Friday, March 29, 2024

MAVIS BECKLES – ‘Do something ’bout it’

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IT IS HEARTENING tuh hear the Government ministers actually coming out and lambasting the things dat some so-called calypsonians singing, actually recording and passing off as calypso.Now people who read this column on a regular basis would tell you dat time and time again I have been talking bout this sort o’ thing. Yet year after year, you would still hear a whole lot more crap coming out as if these people think it is the first time dat people all over Barbados hearing bout sex, or even if duh stupid as France and need dem so tuh enlighten duh.I read the other day about ministers Stephen Lashley and Ronald Jones’s calling to end the smut and cutting out the trash in calypsoes. I have tuh ask the ministers if dem really think dat these people who does be singing summuch junk know dat um is smut and junk and foolish and rubbish dat dem singing?  I doan think dat dem know the difference between smut and something positive!Minister Jones and Lashley, you both need tuh realise dat these so-called calypsonians have outlets. They have groupies who follow dem around and big dem up.They have people, big able men and women, who does encourage dem in duh ignorance and make dem think dat they sound evah suh good. They have people who does put dem in duh tents tuh perform evah night. These people have young girls, doing the dog in the skimpiest things pon stage wid dem when they performing the smutty songs, so it does have the men head hot – duh cahn think straight. They have a faithful following and not dah alone; duh like they have some people at the radio stations heads tief off too ‘cause dem does play these songs too. How you think wunna hearing dem? Aah?I doan think wunna hear dem in nuh tent ‘cause I cahn remember seeing wunna in the tents too often. But anyhow, dah aint too important right now. What is important, is dat wunna got tuh stop all the talking and do something bout it; ya’all got the power tuh call the shots in this country.But look, um aint only the radio stations dat continue tuh promote dem and gi’I duh cars ya know; the very National Cultural Foundation must take some o’ the blame too. You could imagine dat these cahn sing, cahn talk, cahn perform, people does come along and win cars or real nuff money? And duh got people who build up this artform and did doing wonderful work fuh all the years and aint got one flipping thing tuh show fuh it. But these novices would come along every once in a while ‘cause duh aint consistent, hit two tots  and a bottle together, get a microphone, holler out in um, get it recorded in one o’ duh friends backrooms, get a piece pon a stage, tek off duh track suit tops and wuk up stink while encouraging the young people tuh do the same, and next thing ya know, dem popular.Next thing ya know the NCF gine introduce a whole category fuh dem calling it Party Monarch – bare junk, bare noise – and give the winner nuff money. Now fuh wha’? Bare foolishness? First of all, ya does cahn understand one thing duh does be talking bout but duh getting real money fuh it. Stuuppes!Ya see me, I have a lot o’ respect fuh David Thompson when he come in after all the lot o’ pussy footing and beating round the bush by all sorts o’ people and say straight dat Movado and Vybz Kartel aint tuh come into Barbados and do nuh kinda performances; dat was dat, end of matter!I believe dat if you have the power tuh do something bout a situation, you should bite the bullet and do what you have tuh do once and fuh all. All these so-called singers/calypsonians doing are continually corrupting the minds of young people year in and year out and evahbody just sitting back, listening, talking and aint doing one damn thing bout um.Wha’ I cahn do nutten bout it, I could only write in my simple lil way and hope dat it would eventually get through tuh somebody, anybody in authority who would have the guts tuh stan’ up and bring down these kind o’ giants once and fuh all. I mean giants like the zillions o’ radio stations duh got bout here nowadays dat continue tuh promote garbage only tuh get listenership or tuh be popular.Look, you know how many people does curse me when I write bout dem? The ones who know me and the ones who aint know one frupse bout me, all o’ duh does cuss me and I gine tell now.I don’t care; I doan give two hoots; duh could curse me all duh want, I aint neither hypocrite. I will speak out against everything and anything dat looks like it have intentions of destroying this lil nation and look, more than anything else, at the end of the day I got tuh face my God. So I will like all you ministers who see hear and know dat something is seriously wrong wid the piece o’ melodies dat some people flinging together in somebody backroom pon a few pieces o’ equipment and calling um calypso wid the filthiest words, not lyrics tuh try and get busy.Ya’all might not be popular for it by dem sort o’ people who gine cuss wunna and say dat wunna trying tuh kill off the art form; but the real serious calypsonians will start tuh emerge again.
•Mavis Beckles was born and raised in The Orleans. She has an opinion on everything.

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