Trinbagonian Calypso Rose continues to reign
Not so, Calypso Rose has
been singing from age 15. She
has composed more than 800
songs and has fiercely broadened
her repertoire singing
gospel, and other genres of
music.
As a matter of fact Caribbean
music lovers have known the
endearing singer for decades.
“Now I am the queen of
Coachella and the queen is
from Trinidad and Tobago,”
she declared to her newly-conquered
kingdom.
Crowned by an intergenerational
mostly millennial crowd
for her stellar performance of
“Tempo,” “Leave Me Alone,”
“Fire, Fire,” “Abatina” and was
joined onstage by Nailah Blackman
and Machel Montano.
Her sounds and actions
along with a legacy that began
60 years ago now dubs Linda
McArtha Sandy-Lewis AKA
Calypso Rose — the oldest performer
to grace the California
Coachella stage.
Delivering two weekends of
alternative music the singer
— who will celebrate her 78th
birthday next week — April
27 — managed to accrue more
than 460,000 posts on social
media and even won notice
from television’s TMZ, a onehour
entertainment /information
program that highlights
cutting-edge features and concerts.
Streamed live on YouTube
performances on two consecutive
weekends featured
the queen of calypso in front
of SRO audiences holding up
cell phones to capture the
acclaimed artist who has been
reigning calypso and soca to
generations of music lovers.
Twenty-years since the first
staging in 1999, Rose shattered
the mystique of billing older
talents to more than 70,000
when she added Caribbean
music to a roster of popular
Queen of Calypso, Calypso Rose.
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Caribbean Life, A BQ pril 26–May 2, 2019 11
Last year Beyonce was
named the first African-American
female to headline the
Coachella Valley Music and Arts
Festival in California, boasting
sold-out crowds of more than
70,000 it is arguably the biggest
music festival in America.
This year, another first registered
in the music discography
when Tobago’s own Calypso
Rose was inscribed as the oldest
performer to ever challenge
the great west coast stage.
At age 78, she took to the
stage two weekends in a row
and in her inimitable style,
gyrated to the sounds of her
twin-island calypso and soca
beats to win approval from a
diverse crowd of mostly-millennial
music fans — many
of whom admittedly conceded
they had never heard of the
Caribbean queen but will now
add her to their playlist.
Reportedly social media
found her “adorable.”
Patrons to the pop fest
described her as a “treasure.”
And after two weekend
appearances, the overwhelming
consensus is that the veteran
Trinbagonian might be a
brand, new discovery and even
an “overnight success.”
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strains.
On the first, Friday performance
Rose maneuvered a
waist-winding dance move that
seemed to captivate the audience.
At a juncture she fell to
the floor but never missed a
beat singing and dance from
the floor.
Smiling through her misstep
she was lifted by young
men as she lyricized “I want a
young Boy” a song which features
Trinidad’s Machel Montano.
Catch You On The Inside!
Inside Life
By Vinette K. Pryce
/nyc