Meet D’ All Starz

However, the Cape legacy has not been erased from the band as Roy Cape Jr is co-manager of the band along with Roberts.

The band, however, is no longer owned by the Cape family, Cape Jr confirmed in a brief phone interview with Newsday. In the release, the new band thanked senior Cape for his contribution to the band’s development and growth.

The release on the band’s name change from its PR arm, Chambers Media, said: “The name change is a natural progression for the organisation, which has been home to several soca artistes over the years, many of whom have gone on to make significant contributions to entertainment, in the Caribbean and diaspora.

“Uncompromising in delivering a quality music experience, D’ All Starz timeless sounds will continue to be led by a stellar frontline vocal line-up, which currently consists of a star-studded soca line-up: Blaxx, Ricardo Drue, Teddyson John and Tizzy.” In a Newsday, April 2 article by Gary Cardinez, Cape [the band’s founder and former lead] then said he was hanging up his sax after 57 years in the business and that that was not the way he had planned to end his career. The article quoted Cape as saying, “I was diagnosed with cancer in 2014, and it changed my life completely. I had to take care of myself and that has been my focus over the last few years.

From now on there will be no more Roy Cape All Stars. I have reached an agreement with the band. They are still functioning, and will call a press conference to announce the new name sometime later.” Yesterday’s release said Roberts has been a, “staple with the band for over 25 years.” The release quoted Roberts as saying, “D’ All Starz is a family vibe, and we are really happy to continue on this journey with everyone on board.

“In addition to the brass line, technical team and vocalists from all over the Caribbean, we have all of our long-standing band members on board like Stephen “Drummy” Jardine (drums), Anthony “Bassey” Boynes (bass) and Arnold “Sly” Punnette (guitar)....” Thanking Cape for his contributions to the band, it said, “The band would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Dr Roy Francis Cape, fondly known as ‘Pappy’, for his invaluable guidance to this family of musicians and selfless contributions to the development of music for almost six decades. He has been a pioneer and advocate for the development of the music industry and the creative arts in the region, and his contributions have been recognised as indispensable to many singers, songwriters, musicians and other industry professionals in the circuit.

“D’ All Starz is honoured to have worked with this iconic, award-winning musician, and is forever indebted to Dr Cape’s vision, passion and selfless life’s work. The band looks forward to supporting Pappy with his continued philanthropic efforts as chairman of the Roy Cape Foundation, whose goal is to bring hope and healing to communities across Trinidad and Tobago, by way of music education.” The release indicated the band’s next tour stop would be Bermuda Heroes’ Weekend on June 16, where it is billed as the headline act for the island’s 2017 Carnival celebrations.