Culture

NCF Digital Music Distribution Boost For Local Artistes & Managers

Two days of workshops hosted by The National Cultural Foundation (NCF) gave valuable insight to Barbadian music artistes, songwriters and auxiliary industry professionals (managers, booking agents etc.) to aid in increasing their operations within the global Orange Economy.

Held at the Courtyard by Marriott on Saturday, September 30th and Sunday, October 1st, the inaugural sessions are an extension of the NCF’s Digital Distribution Music Cluster (DDMC) which supports artistes in the marketing and promotion of their music online.

“You can’t just release music and let it sit. You have to release music and give it life,” said Lisa Howell, Business Development Officer at the NCF. She shared how the DDMC, which was launched in 2021, initially just paid for the distribution of artiste’s music on major platforms through Tunecore. However, after noticing deficiencies in other areas, the team decided to increase their involvement in procuring more tools to assist the artistes (cover art for releases, electronic press kits, photoshoots etc.). And further increase their knowledge on the industry with these sessions on the Cluster’s third year of operation. “We realized it is important to let some experts speak to the younger artistes on how publishing and the distribution works,” she said.

The panel of experts included music business veterans J. Spencer Mussellam, LAS Label Leader at Believe Canada and Vivian Barclay, Managing Director of Warner Chappell Music Canada, the publishing division of Warner Music Group; and local specialists Junior Sealy, Stylist and Creative Director, and Tracy Highland, PR/Social Media consultant and owner of JILL Media, to provide insight on crafting an image online.

“The first thing [I do], when I hear about you, I’m going to check your social media,” said Highland. “It is your calling card.” She enforced the recurring, underlying theme of the workshops: consistency. The discipline to ensure profile names are homonymous across platforms (be searchable!), frequently updated with high quality imagery, and constant authentic storytelling can help bolster the artiste’s personal brand and, in turn, generate revenue through bookings, merchandise, or brand deals. “It allows you to build a fan base independently which you can then use as capital,” she said.

Junior Sealy echoed the theme of consistency, too: “You gotta bring the style every single time, as an artiste. Even if you’re going to the supermarket.” The sartorial savant shared how fashion can lead to unseen opportunities, gave tips on acquiring trendy pieces on a budget, and encouraged the artistes to forge relationships with local designers, given the symbiotic relationship between design and music. “As artistes we want to stand out with our music. So why not stand out with our personal image?” he asked. He wrapped his talk by doing a live styling of a few members of the audience.

J. Spencer Mussellam tackled one of the main points on the DDMC’s agenda: increasing an artiste’s online visibility. The independent music professional, with over thirty (30) years of experience, gave a detailed presentation on online distribution, and how attendees can increase reach and awareness on the world’s top Digital Service Providers like Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music and Youtube. He gave best practices on populating profiles, using relevant keywords, search engine optimisation tips, and how to repurpose creative efforts across each platform to drive their business.

“One of the first things you’re doing is making sure you have good habits when it comes to copyright ownership,” Vivian Barclay said to the audience of professionals. She shared how the song “is king” and you protect “the crown” by staying on top of publishing administration (the management of song rights, royalties, and licensing) to ensure that artistes can take full advantage of income generation from all areas of the world. She stressed on the importance of practitioners becoming members of a Performance Rights Organization, knowing their Interested Party Information number, and practicing strict metadata management.

Attendees were receptive, and enthusiastically interacted with each presenter. “I learned more of an elaboration on certain things I’ve known before, but it was in more detail,” Wynelle Lovell, stylist and artiste administrator, said of the workshops. “It leaves a big open door for growth and for better things to happen because we’re moving into modern times.”

Limited spaces are available for registration to the Digital Distribution Music Cluster. The slots are open to registered cultural practitioners at the NCF who:

have recorded a single, EP or album – within the past six (6) months to a year – that is completed and ready for distribution,
are digitally releasing new music for the first time,
and are new to Tunecore.

Interested parties should contact Lisa Howell at lisa-howell@ncf.bb. Registration closes on Tuesday, October 26th, 2023. (PR)

Culture

BPS Crop Over Do-Flicky Costume Competition Winners Announced

Five winning teams have emerged from the recently held prize-giving ceremony of the inaugural ‘Barbados Postal Service (BPS) 2024 Crop Over Do-Flicky Costume Competition’.

The winners hail from the Post Offices of St. Joseph; St. George; Welches Road; St. Philip and the General Post Office in Cheapside.

The overall winner of the competition is the eight-member team of the General Post Office’s Accounts Section, who each received an Island Safari Tour. Second place went to the Welches Road Post Office, third was the St. Philip Post Office, fourth was the St. George Post Office and fifth place went to the St. Joseph Post Office.

Winning Teams (flanked by BPS management), of the inaugural ‘BPS Crop Over Do-Flicky Costume Competition’, from the GPO; Welches Road PO; St. Philip PO; St. George PO and the St. Joseph PO.

Postmaster General, Joann Busby, in her address to the winners, stated, “We look forward to many more events like this in the future, celebrating both our history and commitment to excellence.”

Concept Creator of the competition, BPS Marketing Officer Neiai Hall said, “This competition aims to showcase the creativity and cultural expression of our staff, through costume design and performance. The theme of the competition is rooted in our rich heritage and the vibrant spirit of Crop Over.

On left – ‘BPS Crop Over Do-Flicky Costume Competition’ 2nd Place Winning Costume, On right – ‘BPS Crop Over Do-FFlicky Costume Competition’ 3rd Place Winning Costume.

“We have encouraged participants to design costumes that not only display their creativity but also incorporate elements that represent the services offered by the BPS”.

The judging criteria consisted of Sustainability; Creativity; Depiction of a BPS Service; Originality; Portrayal; Video Creativity and Originality; Practicality and Inclusivity and Descriptive Write-Up.

Plaques were presented to each of the winning teams and the St. Joseph Post Office also received the Postmaster General’s special award for Outstanding Advertising Video in the competition. (PR/GIS)

Culture

LAST LAP WEEKEND – Ended with Pic-o-de-Crop Finals, Foreday Jump and Kadooment

AN INCIDENT FREE FESTIVAL By David Harris

After two months of activities that included early morning breakfast fetes and late-night parties, the golden anniversary of the Crop Over Festival ended with the Grand Kadooment on Monday.

Over 10.000 revellers in 18 bands danced on the new route which began at the Helipad in Bridgetown and ended in front of Kensington Oval. The street parade was changed its 9 a.m. start to 10 a.m. by the National Cultural Foundation after the Barbados Meteorological Service placed the island under a severe thunderstorm watch.

Eventually, the Blue Box Cart band got the parade moving at 10.07 and the masqueraders began wining and chipping on the streets of Bridgetown.

Only 13 of the 18 bands on parade judged, among the revellers were Barbadian superstar and National Hero, the Right Excellent Robin Rihanna Fenty and former West Indies captain Brian Lara.

Some bands were still heading towards the Mighty Grynner Highway just before at minutes to 9 o’clock. Aura was the last band to reach the highway before the police ended the parade.

The Grand Kadooment ended an action-packed weekend that included the Pic O De Crop Finals at the National Botanical Gardens in Waterford on Friday night, the Foreday Morning Jam which began in Bridgetown in the wee hours of morning and the Grand Kadooment on Monday.

Fans were primed for thrilling contest between the defending monarch IWeb (Ian Webster) and Adrian “AC” Clarke who placed second in last year’s Pic O De Crop competition; but it was AC who captured the crown for the third time after IWeb who appeared to have forgotten the lyrics of the De Village Ram in the second half of the competition.

Clarke performed at number 16 (immediately behind IWeb) and stamped his authority on the competition with an impressive performance of the self-penned Going Fuh Crown, the judges awarded him 133 points, 28 more than Sir Ruel who came second.

Adrian Clarke the 2024 Calypso Monarch

His impressive performance won the first prize of $100,000 or a Nissan E Powe X- Trail valued at $136,000; Clarke told journalists after the competition he had opted to take the vehicle instead of the prize money. Clarke, 52, first won the crown in 2001 and in 2008.

Sir Ruel was the most outstanding performer in the first half with A Single Bullet, he wrote the calypso in memory of his brother Dario Jon-Luc Holder-Branch who was shot to death in February this year. The former Junior Monarch amassed 105 points and won a cash prize of $40,000.

*Sir Ruel, Pic of de Crop, 2nd place winner*

Perennial finalist Chrystal Cummins-Beckles placed third with De Proposal, the multi-talented musician, arranger and composer was awarded 97 points and the $20,000 prize.

Billboard placed fourth for the second consecutive his calypso earned him a cash prize of $15,000; and first timer Tae, the youngest competitor in the final took the fifth position and $10,000 with A Big Cirus.

Calypsonians placing from the sixth to tenth position received $8,000 each, those coming 11 th to 18 th got $6000.

The competition started 51 minutes after the scheduled 8 p.m. due to technical hitches with video presentations, and one contestant (Kid Site) had to start over his song because of problems with the audio. The second half started just after midnight and ended at 2.10 a.m.

In commemoration of the 50 th anniversary of the Crop Festival there were performances by former monarchs the Mighty Destroyer. Red Plastic, the Mighty Gabby and Edwin Yearwood.