Moka delivers

Nestled in the bosom of Maraval, Trinity Courts, Moka, people began arriving before the scheduled 4 pm start for the first major all-inclusive event of Carnival 2017. The entertainment line-up included Roy Cape All Stars featuring Blaxx and Ricardo Drue, Dil-E-Nadan, 3canal, Shal Marshall, GBM Nutron, Farmer Nappy doing an impromptu performance with Destra Garcia of their song “Technically”, Orlando Octave, Jamaican/New York artiste Jason “Linky First” Henriques, Olatunji Yearwood, 2016 Soca Monarch winner Aaron “Voice” St Louis, Rupert “Rupee” Clarke, St Lucia’s Teddyson John and Antiguan Tizzy.

Although the crowd was less than last year’s attendance, the event was well-enjoyed by patrons.

The fete saw women and men wearing an array of fashionable dresses and outfits.

Bake and shark, Indian, creole, crab and dumpling, corn soup, fajitas, doubles, ice cream and Chinese were among the menu offering with a well-stocked bar.

As feters entered they were greeted with cups with Lotto Plus blue or white rags in them and then filtered seamlessly through the semi-circular venue, with tents and chairs at the centre for those interested in sitting and dining.

DJ Alicia D Duchess ran through soca’s playbook, intermingling soca hits across the ages with 2017’s heavy hitters.

There was little doubt, by the crowd’s reaction, that Ultimate Rejects’ “Full Extreme” - of which MX Prime (formerly Maximus Dan) is a clear crowd favourite for this year’s Carnival.

Calypso Rose’s “Leave Me Alone” featuring Machel Montano and Orlando Octave’s “Single” were following closely behind.

Performances began at 5.55 pm with hosts Nikki Crosby and Jason “JW” Williams introducing 3canal. The trio began with the “Run de Riddim”, then moved into “Las Carnival”. The swelling crowd gravitated to the stage as the group performed. Its cover of Lord Laro’s “Irie Tempo” had the crowd dancing.

“Good Morning Neighbour” was swiftly followed by “Talk Yuh Talk” which Wendell Manwarren dedicated to US President- elect Donald Trump. The group also announced that it was celebrating 20 years on the local music scene.

Dil-E-Nadan delighted with a mix of old and new. The group covered 2016 hits such as Teddyson John’s “Allez” and Devon “Lyrikal” Martin’s “Cloud 9”. The band paid special tribute to Pal “Joey” Lewis who died early last year. This moved some patrons to show of their ballroom dancing steps.

Barbadian Omar “Marz Ville” Mc Quilkin performed “Bang Bim” much to the crowd’s delight.

The feters saw a number of surprise singers hitting the stage among them Rupert “Rupee” Clarke who announced that this year’s single “Tipsy” was signed by North American Record Label, Ultra Music. The Barbadian singer who gained international notoriety with his 2004 hit “Tempted to Touch” returned to the stage at Moka running through his famous soca songbook which had many in the crowd singing along.

The event also saw notable people attending, among them Sharon Rowley, wife of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and their daughter, Tonya Rowley- Cuffy.