuss the nature of Caribbean
men's polygamist behavior. At sixty five, being called a master
artist is not just about the paintings, but about the man himself.
The
pictures from our model
Jouvay.com: We're here at soca monarch 2004 with Rikki Jai. Rikki you are contestant number fifteen with Jump In Unity. Thank you very much for giving us some time tonight. We've been talking of doing this since the 2002 LA carnival. Have you competed in Soca Monarch before?
