“From the director of "RETURN FETE", "WHITEOUT", "KOS J'OUVERT", "BIG PEOPLE OUTDOOR FETE" and "SOCA OR DIE!" comes the TRUE STORY of the ONLY FETE to be SOLD OUT 14 YEARS IN A ROW...”
Let’s make that 15 years. On Saturday, January 30th, 2010, I along with 2000+ others got to witness history as Dr. Jay de Socaprince and the KOS family threw down what was yet another fete for the ages. For those of you unfamiliar with the significance of “D’oh Cry Ah Leavin”, it is the traditional DJ showcasing fete that The Kingdom of Soca Entertainment group hosts ahead of the mass exodus from Toronto to Trinidad for Carnival, flag shipped by the Doctor’s own departure. For many, it is a prequel to the endless celebration of soca that will be experienced in Trinidad over the next 3 weeks, and for everyone else, it’s a sad reminder of who is staying home. (Sorry for the brutal honesty).
Apart from “The Usual Suspects” (note my appropriate movie title reference) of resident tag team MarXman and Dirty Dez who held it down for the KOS family, we were “touched” by 2 Touch with the early juggling whom I must give personal props to given his age, he repped like a pro. Then the plot continued to thicken as surprise guest DJs hit the stage one right after the other. First up, Lindo P (see: A Tale of Three Kings) brought sweet, sweet reggae vibes to this party and nobody, NOBODY handles the mic quite like Lindo P. We were also blessed with the unique talents of DJ P-Plus (Flow 93.5) who threw down hip-hop vibes, DJ Spice who had flown in from NYC just the night before, and a real treat was the Director himself who admittedly doesn’t usually play in an effort to let the DJ roster shine, but Dr. Jay (Flow 93.5 Socatherapy) took to the 1’s and 2’s and flattened the dance with the hottest soca tunes of the 2009-2010 seasons with E-Man (KOS) on the mic. (I think several people palanced themselves to death).
Outside of Trinidad Carnival, no place on Earth embraces Soca music quite like Toronto. In the dead of winter (sub-zero temperatures to be exact), fete goers came through with their shorts, their rags, their flags, their tanks.....this is some serious dedication! And if the madness of the party wasn’t enough to satisfy you, then the release of the artists booked to perform at THE RETURN FETE on March 6th would have done the trick.
We talkin’ bout:
JW & Blaze “Palance”
Shal Marshall “Police”
Nadia Batson “Yuh Really Wanna” “Heaven”
KES the Band “Heaven” “Waistline Roll”
Highlights:
Wicked DJ line-up
Traditional use of Koolhaus (The Guvernment Entertainment Complex) as a venue is very accessible and appropriate in size
Special thanks to Orin who was my secret weapon in pulling off a VIP birthday party for Ms Paige (Man Fi Borrow, All Night Long)
Excellent sound system
Lowlights:
The coat check line, as well as the line for the one and only bathroom facility, was painfully long. So sadly if you found yourself in either of those lines, you lost 30 to 45 minutes of your fete (read as: your life).
If you are NOT familiar with the soca scene, don’t be offended that nobody apologizes for stepping on your foot, spilling their drink on you, bumping you from behind, or assuming you want to take ah wine. It’s not a lack of manners, that’s jus’ how it go!
Darling Nicky’s Final Thought:
I was very ill the entire weekend (as anyone who was at DCAL can confirm), but either I am a true SOCA enthusiast or maybe the Johnnie Walker just gets to my head. I rationalize it like this: I have plenty time to be sick on Sunday, but there was only one DCAL 2010, and I wasn’t going to miss it for the world! Now that it’s all said and done, I’m not crying because you’re all leaving. I’m crying because I’m staying. (I have work to do!)
