Nadia Batson

Last updated

Nadia Batson
Born
Nadia Batson

December 7th 1976 (age 47)
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Other namesSASS Queen
Occupations
  • Singer
  • Soca Superstar
  • Songwriter
  • Dancer
  • Businesswoman
  • Band Leader
  • Banshee
Years active2005–present
Musical career
Genres
Labels
Website sassnation.com

Nadia Batson is a Trinidadian singer, songwriter, producer [1] and model. She was a runner-up in the Power Category at the 2007 International Soca Monarch with her song "My Land" with Kees Dieffenthaller. [2]

Contents

Raised in Barataria, Trinidad, she spent years behind the scenes as a songwriter, producer and a background vocalist, before becoming a notable songstress. She also assists other artistes behind the scenes, having written and co-produced the popular single "Go Ahead And Do Dat" for Soca diva Michelle Sylvester.

Early life

Nadia Batson was born on December 7, 1976, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago and raised in Barataria [ citation needed ], a small commercial town on the East–West Corridor outside Port of Spain City. Singing and writing since the age of eight, Batson started singing Quseedas, Muslim ballads, while attending the St Joseph TML School. As a teen she became part of an all-girls group called Silhouette which won the popular Party Time show with an a cappella version of En Vogue's remake of the Beatle's "Yesterday".[ citation needed ] She also attended high school at St. George's College until her graduate year in 1993. Batson began singing professionally at the age of 17. [3] Batson joined Andre Tanker's One World Contraband where she stayed until his death in 2003. She then became the lone female voice in Kes the Band until 2011, when she left to form an all-female soca band called SASS in July 2011. [3] She is of Afro-Trinbagonian descent and has ancestry in the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia. Batson has stated in interviews that she is of the Christian faith.[ citation needed ]

Competition history

Nadia contested the 2007 International Soca Monarch held on Friday February 16, 2007. She competed in the Groovy category with her song "Caribbean Girl", and in the Power category with her song "My Land" alongside Kees Dieffenthaller. [4] She placed 2nd in the Power category behind Iwer George and 3rd in the Groovy category. [2] Nadia was also a finalist in the 2012 [3] and 2014 competition in the Power category. [5] She also competed as a finalist at the 2015 Chutney Soca Monarch competition held on January 31, 2015. [6]

Career

2014–15 Digicel Rising Stars

On September 14, 2014, it was announced that Nadia Batson had joined the judges' panel for the eight season of Digicel Rising Stars Trinidad and Tobago with fellow new judge 1st Klase and returning judge Sheldon Ramgoolam. In the fall of 2015 in September, Nadia Batson's contract was renewed for the ninth season of Digicel Rising Stars T&T, to continue her job being a part of the judges' panel alongside new judges Neval Chatelal and Nigel Rojas. [7]

Kes The Band

In 2005, Batson joined the pop band, Kes The Band as a leading female vocalist, and has gone on world tours to the United States, Canada and the Caribbean with the band. In the Summer of 2011, Batson announced that she had left the band to form her own band. [3]

SASS Nation

In the fall of 2011, Batson announced the launch of her all-female soca band, SASS Nation, lies alongside lead vocalists Terri Lyons (the sister of Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez) and Megan Walrond. SASS Nation is now one of Trinidad and Tobago's premier soca bands and Trinidad and Tobago's only established female soca band. [3]

Related Research Articles

Soca music is a genre of music defined by Ras Shorty I, its inventor, as the "Soul of Calypso", which has influences of African and East Indian rhythms. It was originally spelled "sokah" by its inventor but through an error in a local newspaper when reporting on the new music it was erroneously spelled "soca"; Lord Shorty confirmed the error but chose to leave it that way to avoid confusion. It is a genre of music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the early 1970s and developed into a range of styles during the 1980s and after. Soca was initially developed by Lord Shorty in an effort to revive traditional calypso, the popularity of which had been flagging amongst younger generations in Trinidad due to the rise in popularity of reggae from Jamaica and soul and funk from the United States. Soca is an offshoot of calypso/kaiso, with influences from East Indian rhythms and hooks.

The music of Trinidad and Tobago is best known for its calypso music, soca music, chutney music, and steelpan. Calypso's internationally noted performances in the 1950s from native artists such as Lord Melody, Lord Kitchener and Mighty Sparrow. The art form was most popularised at that time by Harry Belafonte. Along with folk songs and African- and Indian-based classical forms, cross-cultural interactions have produced other indigenous forms of music including soca, rapso, parang, chutney, and other derivative and fusion styles. There are also local communities which practice and experiment with international classical and pop music, often fusing them with local steelpan instruments.

Chutney music is a fusion genre of Indian folk music, specifically Bhojpuri folk music, with Caribbean calypso and soca music, and later with Bollywood music. This genre of music that developed in Trinidad and Tobago is popular in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, other parts of the Caribbean, Fiji, Mauritius, and South Africa. Chutney music emerged mid-20th century and reached a peak of popularity during the 1980s. Several sub-genres have developed.

The culture of Trinidad and Tobago reflects the influence of Indian-South Asian, African, Indigenous, European, Chinese, North American, Latino, and Arab cultures. The histories of Trinidad and Tobago are different. There are differences in the cultural influences which have shaped each island. Trinidad and Tobago is an English-speaking country with strong links to the United Kingdom.

Drupatee Ramgoonai is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian chutney and chutney soca musician. She was responsible for coining the term "chutney soca" in 1987 with her first album, entitled Chutney Soca, which included both English and Hindustani versions of the songs. She had her biggest hit the following year when her "(Roll Up the Tassa) Mr. Bissessar" was a Road March contender. She was instrumental in tassa and chutney soca finding its place in Carnival and her efforts later led to competitions such as Chutney Soca Monarch.

Sundar Popo HBM, born Sundarlal Popo Bahora was a Trinidadian and Tobagonian musician. He is credited as being the father of Chutney music, beginning with his 1969 hit Nana and Nani.

In Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Suriname, chutney soca music is a crossover style of music incorporating soca and calypso elements and English, Hindustani, and Hinglish lyrics, chutney music, with Western instruments such as the guitar, piano, drum set, and Indian instruments such as the dholak, harmonium, tabla, and dhantal.

Ravi Bissambhar, also known as Ravi B, is a Trinidadian chutney soca musician.

Heeralal Rampartap is an Indo-Trinidadian entertainer. He has repeatedly produced hits and has won numerous awards both locally and internationally. He is a three-time International Chutney Soca Monarch — in 1997, 2003 and 2005 – and the National Chutney Monarch of 2002 and 2003. He has also taken first place in the Indian Cultural Pageant for three consecutive years and won the first Tuco Chutney Monarch in 2005 followed by two further wins in 2006, 2007 and 2008. He received the National Humming Bird Silver Medal for Culture in Trinidad and Tobago in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Machel Montano</span> Musical artist

Machel Montano is a Trinidadian soca recording artist and record producer. Known for his high energy, fast-paced, and often unpredictable on-stage performances, he is one of the genre's most popular artists.

Shurwayne Winchester is a Tobagonian soca musician from The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, who has twice won the Road March title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kes (band)</span> Musical artist

Kes is a Trinidadian soca group formed in 2005, known for their eclectic mix of R&B, Pop, Rock, Soca, EDM and reggae. The band originally comprised brothers Kees Dieffenthaller on lead vocals, drummer Hans Dieffenthaller, rhythm guitarist Jon Dieffenthaller along with friend Riad Boochoon on bass guitar. Hans was eventually replaced by Dean James with keyboardist Mario Callender and DJ Robbie Persaud appearing as supporting members. Since the band inception, they've been elevated to mainstream popularity locally and throughout the Caribbean diaspora.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrice Roberts</span> Trinidadian soca singer (born 1986)

Patrice Roberts is a Trinidadian soca singer. She is also a second cousin of singer Bunji Garlin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lisa Wickham</span>

Lisa Wickham is a media producer-director-TV personality in Trinidad and Tobago. She began her television career at the age of six on the weekly Rikki Tikki Children's Show, a live programme on the only national TV station in Trinidad and Tobago at the time, Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT). She literally grew up on national television, eventually hosting shows such as the daily morning prime-time news and talk show T&T This Morning, the daily mid-morning talk show Community Dateline and the iconic teen talent show Party Time. In 2005, the government of Trinidad and Tobago closed TTT and in 2006 re-opened the station under the name Caribbean New Media Group (CNMG). CNMG was then closed in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fay-Ann Lyons</span> Musical artist

Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez is a Trinidadian soca recording artist and songwriter. She is also known by the stage names Lyon Empress, Mane the Matriarch, and the Silver Surfer, a nickname which she claimed during her performance at the 2008 International Soca Monarch. Personally she's married to Bunji Garlin.

International Soca Monarch is an annual soca music competition/fete event, the finals of which are held on every Carnival Friday in Trinidad and Tobago. Contestants in the event vie for two separate crowns or titles, the International Soca Monarch for uptempo songs, and Groovy Soca Monarch for slower-paced songs. Between 2016 and 2018 a change in format meant that contestants vied for only one award but this one category changed was reversed in 2019. In 2016 an additional award was added, called the People's Choice, then subsequently removed, which involves text message voting by Digicel subscribers. Subscribers could have voted multiple times for their favorite artist during the competition and the artist who received the most votes was given an additional cash prize. The International Soca Monarch competition has become the mecca event for soca artists in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) where the event has been hosted since its inception; and also the rest of the Caribbean region, as many artists who have competed on its stage have moved on to successful soca careers. Dubbed the "Super Bowl of soca music" it is a highly anticipated and well-attended event that has been graced with internationally acclaimed recording artists such as SuperBlue, Machel Montano, Fay Ann Lyons Superblue's daughter and Bunji Garlin's wife, Kevin Lyttle, Rupee and Fay-Ann's husband Bunji Garlin.

Lil Bitts is a soca musician from Trinidad and Tobago. She is best known for her hits "Bump", "Crush" and "Hold Meh".

Full Blown Entertainment (FBE) is a music production and songwriting company based in the Caribbean twin-island of Trinidad and Tobago. They are responsible for the songwriting or production of songs for a variety of artists, including Boyz II Men, Machel Montano, 2face Idibia, Kes The Band, and Kerwin Dubois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claudette Peters</span> Musical artist

Claudette Peters, OH is an Antiguan soca and soul singer-songwriter. Peters is best known as Antigua's "Soca Diva" and the Queen of Soca of Antigua and Barbuda was the lead vocalist for the Taxik Band. Claudette has multiple Jumpy and Groovy Party Monarch crowns in which she won from the annual Antigua Carnival's Party Monarch Competition to justify her claim to fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erphaan Alves</span> Musical artist

Erphaan Alves is a Trinidadian soca recording artist and songwriter. He initially gained full recognition in the soca world 2012 when he qualified as a finalist in both Groovy and International Power Soca Monarch Finals with the songs "In your Eyes" and "Terrible". His transition to soca megastar proved complete when he cued the HD band into his 2018 monster hit ‘Overdue’.

References

  1. ↑ "Blaxx a man of the people". Trinidad Guardian. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "TnT Carnival 2007 Results". TriniJungleJuice. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Nadia feeling No Pressure for Soca Monarch". Trinidad Guardian. February 11, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Shurwayne draws lucky 8". Trinidad Newsday. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  5. ↑ "$2m battle for Power title". Trinidad Guardian. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Chutney Soca Monarch finalists announced". Trinidad Express. Retrieved October 15, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Judges revealed for Digicel Rising Stars". LOOP. Trend Media Inc. September 18, 2015. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.