For Calypso History Month in Trinidad and Tobago, six tunes for the #metoo era · Global Voices
A screengrab from the YouTube video “Leave Me Alone” by <PERSON> and <PERSON>, in which the female protagonist defies her partner's wishes and takes part in the Carnival festivities. The song became a rallying cry for activists campaigning against gender-based violence in 2017.
October 2018 is Calypso History Month, a tradition started by the Trin­ba­go Uni­fied Ca­lyp­so­ni­ans Or­gan­i­sa­tion (TUCO) in 2002 as a way to celebrate the role ca­lyp­so has played in the so­cial and po­lit­i­cal de­vel­op­ment of Trinidad and To­ba­go.
To mark the occasion, the Global Voices Caribbean team will be highlighting some of the outstanding contributions to the calypso pantheon from over the years. First up? Calypsoes whose lyrics empower women.
In a genre that has often painted women in a negative light, either likening them to she-devils or playthings, such calypsoes were once rare. According to writer and historian <PERSON>, much of traditional calypso “posited a war between men and women and took men's side”. Which is why tunes that have broken that mould are etched forever in the national consciousness.
Here are our picks (in no particular order):
“Miss Tourist” — Lord Kitchener (1968)
The late <PERSON>, better known as Lord <PERSON> (the Grandmaster of Calypso), sang this ditty about a foreign woman visiting Trinidad at Carnival time. 264
She asks his advice on how best to take part in the festivities, and he tells her:
Come in town J'ouvert morning, find yourself in a band
Watch de way how de natives movin’, hug up tight with a man
Sing along with de tunes dey playin’, and now and again you shouting, ‘Play mas’, bacchanal!’
Miss Tourist…dat is Carnival!
With that memorable refrain, <PERSON> deems Carnival a level playing field not just for locals and visitors alike, but also for men and women. Everyone is encouraged to have fun and “play themselves” in the spirit of Carnival.
With its lively, danceable '60s calypso beat, it's no wonder the song won the Carnival Road March title that year, but its message endures: Carnival is for everybody, and women can — and should — stake their claim in the bacchanal.
“Woman on the Bass” — Scrunter (1980)
It's a thing of beauty when art imitates life. In this calypso by <PERSON>, who goes by the stage name of <PERSON>, we learn about a real-life pioneer: <PERSON>, the first ever female bass player for the legendary steel orchestra “Desperadoes”, who was brazen enough to want to play pan — then a rough and tumble, male-dominated endeavour.
<PERSON> paved the way for women to find their niche and hold their own as steel pan musicians, and <PERSON>'s calypso catapulted her story into the national consciousness. Now, thanks to <PERSON>'s unforgettably groovy bass line and <PERSON>'s bold determination, it's quite commonplace to see a “woman on de bass” — or any pan, for that matter.
“Die with my Dignity” — Singing Sandra (1987)
The repertoire of <PERSON> (aka Singing Sandra), is reputed for its social commentary. Her tunes do not shy away from tough topics like race or economic inequity, and they are always delivered from a strong feminist perspective. In this calypso, she was way ahead of the #MeToo movement when she addressed the issue of sexual harassment:
You want to help to mind your family, you want to help your man financially
But nowadays it really very hard to get a job as a girl in Trinidad
You looking out to find something to do, you meet a boss man who promise to help you
But when the man let down the condition, nothing else but humiliation […]
Well if is all this humiliation to get a job these days as a woman
Brother they could keep their money, I go keep my honey, and die with my dignity!
The song, which boasts a melodiousness that belies the gravity of its lyrical message, invites women (and progressive men) to sing along, and more importantly, live by those words. 264