#Trinidad and Tobago icon

[sexypinkon]

Sexypink - Calypso Icon, Chalkdust honoured with a wax figure by the Caribbean Wax Museum in Barbados. 

Trinidad and Tobago Miss Universe winner Wendy Fitzwilliams also honored with a wax figure.

[ludmilachaibemachado]

Trinidad and Tobago, January 1966🌻🌹🌻🌹🌻🌹

Via Facebook🌻🌹

[canmking]

M a c h e l M o n t a n o

[galleryyuhself]

Singing Francine - Parang Parang

                       G    A    L    L    E     R    Y    Y     U   H   S   E  L    F

TUCO mourns the passing of Francine Edwards known in the calypso word as "Singing Francine" who passed away early this morning, 16th December, 2022.Singing Francine was born in Barbados on February 13th 1943 and came to Trinidad at a young age. When asked how she began singing calypso, she responded, “I never became involved in the calypso art form. I was born into the calypso art form.” Throughout her career, she has used her musical talent to address social issues, particularly those directly affecting women. In 1975, she sang “A Call to Women,” encouraging more women to use calypso music as a vehicle of self-expression. In her 1978 calypso “Runaway,” she addressed the topic of domestic violence, urging women in abusive living situations to seek help.Singing Francine was one of the most successful calypsonians in Trinidad and Tobago, winning the National Calypso Queen competition in 1972, 1973, 1981 and 1983. Over the course of her career, she has become an important figure in the development of not only calypso, but also parang.In 1981, Singing Francine released the parang album “Christmas is Love,” which featured a blend of calypso, soca and parang sounds. Francine’s album came only three years after the calypsonian Crazy, released “Parang Soca”—one of the first songs to feature what we now call “parang soca” or “soca parang,” making him a pioneer in this genre. Since then, many musicians such as Baron, Scrunter, Chalkdust, Kitchener, Sundar Popo, Drupatee Ramgoonai, Rikki Jai and Singing Francine have also made their mark by blending the dynamic sounds of calypso, soca, chutney and parang.Over the years, Singing Francine has released a number of Christmas hits, earning her the reputation as one of the best parranderos in Trinidad. Some of her classic parang songs include “Hooray, Hurrah,” “Parang Parang,” I Love Christmas,” “Christmas is Love,” “Caribbean Christmas,” and “Ay Ay Maria.”On behalf of the President, Ainsley King and the General Council of TUCO, we extend condolences to the family, loved ones, friends and colleagues of the late Singing Francine. May she Rest in Peace.

[sexypinkon]

Sexypink - Rest In Peace Mr Belafonte. What a remarkable man and life. You sang Calypso songs and put Trinidad and Tobago into the collective consciousness for generations to come.

[mistavybe]

🎶 It’s our Anniversaryyyyy… 🎶

I honestly cannot believe i’ve been on this app for 14 years today! Kinda wild to think it’s been this long tbh ���.

It has been a crazy ride, but in retrospect I wouldn’t have it any other way, for better or for worse 🙏🏾.

Some of the most important people in my real life now like @entirely-of-flaws and @soulsistrin I actually met first on this app, and for those blessings alone I will be eternally grateful.

I’m also grateful for some of the posts i’ve done on here that wound up becoming downright infamous on this here platform lol… anybody remember my viral Tim Burton post back when that problematic Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children came out?

👇🏾

👆🏾

Thanks to this post of my opinion about the subject, I had literal Nazis in my Inbox and Replies arguing with me for like… years lol! Tbh I still get occasional Alt-Right pushback on this one up to now which is wild considering the original post went up in 2016. 🤦🏾‍♂️ (Feel free to peruse My #TimBurton Tag for more on that lol)

Tumblr was also where I came to process my grief after losing legends that I admire(d) whose sudden passings rocked me to my core 😥.

RIP Prince! And RIP Chadwick Boseman! 🙅🏾‍♂️

Anyway, I say all that to say “Wow! Can you believe i’ve been on Tumblr for 14 fricking years?! 😱”

Thanks to everyone who i’ve met on or offline from here, to anyone who has read and/or interacted with any of my Posts or Reblogs… thanks to my Tumblr community.

RIP to those I encountered on here that are no longer with us in this life 🙏🏾.

And long live those of us who continue to persevere on this particular platform and on the Hellhole that is the Internet in general.

Here’s to… another 14 years? Do we think Tumblr will even be around that long? I kind hope so tbh. Here’s to many more years!

Now go stream “Anniversary” by Tony Toni Tonē and have a great day/week/month/life! 🔊🎶

(Fun Fact: Tony Toni Tonē’s now-classic song “Anniversary” was actually recorded in my country - Trinidad And Tobago - back in the early 90’s, along with the test of their iconic album Sons Of Soul. I actually got to meet the Tonys while they were here recording because we worked out of the same studio at the time and they were bice eboufh ti let mr and my crew bzck then sit in on some of their sessions, which helped me learn so much and become the musician/songwriter that I am today! 🙌🏾)

[ronlouisfoster]

Wisdom Wednesday with Special Guest Gerard H. Gaskin

Catch The Replay!

Wisdom Wednesday with Special Guest Gerard H. Gaskin

Gerard is a professionally published photographer born in Trinidad and Tobago. He is a Fine Art Photographer with a book called "Legendary: Inside the House Ballroom Scene" with Duke University Press. For the past six years, Gerard has been working on his book ICONIC.

"When you are coming to the end of the making of image’s process you start only making images of people that you want in the book. I have about 50 people that must be in the book because of what they do in Ballroom and Out of Ballroom" - Gerard H. Gaskin

* Back From Five Months of Living + Traveling Abroad * Juggling Roles of Husband, Dad + Professional Photographer * American vs Paris House Ballroom Scene * Gaskin's upcoming new book "ICONIC" * What we the audience can expect from "ICONIC"

Catch The Replay https://youtube.com/live/IdUUMSEaNTA?feature=share

[rafaelseiler13]

Nicki Minaj and the shift on America's minds

by Rafael Seiler

Even though some may call it "The Land of Opportunity", there are many requirements for one to become successful in a country as unequal as the United States. Unfortunately, many of them are related to nationality, gender, and social status. In recent years, however, due to changes in the mindset of Americans, many people who belong to minorities, including famous artists, have been able to achieve success. Nicki Minaj is an example of a singer who belongs to minority groups. Her extraordinary success is the result of a more open-minded and modern America. 

For starters, it is important to consider that Americans became much more tolerant towards immigrants and people of color. Trinidad and Tobago, Nicki's home country, houses a substantial black community, as well as many Indian descendants. She spent her early years there and moved to New York when she was five. As West Indian Americans, she and her family are part of a plural and numerous, yet once very segregated community in the US. Although not fully welcoming, nowadays Americans, especially younger generations, have become more open to immigration in general during the 21st century. According to a series of surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center, for the first time in decades, people who support legal immigration outnumber those who do not. This number increased from only 10% in 2001 to over 30% in 2018. Furthermore, achievements such as the election of Kamala Harris, the first West Indian American vice president of the United States, demonstrate change in the public view of minoritarian communities.

Also, Nicki Minaj's talent was only discovered due to a new thriving tool that allows people to communicate whatever they want: the internet. Nicki uploaded her work to Myspace, a social media platform designed to share music. In 2007, her former manager, Big Fendi, came across her work and saw potential, leading her to sign contracts with record labels and, ultimately, to achieve global success as a rap singer. Despite having always had artistic aspirations, when being interviewed by iHeart Radio, she claimed that she had not considered pursuing a career in music before meeting Big Fendi. For that reason, had she never used the internet to share her music, her talent would likely not have been unveiled.

Moreover, being a woman in a male-dominated genre and industry is not as much of a challenge nowadays as it once was. Underrepresentation of women in music is an acknowledged fact, and, as of 2022, only 3% of music producers are women, according to a research by audio media expert Marie Charlotte Götting. Recently, though, efforts to change this situation have been sprouting up. Performing uninhibitedly and displaying comfort with sexuality are practices that have been growing, and they definitely empower women. Nicki Minaj herself has adopted those, which not only made her an icon, but also led to the many prizes she won for her performances, such as the three VMAs she won in only 10 years.

Nicki, since 2007, has proved to America that in today's world, it is possible to be successful as part of an underrepresented minority and overcome all obstacles that may appear in an unequal country. Although the change in the way Americans think certainly helped her achieve success and prestige, all the hardships she went through may not be forgotten.

[sexypinkon]

Sexypink - Rest In Peace. A class act Mr Cape. We grieve your loss.

[ludmilachaibemachado]

John and Cyn, Ringo and Mo, in Trinidad and Tobago, January 1966🌹🌻🌹🌻🌹🌻

Via Facebook🌹🌻

[canmking]

L o r d K i t c h e n e r

[onikasbarbie]

[galleryyuhself]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dominic Kalipersad (@dominickalipersad)

Galleryyuhself - Thank you Dominic Kallipersad for this wonderful tribute to Christine Millar.