Michelle experiences, the history in U.S Mas Band through one of her favorite escapades, CARNIVAL !!!!!!!!
Carnival for me has always been a great experience . I was born in Jamaica, but spent the majority of my life growing up in NYC and Maryland (DC suburb).
Michelle Brown Experience
I used to jump up at local Caribbean carnivals in DC and NYC, wearing my yard colors proudly. I was always surrounded by various family members and friends at different times, but really had no idea what carnival was all about. When I started to develop an understanding of the concept, I got sick. Not the ordinary sick but the sick of a strange love when carnival would end. They call it (now tabanca)but I would call it (carnival tabanca).
Ok let’s go back a few years …
My family and I were on the train going to the famous Labor Day Carnival in Brooklyn, NY. I saw that some masqueraders were on the train. I wanted to know so badly what exactly they were doing and why. I came across a lovely lady named Naila. She was with a large mas band and was pleasantly sweet. We had a small conversation where she mentioned where to for my interest in the band one their website. Shortly a day or two later, I received an email from a wonderful woman name Kavitha. She was on her way to NYC and contacted me when she arrived. A couple days past and she called. Being the novice that I was, it did not occur to me that I was speaking with a mas band in Trinidad & Tobago.
She quickly asked me, when am i coming to Trinidad. I panicked and asked “why”? OMG , WHY DO I GET TO GO FIRST TO TRINIDAD? LOL. I knew nothing. All I knew was that I was super excited to be invited to a place where I absolutely loved everything about (Carnival). When she realized that I wasn’t prepared yet to journey to TNT Carnival , we had a wonderful laugh as she directed me to a mas camp in the upcoming Miami Broward one Carnival. The name was One Island Carnival Band . I quickly contacted the company. I gathered all the details and thought hard and seriously about all of my obligations, such as, work , kids and the always finances. Although these were issues that I carefully took the time to think about, I could not help the fact that I was hooked. Immediately, I called my favorite cousins in the Miami area. I asked permission to shack up with them. This was definitely not a problem. I went online and ordered my costume. Kept direct contact with my wonderful section leader and hailed from my family background in TNT Carnival. Furthermore, booked my train ticket to Miami. It was just then where I was a few weeks later being picked up by my cousin Duane .
YAAAAASSSSSSS!!!!!!!! MIAMI HERE I COME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE WELCOME MADNESS CONTINUES ……..
The first thing established was that I obviously loved soca music. If you do not like soca music for hours on end, carnival may not be the experience for you. I have always loved a diverse range of island music (i.e. Reggae, Dancehall, Calypso, Kumina, Mento, Ska, Merengue, Salsa, Samba) and so many other variations of them but in particularly SOCA had me. I started watching YouTube to get a handle on when certain carnivals were taking place. I looked at footage (past, present, historical, the like and the later).
Having listened to soca music 24/7, my poor family got to know mostly what carnival entailed through TNT. Mainly because it shows us mostly the meaning of the traditional mas characters. I began looking at countless photos and started getting in shape physically and mentally and was on my way. Been a long time since I made an entry to my experience, however here I am.
*Tips for picking a carnival mas band
A) A good friend or family member, their input and experience can be very helpful when selecting a band. They can tell about their experiences, headaches, prices, other fetes (French word for parties) and such.
GET IN SHAPE, CARNIVAL WILL WEAR YOU DOWN !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BEST WEAR DOWN EVER !!!!!!!!!!!!
Masquerade Band aka Mas Band
B) If you don’t have anyone to help with your selection , of course always check reviews
C) Is this a small , medium or large mas band ? and take all of this into account.
All sizes of mas bands have various pros and cons just like anything else.
And also upon that will depend on what you can do on the road (i.e. Country to country) Jouvert, T- Shirt or Mud Bands sometimes larger carnival bands have mud or jouvert bands that they are affiliated with, so that you can jump up early for morning celebrations.
Miami Indian Costume, Costume courtesy Trudy Young – Carnival Faces Wings Nattie & Youee Mas MAJIBLK Vanessa Johnson Shortmus – Kenley John
My Carnival this year
Atlanta Carnival
Baltimore/DC Caribbean Carnival
NY Caribbean Carnival
Miami Caribbean Carnival Carnival Photos
Author ~ Michelle Iluvny Brown Moncrieffe