Lest we forget ...

It's been six months since the horrific events of January 12th.



 

It has been slow going. Only two per cent of the pledges made in March, when the memories were still fresh, have been fulfilled.





Shamefully (but sadly not unexpectedly) CARICOM is not amongst those donor countries that have fulfilled their pledge promises. Not a penny of the $8,097,166 promised has been paid out as yet, according to www.refondation.ht, the official site tracking the reconstruction efforts.





So, don't forget.





Don't forget that miles of roads are still blocked with rubble.





Don't forget that 1.5 million people are still homeless.





But also, don't forget that Haitians are some of the strongest people on the planet. And if any people can survive such a horrific event, it is the Western world's first black republic.





Ayiti leve. Ayiti kanpe.

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How will Tivoli terror affect JA's entertainment scene?

That is the question entertainment and cultural promoters and performers must be asking themselves after a quiet week in Kingston, Jamaica entertainment-wise.

The 'terror in Tivoli' has inflicted wounds not just on the hundreds injured and scores killed, but on Jamaica's economy and Kingston's vibrant entertainment scene.

The Jamaica Observer reports that a host of entertainment events, from regularly scheduled parties like Uptown Mondays, Weddy Wednesdays and Dudus' own Passa Passa, have been cancelled.

Larger one-off or seasonal events like the scheduled WI v South Africa test cricket, the final staging of May Daze and the Jamaica Observer's Food Awards, have also been moved, cancelled and postponed.

Islandista-wise, Saint International's StyleWeek is a major casualty. StyleWeek was originally set for this weekend but the organisers called it off, issuing a statement:

"After much consultations and observation of the prevailing political climate, we think it's prudent to change the date for this year's staging of Styleweek Jamaica."

Styleweek is now slated for July 9-11.

Meanwhile, Caribbean Fashion Week has also taken the same approach- pushing back their event by just a week from its original June 8-14 date to June 15-21.

Reggae Sumfest, possibly Jamaica's most high profile event full stop, has also had to issue a statement on how they will approach the July 18-24 reggae festival. Johnny Gourzong, one of the executive producers, said:

"Reggae Sumfest is important to Jamaica’s tourism and impacts positively on the economy and despite reduced sponsorship, we decided it was important to beat the odds and host the Festival this year".

 One 'benefit' is that Sumfest is slated, as always for St.James, on the northern coast of Jamaica, hours away from the epicentre of the violence in Kingston. A drawback, as anyone who knows JA knows, is that St. James/MoBay is not exactly sweetness and light and there were rumblings that St. James would have been a focal point for the unrest that Dudus supporters allegedly threatened to spread throughout the land.

It will be interesting to see how these two high-profile events will be able to deal with the fall-out from the Tivoli violence.

The fact that they have chosen just to push them back indicates that there is too much at stake to cancel them altogether but with people so leery of Jamaica in general and Kingston in particular, we can only hope for the best for them ... and for Jamaica's entertainment scene on the whole.

One thing, Jamaicans are nothing if not resilient. We are hopeful.

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Terror in Tivoli and women's role

And so islandistas, it has come to this.

[caption id="attachment_2357" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Photo credit: Ian Allen/Jamaica Gleaner"][/caption]

The ugly, jagged and dark side of the Caribbean's ultimate Jekyll and Hyde island has been unveiling itself in all its horror over the last week as the forces of Dudus have been unleashed against the Jamaican state.

Dramatic?

Not really.

A state of emergency was declared in Kingston yesterday afternoon. The Hannah Town police station and Darling Street police station have been set on fire and their officers forced to flee.

Police officers have been attacked and their vehicle stolen.

And there are increasing reports of roadblocks and marauding gunmen stalking both downtown (Tivoli, Denham Town, Hannah Town, Slipe Road) and uptown (Red Hills, Liguanea, Mona/August Town/Papine, New Kingston).

As we write, reports are coming in that officers of the Jamaica Constabulary Force are trying to reach five injured police officers who are stranded on the grounds of Excelsior High School in Mountain View Avenue.

More pics and analysis under the cut...

You would well know that usually the tone and fare here on Islandista is lighthearted but these are serious times.

Islandistas are the leaders and future leaders of the Caribbean and Jamaica's crisis is all our business, particularly the pivotal role that women are playing in defending Dudus.

[caption id="attachment_2359" align="aligncenter" width="459" caption="Photo credit: Jamaica Gleaner"][/caption]

The cries of the women as reported by the papers were striking - and horrifying too. Claims that Dudus feeds them and sends to school their children. Shouts that he is "next to God."




[caption id="attachment_2361" align="aligncenter" width="409" caption="Photo credit: Jamaica Gleaner"][/caption]



Seriously? How did it get so islandistas? Obviously, it is not the women who are prowling the streets with high-powered guns but still. It is not for nothing that the proverb is 'the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world'.




[caption id="attachment_2362" align="aligncenter" width="410" caption="Photo credit: Jamaica Gleaner"][/caption]



The Observer had a good article on it yesterday, examining the way such women view the dons and how the link between them is built on largesse. Some excerpts:

""When I see them with guns, it's like a normal, everyday thing, but is some a dem same guy dey who support we and mek we feel good, send the pickney dem go a school, gi wi money fi do we hair and nail and protect we," she said.

Other women with whom the Sunday Observer spoke confirmed that a strategy used by their communities to protect gunmen was for women and children to go out into the streets when police and soldiers raid an area. The idea, they said, is to prevent the law enforcers from shooting at gunmen as they would be less inclined to fire once women and children are in the way.


"When times tough wid we, is the same man dem go a road go rob so that we can eat food too," one woman from a Central Kingston community said. "We inna de ghetto nuh get nuh ratings from the people who live a Norbrook, Beverly Hills and Cherry Gardens. Dem think seh nobody good nuh come from the ghetto. We cyaan get nuh good work, and so if di man dem inna we area start do some juggling fe help we, everybody from outside just a come dung pon we so."



What a ting...

If these women pass on this attitude of craven gratitude and dependence on a don to their children, how will the cyle ever be broken? How can it be broken? What can we as islandistas do through charity, through offering the opportunities these women say they have been denied, through mentorship or leadership to break this cycle?

Let's start the discussion.

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Trying a new look ... your thoughts?

[picapp align="center" wrap="false" link="term=birthday+presents&iid=11063" src="0010/9dab5859-2237-4f46-85b2-421daecaaa57.jpg?adImageId=12826553&imageId=11063" width="380" height="253" /]

UPDATE: Thanks for all the feedback thus far islandistas and keep it coming! From what we're hearing thus far, you like the layout, but you're not as enamoured of the colour scheme so we're going to work on that.


The good thing about this theme is that even though it is a pre-set Wordpress theme, it is pretty flexible and we can change the background (the bit that is pale yellow with the polka dots) and the header.

So we will be experimenting a bit more with this layout to see what we can get out of it. If you have any other ideas or suggestions, drop a comment below or email us at islandista@gmail.com!


So islandistas, we dont know if you've noticed it but we're going to be celebrating a big milestone soon!

Yep, on Saturday, it's going to be our second birthday ...woo-hoo!

For two years, we have stayed with our Black Letter-Head theme but with it being our birthday soon, we feeling to get a new look.

So we're trying out this new theme Bueno. It's still very 'islandista' with the pink accents but has more of a blog-zine type feel which ties in perfectly with some of the plans we intend to unveil this year.

So... your thoughts? What do you think? Is Bueno bueno or should we do like Amy Winehouse and go back to black?

Let us know!

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Amber Rose: Islandista swagger jacker?

Hip-hop's enfant terrible (which is saying a lot when you think about it) Kanye West launched a new, very minimalist photo blog yesterday.

And of course he had to give his arm-candy Amber Rose some shine. With this photo.



[caption id="attachment_2111" align="aligncenter" width="405" caption="Photo credit: kanywest.com"][/caption]

Look familiar? Of course it does to you islandistas. It is a (weak) re-creation of islandista Grace Jones' iconic photo on the cover of her Island Life album, shot by her lover/collaborator Jean-Paul Goude.



[caption id="attachment_2112" align="aligncenter" width="405" caption="Photo credit: Jean-Paul Goude"][/caption]

Of course, as we have mentioned, this is not the first time Amber and her handlers have tried to re-create (I would have to say re-create rather than pay homage because there is no reference to Grace in any of the editorial for either of her attempts) iconic Grace Jones images.

And of course, there is a long-established tradition of obscuring the accomplishments and reputations of black women and black people in general by putting a white or light face on or above them.

And we have seen plenty comments thus far in the blogosphere about how hot the pic is and even some saying it is better than the original - that Amber Rose's pose is more "feminine"and "sexy" than Grace Jones.


We're just saying...

But what do you say? When does imitation cross the line from being the sincerest form of flattery to being a rip-off?


Our take on it?

Grace was the best to ever do it. *Kanye shrug*

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Farewell Rex

No, he's not an islandista but every islandista worth her salt should know of Professor Rex Nettleford - since islandistas are after all, cultured Caribbean women and Rex was a cultural icon in this region.

And now he's gone.

Nettleford died yesterday in the U.S. at the age of 76 after having a massive heart attack  a week ago when he was up there for a UWI fund-raising gala.

There are so many worlds in which Rex will be missed - from dance to academia to the seemingly ever smaller world of committed Caribbean regionalists. He truly was a giant and it says a lot for the power of his personality that someone born with nearly every disadvantage you could have in Jamaican society - from being poor to being from the country to his sexuality to complexion - could still rise to iconic status.

We have nothing but admiration for him. Walk good Professor.

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Oh Ayiti...

There are no words we really have tonight to express the sorrow and dread we feel for our Caribbean sisters and brothers in Haiti after the earthquake which hit hours ago.


I'm sure every true Caribbean person felt the same way: "Why Haiti? Of all places, why Haiti?"

Is like ... oh gawd nah... dey cyan get a lil bligh? Not even a lil one?


We're heartbroken. We're afraid of what horrors daylight will reveal. We're vex and want to shake our fists at the powers that be, both spiritual and temporal, who seem to have turned their backs on Toussaint and Dessalines' proud republic.

And the lyrics of the bard of Trinidad David Rudder's song rings even truer tonight in our heads.

Haiti we're sorry,

Haiti we're so sorry.

One day we'll turn our heads

Restore your glory.

Mwen desole Ayiti.

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Is it about time for Kamla?

Woman time now? Kamla Persad-Bissessar




We don't discuss politics much on Islandista, namely because women are still quite under-represented in our regional houses of assembly, so there's not as much to discuss as we'd like.





And quite often, where women aren't under-represented, they are undermined. There have been many capable and intelligent Caribbean female politicians who have waited and waited in the shadows of charismatic male political leaders/mentors to get their chance at leadership, only to be undermined in some way or form - usually by the same mentor who can't let go of power.





Former Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller knows all about it. Barbados' Opposition Leader Mia Mottley is now learning about it.




But Trinidad & Tobago's Opposition MP Kamla Persad-Bissessar could write the book on it.




Every Trini or political junkie islandista recalls her betrayal by mentor Basdeo Panday back in the heat of T&T's 2007 elections, when he chose to lead the party again along with Jack Warner after saying he was not interested in the leadership. This after the loyal Kamla had risen to the task as the party's leader during Panday's enforced absence from Parliament.





And people still talk about her (in?) famous 'No Woman No Cry' speech at a rally during that elections where she vowed her loyalty to the party but said:








"I want to tell my political enemies close to me and far away that Kamla is a woman who gets knocked down, but she gets up again and they are never going to keep me down.




... I never sought to betray this party. I never sought to hold the supporters to ransom... And I never left it. I have never walked out because things weren’t going my way.




... I have worked too long and too hard for both the party and the country and I am not about to give up now.”







But still, she took the insult, sucked salt and stayed loyal to the party and Panday - unlike Maharaj and Jack.




But is the time for that coming to an end?




Last month Kamla announced her intention to contest the leadership of the UNC, declaring:








"No-one is ever going to keep me down again...no one!"







Many will say it's about damn time and point to how the UNC has been devouring itself amidst a pack of the raging male political egos of Ram, Jack and Bas.




Other may say that Kamla is not strong enough to lead the party to victory, especially with wily politicians like Manning and of course Ram, Jack and Bas about the place.





Interestingly enough though, a recent poll by the North American Teachers Association (NACTA) has said that Kamla will win by a landslide.




So what do my Trini islandistas and politically-minded islandistas think?




Will it be, as the people say, 'woman time now' for Kamla?

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Lisa Hype's proud of her bleaching... no, really.

Well, just listen to this mess.

We wish she was being tongue in cheek, but no, Lisa Hype, the 'first lady' of Vybz Kartel's Portmore/Gaza Empire is dead serious about being proud of bleaching out her skin.

She told the Jamaica Star earlier this week:

"A bleaching a run the place and it all right because dat fi show yuh seh yuh a tek care of yourself."

EH? I cannot even follow that logic... so destroying your skin is taking care of yourself now? Since when and how come nobody ent tell us here at islandista?

Lisa's well proud of the track too, telling the Star that it running tings:

"Di girl dem seh mi a lock it fi dem this year. A me alone a talk fi dem. Mi nuh know which girl nowadays nah bleach, even fi use likkle Nadinola and rub on fi mek dem face cool.

People a bun it (bleaching). Nuff a dem a bun it and dem gal a do it. Mi nuh hear nobody lash out against the song. Everybody see mi and seh it gone."

She also admitted (as if we couldn't tell from her duppy face) that she has been bleaching for about two years because she likes the look.

Ordinarily you know, we would want to just throw up our hands in despair but trust, this got we vex.

What de hell is wrong with Kartel and Gaza? A so dem mus dark and anti-progressive?

Everything that is wrong and despicable in society them must tek up and glorify, from sexing underage teenagers (Virginity) to dissing up university students to pushing this destructive Gaza/Gully rivalry to bleaching?

Blasted idiots.

Gaza we seh? Am, NO.

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Oh yeah... islandisto Jaicko doing big t'ings!

[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.890749&w=425&h=350&fv=m%3D62482167%26type%3Dvideo%26a%3D0]



more about "Oh Yeah Video Video by Jaicko - MySpa...", posted with vodpod


 




Ok, islandistas, it's a bit of an embarassing confession for us because we're a good ten to fifteen years older than the target demographic but we're pretty hooked on Bajan teeny bopper Jaicko's tune 'Oh Yeah'.

Jaicko, who signed to Capitol Records earlier this year (de Bajan invasion is real peoples!) even broke into BET's 106 & Park charts a few weeks ago with the bouncy, insanely catchy tune.

Yes, yes we know, we know ... shoot, even he knows it's a bit repetitive as he sings:

"I know this song a little annoying, oh yeah
But now I'm making' dollars, so i really don't care
Now I got the whole world singing oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah"

He ent lie yuh know - de damn song does just stick in my head every time I hear it. The freaky thing about this song is that for some reason I'm always hearing it when I'm on the road and true enough I don't even know whyI'm  turning up my radio but dammit if I don't find myself bobbing my head in my car cos I feel it though.

Next t'ing yuh know it is six hours later and I still humming de song, so clearly he's doing something right and we love to see island people do well so we don't mind too much!

 

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Rihanna drops new single and teaser

So ... the wait is ova.

Rihanna dropped her promo and a teaser for her new album today ... and it seems she's going extra edgy.

The promo is dark as hell, with the look and feel of a horror movie. Check it out below.



She also released her first single today - Russian Roulette.



Hmm... is this a veiled reference to her domestic violence situation? Read the lyrics and tell me what you think.

Take a breath, take it deep
Calm yourself, he says to me
If you play, you play for keeps
Take a gun, and count to three
I’m sweating now, moving slow
No time to think, my turn to go

[Chorus -- JustJared.com]
And you can see my heart beating
You can see it through my chest
And I’m terrified but I’m not leaving
Know that I must must pass this test
So just pull the trigger

Say a prayer to yourself
He says close your eyes
Sometimes it helps
And then I get a scary thought
That he’s here means he’s never lost

(Chorus)

As my life flashes before my eyes
I’m wondering will I ever see another sunrise?
So many won’t get the chance to say goodbye
But it’s too late too pick up the value of my life

(Chorus)

The lyrics certainly give us enough juicy analogies to mull over and keep the blogosphere analysing for days.

And... maybe that's the point.

What do you think, islandistas?

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Rihanna in blackface & Islandistas on I-D cover

Islandistas are all over the place for the September round of fashion magazines.

Islandistas Jourdan Dunn and Arlenis are featured on the cover of the September issue of I-D magazine, along with fellow models of colour Chanel Iman and Sessilee Lopez in a historic all-black cover.

Jourdan, who is five months pregnant (reportedly with a boy), spoke about her baby's father, the pressures on minority models and how she has finally become comfortable with not having the type of body prized in the Afro-Caribbean community.

About her boyfriend:


My boyfriend didn't even know I was a model when I started going out with him and we've been together for three years now. It's hard, you never really know whether people want to be around Jourdan or Jourdan Dunn, and he's been there from when I was just Jourdan.


About her body:


“I’m starting to feel more secure in who I am now. Being from an Afro-Caribbean family, being black, skinny, isn’t really acceptable in that community; it’s all about having curves and stuff.... That’s why I’ve never been comfortable with my body until now, when I realize I can say this is who I am, I’m healthy, I’ve always liked to eat, and I’m now happy enough in my own skin to not give a fuck what anyone says about me any more.


About the pressures on black models:


There are loads of black models working and the idea that there's only a few of us, or four of us, to let in as top models at any one time is just bullsh*t. It creates an unnecessary competition when we should be standing together.


True talk Jourdan. Pity Naomi didn't recognise this back in the day and was so mean to Tyra.

In other islandista fashion magazine news, we have more pics from Rihanna's shoot for the couture supplement of Vogue Italia.

And... we're on the fence about it.

Yes, it is supposed to be edgy and most of the pictures are very dark and stark but in some of them, it's like Klein is just relying on using disturbing and stereotypical imagery to get a rise.

The shots are littered with them - below is a shot that seems to hint at bondage and violence against women - pretty inappropriate considering what Rihanna has been through.




[caption id="attachment_1395" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="photo credit: Stephen Klein for Italian Vogue"][/caption]




There is another shot which seems reminiscent of blackface to me which is ... uncomfortable to do with any black model, far less one whose black and white sides are not many generations back.





Seriously. What the feck is this? We know that is not Rihanna's complexion and she does not even look like this in the majority of the pics so it is not like it is a make-up theme that is running throughout the shoot.







And then this one where she's on her hands and knees - in a pretty animalistic, stalking-type pose.





Black woman as fearsome animal? Hmm. Aren't fetishistic white fashion photogs tired of this yet?




There are other great shots like the two below but the inclusion of these kinds of images is a little suss to this islandista. What do you think?

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Bring back the 90s!

It's inevitable isn't it?

Just like how 70s fashion came back in the 90s with bell-bottoms (flares anyone) and afros being ok again and the 80s has hideously resurfaced in recent years with everything from acid-wash to shoulder pads and (urgh*) Hammer pants, being regurgitated, we figure the 90s has to be the next decade of fashion to come back in fashion.

In fact, we're already on the border of late 80s/ early 90s style anyway.

Yes, it's a rather scary prospect to us here at Islandista too since that fashion moment will officially mean that we're... not so young anymore. Truth be told, having the 80s come back into fashion is pretty horrifying to us too. It's waaayyy too close for comfort.

But it is surely inevitable.

In fact, we spy signs of it already. The August issue of US Vogue talking up velvet as a key trend for fall was a hint. New York Magazine is also trumpeting velvet as a fall trend too.

And surely we can all remember how big velvet was in the 90s. Long velvet skirts and long velvet dresses in rich colours like ruby red, forest green, deep blue, purple and jet black were the thing in the early to mid 90s.

And to be honest, this is one 90s trend we don't mind seeing come back. Velvet looks and feels good and is more forgiving than other fabrics. Plus - no ironing!

Fellow bloggers are also foreseeing the return of the 90s - Jezebel had a hilarious post about it and Fashion Bomb chronicled the mostly stylish tv students of  (mostly) the 90s.

So without further adieu, here are the Top Ten 90s trends we here at Islandista want to see come back - just for shits and giggles.






1. Overalls - yes we said it. With one strap hanging down too! So there.




2.Plaid skirts and knee high socks a la Clueless. Oh you know you have some secret nostalgia for those days too. In 1995-96, ALL I craved for the series of big school fairs was to get a  hot plaid skirt and matching babydoll tee. Which brings us to...




3. Babydoll everything. Yes, EVERYTHING damn it! Babydoll dresses, babydoll tees, the ridiculous babydoll hairdo with a giant bun at each side like Princess Leia... bring it all back! Well... maybe not the hairdo. But the rest sure - babydoll dresses are super comfortable. Not flattering but comfortable. And they are a great equalizer of body types...




4. Dark lipstick. In fact, this may already be one trend that is sneaking back, according to the Getty Blog. Check Pixie Geldof in a dark lip and bleach blonde hair a la Drew Barrymore in the 90s at Cannes earlier this year.  




5. Chokers. A goth-ish looking black velvet one with a silver pendant is really best for true 90s redux but any variation would do. Except those swirly plastic ones. Which shamefully, we had. And wore. With pride. We were so young and foolish.




6. Platform shoes/clogs or any chunky soled shoe that makes it difficult to lift your foot and present the very real risk of falling off your shoes. Spice Girls anyone?




   7. Butterfly clips. God, remember those? All kinds of damn butterfly clips from the small, plastic colourful ones to quivering, dramatic metal ones. And of course there were too  many girls that just... took... it... too far and festooned their hair with literally dozens of clips. Interesting to see how that would play out as we enter the 2010s.




8. Signage. Peace signs, ying-yang signs, smiley face signs - all over the place. On shirts, on pendants, on stickers, on earrings. Loved it!




9. Culottes. Floral ones at that. Mwahahahaha! We're getting dangerous here!




10. And last but not least... BLOSSOM HATS!  Oh yes. In velvet with the big, funky old flower to boot.

 

So islandistas, what would be your top 90s trends that you'd like to see make a comeback, if only for the fun of laughing at the kids thinking they are oh so cool in them? Let us know!

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Michael Jackson - analysing an enigma and legend

Ever since Michael Jackson's death on Thursday afternoon, I have been seeing clips of this video on various news broadcasts about Jackson's life. I saw it so many times and the few moments were so captivating that I had to go find it for myself.

It is a clip of the Jackson Five performing on the Ed Sullivan show in 1969 when Michael would have been 11 years old.

To me, it shows what we have really lost with MJ's death. But then again, we seemed to have lost that joyous, smiling, confident little showman from years ago, long before Thursday, June 26, 2009.



For many people of that  generation, that is how they will remember Michael Jackson - as the phenomenal little singer and dancer with the big, bright smile.

That he became a shell of that in his later years, washed out, gaunt-faced, haunted by rumours of dreadful sexual proclivities, is a tragedy.

But that is the enigma of Michael Jackson. It was like the world was not enough. Everything which we saw on his surface in his first 20-odd years that seemed to be true, turned out not to be so.

Despite growing up in a huge, close-knit family with eight siblings all very close in age (his oldest sister Rebbie is only 8 years older than him and he was the 7th of 9 children) he later spoke of a sad and lonely childhood and we are constantly reminded of the imagery of Michael with Ben the rat as his only friend.






Despite being an adorable child and growing into a handsome man, he seemed to find himself so ugly that he basically mutilated his face repeatedly to achieve... who knows?



He was very aware of black issues and concerns - he gave millions to the United Negro College Fund and wrote We Are the World to fight hunger in Africa.

Yet, he seemed to dislike his very blackness. The women he dated and married were white and his children definitely seem to be entirely white, raising the likelihood that the surrogate mothers who bore his children for him, were impregnated with a white man's sperm. At his request? Who knows now.

In his later years, he seemed to be trying to retreat into some Peter Pan-esque, asexual being. His light, feathery voice and delicate and almost naive manner seemed at odds with his frenzied, crotch-grabbing performances that were highly sexual. Have you WATCHED Dirty Diana? Especially that part where he makes the shape of a woman's body and then pelts two vicious jucks? It is virile and masculine yet those were not words we would eventually come to associate with Michael Jackson.

He spent his money wildly - at his death he was reputed to be $500 million in debt (or HALF A BILLION DOLLARS) but yet he was an amazingly shrewd businessman in other ways. The same man who indulged in the money-sucking fantasy that was Neverland, bought the hugely valuable Beatles catalog. And he was gritty in doing it. He outbid his own friend and former Beatle Paul McCartney and went through a 10-month bidding battle to get his hands on it. That is not the mark of a softie or someone who is soft-headed about business.

 Who can figure out what was in Jackson's mind? Who can figure out how all of these seemingly conflicting elements co-existed in the same person?

One thing is for certain. His influence on pop culture will last.

I have heard many presenters and talking heads this weekend ask if he could have become "relevant again" with his upcoming comeback tour.

It irked me because Michael Jackson has never stopped being relevant. Despite not putting out a popular album in years, he remains a cultural touchstone.

Every time Chris Brown or Usher or Justin Timberlake or Ne-Yo or Ciara just about any urban singer-dancer post-1982 moves, it is with the distinct influence of Jackson.  These are all people who grew up with the influence of Michael Jackson - either directly as 80s babies or indirectly through seeing his videos in MTV marathons or seeing their older siblings or even parents imitate his moves.






When Kanye West makes huge, cinematic videos and orchestral stage performances, he is influenced by the man who spent $800,000 on the Thriller video in 1984. Do you understand how much money that was in 1984? Especially at a time when black artistes were not getting a bligh on MTV? Michael went ahead and made a mini-movie so that MTV could not ignore him - or  us.

When Beyonce and Rihanna rock this season's 'it jacket, the Balmain, it is simply Michael redux. Take a look for yourself.












 




May the King of Pop finally rest in peace.

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Baje & Power X 4 unveil their costumes

They're baaaaack!

Barbados' two biggest bands, Baje International and Power X Four both unveiled their costumes on Friday in different ways.

Power X Four sent an e-newsletter to their mailing list with a 'sneak peek' of their costumes while Baje International had their official media launch at Red Rock at the end of the Gap.

Here is a look at some of our favourite sections from each band. Px4's presentation this year is entitled '15 years of Love & Revelery' while Baje is 'Fire & Ice'.


 



[caption id="attachment_1105" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Power X 4 - Blue Skies"][/caption]

 



Love, love the sky blue colour for this  and the bra piece is just gorgeous and lavishly decorated! Check out more costumes when you read on.




 



[caption id="attachment_1106" align="aligncenter" width="199" caption="Baje International - Singapore Sling"][/caption]

 This is actually my favourite costume out of all of the Baje selections this year, most of which are a 'unhh' beneath BD$500. Mystifyingly, this is actually the cheapest section, at 'just' BD$465! Go figure. Yet the singularly unimpressive titular costume Fire & Ice is $499!



[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Power X Four - Bajan Goddess"][/caption]

Again, loving this pastel pink colour because it is a departure from the colours Px4 usually goes with unlike their 'Energy' section for example which is barely a variation on the standard gold and yellow costume they trot out each year.


 



[caption id="attachment_1108" align="aligncenter" width="199" caption="Baje International - Tequila Sunrise"][/caption]

 



This costume shows Baje trying to stretch their range a leeetle bit. I like the feathered detailing on the waistband - a departure from using just beads on the waist piece and the headband with a burst of feathers off to the side for the headpiece. Sweet.

Now, for a little suss and speculation!

Bajan islandistas would know that Power X Four does not usually present its costumes before Baje - I always got the impression there was some tacit agreement between the two so that revellers were basically compelled to commit to one or the other because they both tended to sell out so quickly there was no time to wait and decide between the two.

However, this year they have jumped the gun and started holding early registration since Friday... the exact same day that Baje was launching. This is despite the fact that their official launch is supposed to be on June 20th. Their explanation for the early 'sneak peek'?

Crop Over fever is in the air, and we can tell by the numerous calls and emails that you are ready and rearing to select your costume for the big day. We are also aware that due to a number of regular bands sitting out of Crop-Over this year, the demand for spaces will be even greater. For this reason, we are giving our faithfuls an exclusive sneak peek at our 2009 presentation.

Mm. hmmmmmm! The recession is real, peoples! I keep telling yuh. Tings brown, Contact costumes are a flat cost across the board and at are generally $100 less than Baje's confirmed and Px4's rumoured price points so every man gotta brek fuh heself.

I don't mind! It is about time these band leaders have to scramble a bit for our support rather than people calling and begging and pleading to get costumes held for them.

Now on to Baje. As we reported earlier, Baje will not be holding its usual round of paid weekly fetes, including its themed fetes like Girl Power. This year they are holding a series of FREE limes at Red Rock Bistro and Bar or as they term it "5 hot recession ready free summer limes".

They will only be holding three main events - their big soca show Collision, their paint/Jouvert fete and a last lap rave.

Wow.

Honestly, I think Baje's problem is the big, wukking-up elephant in the room that will be at Tim's on the Highway from next Friday. A little huge thing called Brewster's Road. Friday's used to belong to Baje but Brewster's Road went up against them boldly and slaughtered them last year.

Honestly, I think there would be no shame in Baje shifting to like a Thursday or Wednesday night or even switch to the Sunday night slot that Campus Boyz' demise has left open.

Between Brewster's Road and Contact's pork limes on Fridays, it is just looking sticky for Baje or anyone else for that matter, to pull a big crowd, even with a free event.

But we shall see. It is certainly gearing up to be an interesting Crop-Over.

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Fashion notes: Ri-Ri sells a milli X 12, Zoe S in Cannes & Fashion Weeks

Island Def Jam held a big party on Wednesday night for their favourite islandista, Rihanna, for going twelve times platinum.

 

[caption id="attachment_987" align="aligncenter" width="420" caption="Photo credit: Wargo/Kempin"][/caption]



Congrats. All the talk, at the end of the day, her success has paved the way for other young Bajan artistes like Shontelle and Hal Linton to get major label contracts.




Of course as ever with Ri-Ri, the fashion was the real star. She wore a single-button cropped kacket with some crazy-cool geometric and paisley prints and pair of leggings that we have seen described as "perforated" but to our minds (and eyes) are see-through... disturbingly see through. Check out the slightly NSFW fuller pic of the outfit below and let us know if you agree.



[caption id="attachment_988" align="aligncenter" width="399" caption="Photo credit: Wargo/Kempin"][/caption]

Seriously, is that her curry la-la that we're seeing? Errrmmm!

In other islandista fashion news Zoe Saldana is the only damn islandista we've been able to pin down on the red carpets of the Cannes Film Festival thus far - and trust, we've been looking! She made an appearance at amFAR's Cinema Against Aids event in a nude-coloured (is that an oxymoron?) toga style dress and pulled back hairdo that we're not too sure about.

[caption id="attachment_989" align="aligncenter" width="381" caption="Photo credit: Getty Images"][/caption]

I dunno... I just don't like the hump in the middle of her head... or maybe it needed to be more dramatic. If you're going to put a hump in the middle of your head, commit to it. Cute shoes as ever though...

In even more fashion news, two of the region's bigger fashion weeks are coming up in short order - Trinidad & Tobago's Fashion Week is starting next weekend - running from Friday May 29th to Tuesday June 2nd.

[caption id="attachment_990" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="Photo credit: Fuse the Agency"][/caption]

The big one a yaad and abroad, Caribbean Fashion Week, is coming up in Jamaica from June 10-15.

Now, Jamaiaca and Trinidad probably have two of the strongest fashion 'industries' (as they were) in the region, with designers like Claudia Pegus actually able to make a full-time living from what they do.

And certainly these two fashion weeks bring a fair amount of attention to Caribbean designers and give them an opportunity and platform to showcase their work. Last year, CFW was even featured in the New York Times' style mag, The Moment. Big t'ings a gwan right?

Are they? Some unfortunate news I heard this week about the fate of the Barbados delegation for CFW has me wondering how useful these fashion weeks are actually proving to regional designers. After being funded for the last five years by a government investment agency, a designer friend of mine out of Barbados has let me know that the funds tap has been turned off this year. Since most (all?) of them do designing for love more than money, dey get juck, basically.

But I can kind of see the agency's perspective on it - after all, what tangible benefits has funding the designers brought in the last five years? Tangible benefits like foreign exchange or even promotional benefits for the country?

And besides exposure, what do the fashion weeks really do for designers? It is pretty clear to see what it does for the models, as several girls who have walked at CFW have gone on to pretty successful international modelling careers.

But for the designers, what do they get besides exposure? Not saying that exposure isn't valuable but it has to turn into something to be valuable, don't?

Are there any buyers invited to these Fashion Weeks? Because at the end of the day, every real fashionista knows it is the buyers who have the real power- fuck an Anna Wintour. The Devil may wear Prada but she is not the one who actually chooses it for actual people to buy from an actual store.

And if there are buyers, how many sales are made? I'm just asking because generally the glowing reports I read after these events have mostly to do with how much exposure was gained and which publications Designer X's clothes were featured in. I don't tend to hear a lot about orders being made.

I'm not trying to be snide or a hater, I'm genuinely wondering. I'm not an expert on the nitty gritty of the fashion industry in the region so I'd welcome some feedback on this. How much do designers get out of it in a practical, dollars and cents sense?

UPDATE:  Turns out I'm not the only islandista (?) asking these questions. There is a great post over at Caribbean Fashion Style Journal asking some of the same questions and giving some more informed perspective on it.

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Skerrit Bwoy responds...

Well, well, well, looka dis here.

Remember, Skerrit Bwoy, the Antiguan deejay/'dancer' we ripped a while back for his display of daggering (and table throwing) that has been youtubed around the world?

We weren't too complimentary of him, were we?

Turns out we hurt his feelings a bit because a commenter using the name 'the real skerrit bwoy' has responded to our post.

We'll give Jack his jacket ... he has at least explained his comments over on Mad Decent where it seemed like he was boasting and he has pointed out that his display appeals to his audience. See his response after the cut...



“Gal get beat up when dem dance! I love dem. they love me. but i gotta express my love physically. i only hit you cause i love you girl.” thats a song that i got name “domestic violence” from 2004. i could understand that your upset. but you dont have the right to ridicule me. what im doing is entertaining to me & my fans. and yes i get paid for this form of entertainment. so what is the problem? who are you to ridicule me, when im working to feed my family? is freedom of expression no longer available in the usa? if ya have a problem come see me at my show, we could discuss it over some antiguan food. lol

 

What can you say, eh? I ent know if to laugh, kiss my teet, shake my head or bawl.

On the one hand, he makes a reasonable argument. He gets paid for this form of entertainment and it is entertaining to him and his fans. Boggles the mind, but he does have a point - after all, like we said, pure people were on his MySpace bigging him up.

On the other hand... He. threw. a. TABLE. at a woman and then bodyslammed her like some dancehall WWF fighter. He has thousands, maybe even millions of people around the world laughing after us Caribbean people and is giving fodder to to those who would wish to pull us down.

But on the other, other hand (ye, three hands mi seh- wha?) rock fans like moshing whereas in the Caribbean, any artist who was fool enough to fling themselves offstage into a crowd, would see them part like the Red Sea just before they ate dirt.

The point is, it's bizarre but it's not the most bizarre kind of entertainment out there and to each their own?

But still, on the other, next hand, he threw a whole table at this woman and lick her down. Not even a little coffee table or bedside table or a foldable plastic card table. The table could easily have seated six for dinner.

I just can't... let's agree to disagree Skerritt Bwoy, but thanks for stopping by! Next time I'm in the USA, maybe I'll take you up on that offer of the Antiguan food - fungie and pepperpot pull long!

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Does 'Skerritt Bwoy' hate women?

My. God.

That was about all I could manage to say when I first saw the video above of Dutty Fridaze in Los Angeles.

As an islandista, I was just ashamed. The people making themselves look like complete savages. There are just so many ugly stereotypes bouncing up in that video, I can't even begin to mention.

First thought in my head 'This daggering thing gone waaaaaaaaaay too far now.'  It's bad enough that idiots have been breaking off their penises attempting to dagger in bed.  And if the men are doing that to their penises, imagine what this daggering is doing to women's wombs? *shudder*

Worse,  daggering doesn't have anything to do with dancing, it is just vicious jucking. Heel and toe is a dance. Willie bounce is a dance. Nuh linga, gully creepa - all dem tings, those are dances. You actually have to have some co-ordination and rhythm to do them.

Daggering? Not so much. In fact, not at all.

Like many other people, including a lot of Jamaicans when the vid first popped up in inboxes or on FB or wherever, I thought the folks involved were Jamaicans.

But in checking out the dancehall sites like one876 and yardflex and thing, I found out that Skerritt Boy isn't Jamaican at all and a lot of yardies are veeeeeexxxxx that he is casting a bad light on them.

Skerritt Boy is actually an Antiguan deejay and ... 'dancer' - ye, I had to put that in inverted commas cos I ent know how pelting a table can be considered dancing. De man literally pelt a table and lick down de woman. wtf?!

His 'performance' was just awful, violent, disgusting and that, combined with his very tight pants and colourful hair, makes me wonder if this man even likes women at all?

What makes it worse (oh yea, there's more) is that this fool is actually proud of his now internationally televised idiocy. On a post about it on the maddecent blog, he had the nerve to boast about it:

"Gal get beat up when dem dance! I love dem. they love me. but i gotta express my love physically. i only hit you cause i love you girl."

Lord... I think some of my brain cells died just reading that damn foolishness but he ent fooling a damn soul with that 'I love dem'. I sure he would get frighten if he ever spy an exposed titty. Nobody can convince me that this fool likes women in any way.

Worse, pure people bigging up the man on his MySpace page, telling him he 'gone worldwide'.

I can't deal with it... this gone past ghetto.

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The browning hijacker - what does it tell us?

Wow, it seems all the hot news is down a yaad these days.

So the week started with the shocking news that a young Jamaican man had hijacked a CanJet charter plane in Montego Bay.

After a nine hour standoff where he released all of the passengers but kept the crew and where his family and friends were called to talk reason into him, the JDF eventually stormed the plane and overpowered him.

But the real shock was when everyone saw who the alleged hijacker was. Not some bad man and (despite what has been said) not a mad man either - at least, not our stereotypes of what a bad man or mad man should look like.



[caption id="attachment_858" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The face of a hijacker? phot credit: Go-Jamaica.com"][/caption]



Instead, the hijacker was  21 year old Stephen Fray, your quintessential, even stereotypical, cute brown-skinned, stoosh-looking MoBay boy.

From the time I saw this pic of him on Go Jamaica, I was taken aback. That pic said to me middle-class, Cornwall College, the type that parties at 'Ville and hangs out in Ironshore. I knew his type. Sure enough, my FB home page started to be dotted with Montegonian friends expressing shock that Stephen could have done something like this.

And sure enough, he did indeed attend MoBay's most prestigious schools - Cornwall College and Mount Alvernia Prep.

Sure enough, he was firmly middle class - the Frays own several businesses in Mobay.

And sure enough, people are shocked and puzzled that someone like him would do something like this. But should we be, though?

Jamaican blogger rachelhaye, commenting on the situation in a deeply interesting post on DJ Ace's Kormantyn blog, noted:

The most amazing thing about the hijacking of the 737 in Jamaica is that it gives us an opportunity to examine our personal biases and national prejudices. I must say that there is a tendency in Jamaica to vilify the poor Jamaican youth of African decent–He is seen by the average Jamaican as the person to fear and target for prison. Whenever we are awakened by the news of crime and violence, no matter where it occurs in our country, the first picture that we paint of the perpetrator is that of an African Jamaican youth from the inner-city.

Interestingly, Stephen Fray is an affluent Jamaican of Indian decent, who it would seem had no socioeconomic difficulties that would predispose him to a life of crime. Every Jamaican is thus left in shock, as he does not fit the traditional profile of the Jamaican criminal. As a result, key pieces of information are being denied and the media is trying to convince us that he is mad.

Many Jamaicans may not see the value of a class/race/color analysis of the Stephen Fray hijacking, but the issue is central, because they explain Fray’s access to: the airport, a legal firearm, an excuse for his crime, strong family support while perpetuating the crime, and media’s attempt to excuse his crime.

Rachel hits the mark pretty closely, because whether most of us like to admit it or not, we were shocked when we saw not just who but what kind of person Stephen Fray seemed to be.

It certainly raises a lot of troubling questions, going beyond the actual incident itself.

Like, should we really have been so surprised?

The light and bright upper classes in Jamaica in particular (but in other islands as well) has long harboured some of the real 'bad men' who fund the drug trade and funnel the guns to the yutes dem who may think they are operating of their own volition.

Certainly when I lived there, it was not uncommon for Fray's female compatriots - light skinned, curly-haired, well to do girls, to be involved with 'businessmen' whose money came from means everyone knew were not entirely legit.

And these were not rough looking garrison dons either but men that were their social match - brown, well to do etc.

There has long been a sense that these light and bright upper classes can commit crime with impunity because dem run t'ings. They have judges and politicians as friends and their business dealings are rarely, if ever investigated or disrupted.

And if I could pick that up from the few years I lived in JA, would Fray not have picked up this sense of impunity after a whole lifetime?

I'm just asking... like I said, it raises questions.

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Carnival baby - performing while preggers

As we all know by now, Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez, Trinidad's Road March queen, wife of Soca Monarch Bunji Garlin and half of soca's First Couple is nuff months pregnant.

The news was announced back in November, when Fay-Ann started wearing ... well wearing clothes! Since  Fay-Ann's ridiculously flat belly has always been her best and most flaunted feature, when she started sporting a lot of cloth, eye-brows were raised.
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When I mentioned it to my other half and also mentioned that she would keep on performing during Carnival (the baby is due in April so she will be 7 months along at the height of Carnival), he grunted in disapproval.

"Huh! That could never be you!" he said.

His response reminded me of the reaction five years back when Soca queen Alison Hinds was also pregnant and kept on performing, right through to her ninth month. Many (like myself!) were admiring, but a lot of people also had a lot to say. Alison spoke to it in a SHE Caribbean interview some months after giving birth to her daughter Saharan.

"The fact that I did that was amazing to people. If I wasn't feeling good, I wouldn't have done it. I had to remain active. I couldn't stay in the house and draw up."

Which to me at least sums it up. If a pregnant woman is feeling good, why wrap her up in cotton balls? A little wukking up on stage (in reasonable shoes of course - some sexy gladiator sandals or cute sneakers or shoes with a wide platform heel) isn't going to make the baby drop out - it's held in place by a womb and that is a damn strong muscle! Getting them out is the real hard thing.

What do you think islandistas? Should our soca queens keep performing even while they are becoming soca mummies? Are they setting an example of female empowerment and strength or are they taking it too far?

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