Candi Licence, Principal Writer and Editor
70+ page glossy magazine published August, 2018
(The following article is one of 14 articles written for the SpiceMas 2018 Carnival Souvenir Magazine)
Message from the Editor, August 2018
SpiceMas – Celebrating Grenada’s Zest for Life, Culture, and Traditions
By Candi Licence
Carnival, the word itself invites images of pageantry, parades, fierce competitions and, of course, J’Ouvert, Calypso, Soca, Groovy, Pan, as well as celebration, laughter, and enjoyment.
SpiceMas is Grenada’s premier opportunity to showcase our culture, traditions, and friendliness to the world and we do it well with a reputation for friendliness and safety. Visitors from near and far join proud Grenadians to witness and participate in this spectacular event. It’s a kaleidoscope of color, sound, and movement that is expressed in costumes, tradition, talent, and pageantry.
SpiceMas has made two significant contributions to the broader Caribbean Carnival culture – Jab Jab and Soca. Other Carnivals have versions of Jab Jab, but Grenada has perfected it as an art form, and we are known internationally for our Jab Jab. Soca may have originated in Trinidad, but again Grenada has been instrumental in shaping the sounds we hear today.
Starting in April, The SpiceMas launch kicked off a jam-packed calendar of both official Carnival activities and an extensive series of privately-run parties and events. Parish Carnival Queens appeared for the first time. The Traditional Mas bands and Pan orchestras performed and got everyone in the mood for Carnival.
Parishes began preparing for the final competitions by choosing themes and designing costumes for their Fancy Mas bands. Artists wrote music and lyrics. They started broadcasting their songs and creating videos so the tunes would be familiar to everyone by August. Semi-Finals were held for Calypso, Soca and Groovy to narrow the field to the best performers to compete at the final competitions.
Each parish hosted a series of local activities including their own parish launch so that everyone can participate in the fun without traveling to town. The most significant events and final competitions happen in and around St George, but Grenville, Sauteurs, St, David’s and others also host major events like J’Ouvert and these events are jam-packed. Some people go back and forth so they can experience all the variety that Carnival has to offer and still stay connected to their parish activities.
The Miss Caribbean United contest, which originated in Grenada, celebrated its second anniversary. More countries participated, and the contestants were talented and intelligent as well as beautiful and poised. Panorama demonstrated Grenada’s love for steel drum orchestras.
When the second week in August arrived, there were non-stop events. Between the final competitions, the Queen show, J’Ouvert, Pageant, parades, and private events like White, there was little time to sleep.
It’s hard to believe that another successful Carnival is over. For Spicemas Corporation, this is the culmination of a year of hard work that started as soon as last year’s Carnival ended. For the Mas players and attendees, it is the end of a fun-filled season and a final week teeming with extraordinary events. Over the next few days, everyone will be recovering and is already starting to dream about next year. For Spicemas Corporation, after a few days of well-deserved rest, planning will begin once again to create an even bigger and better event for next year!
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