Ed’s Letter Welcome, to those of you who have been reading the magazine for some time now, and to you if you’ve just picked it up for the first time. A whole month of this year has gone already. Something I’m reminded of constantly by all the countdown calendars I see splattered over social media, for various carnivals. They can help the excitement build, but aren’t we are counting our lives away, Instagram post by Instagram post? Talking of carnivals (as we tend to), check out our Carnivals and Festivals guide on page 31; if you wanted, you could make a living writing about carnivals, as they take place almost every month of the year. We thank Sackville Travel for their help on making this guide possible.
COVER PHOTO BY JERMAINE CRUICKSHANK IMAGE COURTESEY
MONK PICTURES
As I sit at my desk, on the second floor of Soca News Towers, I contemplate what has gone before and what is yet to come. This month, Soca News hits the grand old age of twenty one, and I think we have been and are still making a mark on soca here in the UK. If you’d like to know more of the inside story of Machel Montano’s new film, Bazodee, take a look at our feature on page 23. The UK premier takes place on 12 March. YOURS IN SOCA. Joseph Charles EDITOR
PUBLISHER & EDITOR Joseph Charles jc@socanews.com
COVER Photo by Jermaine Cruickshank Courtesey Monk Pictures
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT Debbie Melchor, Feminine Touch, Gillian Oakley & Naomi Dubero
CREATIVE Joseph Charles
WORDS Adanna Austin, Angela Chappell, Joseph Charles, Katie Segal, Nicole-Rachelle Moore, Shaun Hutchinson & Stephen Spark
PUBLISHED BY Soca News 86-90 Paul Street London, EC2A 4NE
SUB-EDITOR Katie Segal katie@socanews.com CONSULTING-EDITOR Stephen Spark stephen@socanews.com SALES & ADVERTISING sales@socanews.com
PICTURES Angela Chappell, Carnival Chung, Cris Collins, Garth Archibald, Kola Graffix, Shutter In Motion, Stephen Spark & Victor Morris
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The views expressed in Soca News are not necessarily the views of the editor or the publisher. All material contained within this publication is the copyright of Soca News. No material, written or photographic may be reproduced in any way without the written permission of the publisher. No liability will be accepted for any errors which may occur within the magazine. © 2017 Soca News. All rights reserved. 06 SN FEBRUARY 2017