Justin Beber, Drake and recently Janet Jackson with "Made For Now" have used Soca in their music but the Internation market does not recognize the music genre or the vibe that Soca brings to the drum kit. It is frustrating to see Soca music placed in the category of 'World Music' and 'Tropical House'. Many have lobbied for change and recognition but that has not happened. Just think about it, the first album to sell one million copies was a Calypso album by Harry Belafonte yet one cannot see Calypso as a music genre on the most popular music sites. If Calypso was disrespected, and still is today, then the bastard child that is Soca does not stand a chance...
A revolution in sound and a claim to that new vibe seems to be the next chapter to demand the attention and notoriety that Calypso and Soca failed to attain. Millbeatz Productions have taken the bull by the horn and created a new music vibe with a bold announcement proclaiming "Carribean Wave" a new music genre out of Trinidad and Tobago! No one can lay claim to it... we have a digital signature of the music and thirteen songs to welcome the new vibe. Embrace it people and let's have producers stating that this is Caribbean Wave on their production notes. Listen and learn to identify the new music. LoopTT magazine did an article on the music presentation. We have posted the article in its entirety so that you will become familiar with the music genre. The SoundCloud music player featuring the new music gives you the opportunity to 'get to know the new vibe'.
LoopTT: Make way for the Millbeatz Revolution
There is a new musical movement in Trinidad and Tobago aiming to do something soca has not been able to do on a consistent basis: break into the mainstream market in the United States.
With his debut album, aptly titled The Revolution, producer David Millien aka Millbeatz, has created a new genre of music that he believes has the right formula to position Caribbean music beyond the West Indian market.
The new sound is called Caribbean Wave, a fusion of percussive instruments – Conga drums, snares, Tablas - Hip Hop, Pop, and R& B tracks as well as Soca.
The result, as we heard at the listening party on Saturday night at VAS Lounge, St Clair, is 13 tracks of club-friendly tunes, some of which can easily find a home in a Carnival fete or a club in London.
“I think I am an ambassador for the youth, the new generation, this is a change, we want to make music internationally,” he said of the creation of his new genre.
The underlying theme of the songs is centered on love and relationships sung in a distinct Caribbean vernacular and phrasing. Artistes on the track span the Caribbean and include Vincentian singer Kevin Lyttle, who experienced a global breakthrough with his song ‘Turn Me On’ some years ago, Wayne Wonder from Jamaica, Zoelah from St Vincent, The Freshmen from the Toronto and Vivid Sounds, a production group from Canada.
T& T artists on the track are Cassi, Preedy, Abdiel, Patrice Roberts, Lyrikal, Denice Millien and Ricoshae. The album opens with spoken word from poet Michael Logie.
With this album, Millien positions himself in the role of a producer and artist similar to that of the likes of Major Lazer and David Guetta.
He said the album was two years in the making and was inspired by the opportunities he got to travel abroad and work with top producers.
“The first time was in 2013/2014. I got invited some guys in California, VK Records, they did mixes for groups like "Earth, Wind and Fire". I met the band that played for Whitney Houston and from there traveled to LA, New York and dealt with a whole lot of engineers,” he said.
Liaising with producers and engineers abroad he realized that while they knew about Calypso and had mad respect for people like Sparrow, they didn’t know much about Soca and felt it was too fast which confused them.
He decided to create a new sound which, while palatable to a foreign market, would still capture a Caribbean vibe.
His first experiment was Criminal Wine, the 2018 Carnival hit with Patrice Roberts and Lyrikal. The song is undeniably soca but there are songs such as Lyttle’s “Emotion” which doesn’t sound like soca with its Chutney/R& B flavour but will be positioned in a festival setting when it launches for Miami’s Carnival.
Creating a new sound is one thing but Millien knows the real work is in making the transition from the Caribbean to the tastemakers in the US.
To do that, he has signed with Fox Fuse, an outfit in New York that distributes Caribbean content and recently sealed a publishing deal with Great South Bay (GSB) Music, headed by Grammy-award winning music publisher Travis McFetridge.
“We want people to feel that new change, that new sound, feel the Caribbean wave, we want to accent our music here and see it on an international level,” Millien said.
http://www.looptt.com/content/make-way-millbeatz-revolution
We encourage you to support the artiste and the production team. We want you to spread the word about the songs/new music genre; please use the comment feature of this post to share your thoughts about the songs with your peers. Keep in mind that fair use of social media is an excellent method to promote the artistes and songs. Take a few minutes and comment on the songs/music production... the artiste and production team will appreciate your feedback.
As a consideration, it should be apparent that the success of this song depends on your support, please share this post. Make a bold pronouncement regarding the virtues of the song and singer; hype up the vibe; go ahead and tell your friends about this music releases! Now it is up to you to ensure that these songs ride the airwaves. Please call your favorite radio jocks and request your song of choice. Right now, we invite you to share your thoughts about the new music.
Use the comment feature of this post to share your thoughts about the songs here with your peers. All comments will be posted. Please don't forget to visit us on our 'Facebook Fan Page'. Use the search term @sokah2soca and don't forget to "LIKE US". We are also on Twitter and are now using Instagram; SoundCloud and don't forget to #Sokah2Soca and Enjoy!
Production Notes/Music Credits:
Album Title: The Revolution
Performed by: Various Artistes (Millbeatz ft. Michael Logie, Abdiel, Denice Millien, Zoelah, Rochochae, Preedy, Lyrikal x Patrice Roberts, Kevin Lyttle, Vivid Sounds, Wayne Wonder, Freshmen, Hashim and Cassi
Produced by: Millbeatz
Performed by: Various Artistes (Millbeatz ft. Michael Logie, Abdiel, Denice Millien, Zoelah, Rochochae, Preedy, Lyrikal x Patrice Roberts, Kevin Lyttle, Vivid Sounds, Wayne Wonder, Freshmen, Hashim and Cassi
Produced by: Millbeatz
Please be advised that the music is presented here for your listening pleasure and for promotional purposes only ("Fair Use" Musical Content Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976). No copyright infringement is intended! We encourage you to promote the artists and their music; please don't download and share the music and rob the artists of needed income! Music for sale should be purchased while music distributed for promotion purposes should be treated as such and not shared!
♫Please press the music player button below to listen now (small triangle in TV Frame).