title taken from Wettin' by Kerwin DuBois

Memorial Day Weekend in Brooklyn

I suppose the Brooklyn Carnival gods heard my cry last year about there being so few parties that I ended up barely feting that summer.  This year, the summer party season kicked off with quite a few fetes and events. While many Americans celebrated Memorial Weekend with parades and barbecues, DysChick spent the weekend jumping up.

Royalty

First, it should be stated that whenever Bunji Garlin and Fay-Ann Lyons come to New York, I will be there!  Although I am still recuperating from their fantastic performance at Got PCD, I was eager to see the couple joined by the full Asylum Band.  The band added to the performance by providing their own energy…and in the case of drummer Gregory Pegus, who was so caught up in the music that he did not notice the song was over, their own comic relief.

The Request Band kicked off the stage show with Rayzor’s “Sponsor Meh” and Leonce’s “Tun Ova.”  A warning to the men who take up Leonce's challenge to come on stage with her, make sure you hit the gym at least twice a week.

Does the Jab Jab King Tallpree need to do more than ask “yuh mad or wha?” to cause chaos in a fete?  No.  The crowd responded by throwing elbows and bouncing left to right to his signature "Jab knock ah bout" riddim.  My only issue with Royalty was the blatant double standard.  Umm, since the men got to see Leonce in little more than a body stocking, I thought K-Rich and the sexy as hell Problem Child should have provided the ladies with a little eye candy, too.  No such luck.  They remained fully clothed.

All of the artists were greeted with love from the crowd, but it was soca's Royal Couple that had us screaming so loudly that it was difficult to even hear them at times.  From the moment we heard the familiar intro to “Differentology,” we were ready for the road!  Right here, I am at a loss as to how to describe what happened to the crowd once the ViKing and ViQueen hit the stage.  Whether it is the vast catalog of popular jump-up soca from both Mr. and Mrs. Alvarez that keeps the crowd singing along with them or the way that they seem to be having as much fun as their admittedly savage fans, the electricity of their performance is touchless.  All I can say is that if you were not inside of Pulse 48 that night, you missed out.  Click here for a snippet of this epic performance.

Caribbean Saturdays at SOBs

Of course, I had to take a moment to mention a club that always represents for the West Indian community.  On a typical weekend, I find my way to SOBs for Upscale Crowd’s weekly event Caribbean Saturdays.  Though not every week at SOBs is epic, I think DJ Majesty found my list of all-time favorite songs and decided to play them on this particular night. Although, I started coming to this event because of DJ Kevin Crown, I have continued to come because of the crowd. 

Do not let the heels and short, tight dresses on the line fool you.  The chicks who come out to Caribbean Saturdays know how to break away…and break away they did.  I saw legs in the air, hands on the ground and all those pretty heels lining the walls.   

I was surprised to see so many people at the club since there were plenty of other events with live performances around the city on Saturday; however, it was good to know that local clubs probably will not see a reduction in business this summer.

Shine 9

Although Shh and Shine are annual parties that both pull a huge crowd, the amount of talent scheduled to perform at Shine is what made the difference to me, and apparently most of Brooklyn.  Back to Basics not only advertised live performances by Kerwin DuBois, Tallpree, Lavaman, Yankey Boy, and Rayzor, but also appearances by guest DJs from New York (Natural Freaks, Elegance Sounds), Trinidad (DJ Private Ryan, Ezel & John Boi), and Toronto (D Bandit).

I have not seen so many people in one fete before.  We were packed in like sardines, but still found room to get on bad.  Guest DJs played all the best party hits, New York soca artists performed their biggest hits, and of course Kerwin DuBois had every bacchanalist  acting possessed.  However, it was the Grenadians who turned Shine up to a whole other level.  Lavaman really had some people behaving like a “Psycho” while Tallpree had them playing a “Wicked Jab.”  My poor toes were smashed so often, that they just went numb.  Of course, how can I complain when I'm sure I ruined a few pedicures myself with all my jumping and waving. 

If Memorial weekend was any indication of what is to come this summer in New York, DysChick will be fetin' after fetin' all the way to Labor Day.  Leh we go!

Click here to check out Julians Promotions’ coverage of Shine.