Platinum Soca Event: Top Barbados Artistes and International Band Delight Party-Goers at BARP's Annual Festival

What do you get when you put some of Barbados’ top artistes and an internationally renowned band in one place? A guaranteed good time.

Only in its second year, Platinum Soca, hosted by the Barbados Association of Retired Persons (BARP), is shaping up to be a must-do event on the Crop Over calendar for hundreds of older party seekers who jammed from evening well into the night to some of the sweetest music from yesteryear and present day.

Held at the Barbados Yacht Club on Saturday, the mainly 50-plus partygoers ably demonstrated that age is only a number as they feted to every song. They eagerly followed every instruction from the performers given without showing any signs of weariness. They went down low, waved, moved left, right, moving to the infectious beats and sang along to almost every tune.

They had a ball starting with the first performer, Mighty Grynner, who sang Zouk Me, Wait For Me, Leggo I Hand and his 2024 song Mash Up The Road and ending with Adrian Clarke.

Red Plastic Bag gave them I’m Alive, Ragga Ragga with Mac Fingall – the MC – who chanted and danced the bogle and butterfly, Once Upon A Wine, Spontaneous, Something’s Happening during which the mass of people sang the chorus lustily. They didn’t have to be told to rock left and right, drop anchor or wave during Boat Ride.

When TC started with the ever-popular Wrong Name, commonly known as Kim, you knew you were in for a good session. She delighted them with that song, followed it up with Hot Sun And Riddim and ended with the 2017 hit Paradise before Biggie Irie came to sing Country, Get Busy, Pankatang and Nah Going Home. He was sweet, sweet, sweet and the audience had no objection to hearing another verse of Nah Going Home which Fingall requested.

People never tire of hearing Mr Blood’s De Plumber and Kitty Cat and when Mikey joined him for the increasingly popular 2024 soca Heart Of The Party, which Mikey wrote, it was bliss. They also sang their Soka Kartel 2013 winning Party Monarch tune, Roll It which started an avalanche of actions.

Fingall sang Ah Go Wine and Las’ Mas before the oldest band in the Caribbean, Troubadours International hit the stage for a solid two-hour long set that was sheer delight. It felt as though the temperature in the open-air venue went up a couple notches as the band, which has been playing for “just over 50 years”, performed.

With Mike Thompson and Mickey Dee on vocals, the group of talented musicians put on quite a show for fans, long-time supporters, and people who have never heard them play live before. Theirs was an eclectic set with genres and songs from different eras but mainly sweet, grown folks’ music.

They did spouge and included songs such as No Good, Faith, You Got To Pay, Marry Me, Bet Your Life I Do, vintage reggae Human Nature and Rock Away who got couples dancing, soca of yesteryear Sweet Soca Man and Black Man Feeling to Party, a Sparrow medley comprising some of the birdie’s hits like Jean and Dinah, Lizard, and Drunk and Disorderly plus soca of more recent vintage like Farmer Nappy’s Hooking Me.

They also thrilled with Love Theme, Coming Soon, Tonight, Talk, Ole Talk, Nice Time, Special (Oh Baby) and Thompson’s stirring rendition of Impossible Dream. They ended the show with Do Me So La So So and Plantain sung by Thompson and the people still had energy.

When Mistah Dale hit the stage, they were ready for his Kaylala, Drop It, and Soka Junkie. They enjoyed 2019 Pic O De Crop Monarch Classic’s winning calypso One Song which they sang along to and his 2024 entry, Likes which they also enjoyed.

Clarke brought the curtain down on the live performances with part of his 2024 calypso Going Fuh Crown, followed it up with Soca You from 2018, the 1995 tune Nice Time, and Ah Like It from 2019 which he sang in the Soca Monarch finals.

After that, Fingall wrapped it up but DJ Pete Rock, who got the party started with selection of music, continued playing the hits for patrons who were not ready to leave. Many of them stayed behind conversing, eating and drinking and dancing into the new day.

During the fete, BARP president Marilyn Rice-Bowen thanked everyone for attending and said that going forward, “I want you to know there is only one soca fete for Crop Over and that’s Platinum Soca”. She said as they partied, they were “helping BARP strengthen the society”.

Part of the proceeds from the event goes toward the work of its charitable trust which “helps the vulnerable members in our community; they also fund scholarships”. (GBM)