By Oscar Wailoo The afterword of Lawrence Hill’s 2007 novel The Book of Negroes leaves no doubt about the breadth and depth of scholarly works on African history. The list is impressive and would be a good entry point into one of the ugliest chapters in human history, and into the history of the “democratic […]
By Oscar Wailoo Pan Arts Network (P.A.N) presented its 18th-annual steelband showcase Snowflakes on Steel last Saturday night, paying tribute to two people who have been steadfast in promoting and developing steel pan music in Toronto and Canada. The Pan Pioneer Award went to Layne Clarke, while Eulinice Clarke received the Woman in Pan Award. […]
By Dave Douglas On Sunday, Dec. 11, the Seven44 Restaurant and Lounge – formally the Chick’n Deli – was packed. You could feel the intensity and excitement in the air as Jay Douglas and the All Stars Band worked the crowd and kept them entertained while they awaited the evening’s special guest, the Caribbean’s Living […]
“I must admit I witnessed something quite unique in this event regarding the response and organizational support from the community. Very well done indeed!” – Entertainment Editor Dave Douglas You can remember him and only that he is gone. You can cherish his memory and let it live on. You can cry and close your […]
Toronto reggae fusion band Magic is headed for Jamaica for the annual Jazz and Blues Festival from Jan. 29 to 31 at Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium. The festival is headlined by American Grammy-winning megastar Mariah Carey, former Gap Band singer Charlie Wilson, Peter Cetera, formerly of Chicago, The Pointer Sisters, American reggae band SOJA, Barbadian sax […]
By Judith Lezama Charles “I’m a scholar, songwriter, performer, e-commerce marketer … Thinking outside of the BOX!” A direct quote from Dennis Renwick when asked how do you describe yourself? He lived music and used it as an extension of himself. In the Toronto calypso fraternity, he was known simply as ‘Leo’, a name he […]
LMT CONNECTION – Three Dynamic musicians on a mission dedicated to taking funk music to the final frontier. The group is comprised of leader and guitarist Leroy Emmanuel, bassist Mark Rogers and drummer John Irvine. They have been together for 25 years, recorded five albums and played over 5,000 shows including 12 tours of Europe […]
By Dave Douglas With the fusion of soca and parang music resulting in a growing popularity this year, the Caribbean Christmas concert patrons in Toronto are beginning to turn out in even larger numbers. This year saw some of the best parang, calypso and parang soca acts performing in Toronto. However, although everyone is pleased […]
By Jasminee Sahoye “You were awesome.” “My God, you made me laugh so hard.” “Alyson, you were at your best, great acting and those lines …” These are some of the sentiments expressed to the playwright of Virgin following the last of its three-day staging in Toronto. Written and produced by Canadian-born Alyson Renaldo, Virgin, […]
Known today as ‘Pal’ Joey Lewis, he is one of the last of the two remaining bandleaders with active orchestras on the island of Trinidad and Tobago; the other, Roy Cape and the All Stars. Joey got his nickname Pal when his friends invited him to a movie. In that movie, there was a business […]
