Ebuzz News
Archived: Get Back on the Go! Beginning Tonight, Entertainment Influencers Like Smooth and Kevon X Get Realer Than Ever. This Is How…
There’s nothing in the least bit entertaining about the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, Covid’s gotten the best of every person involved in the entertainment industry and they’ve got the stories to tell it. Tonight, at 7pm, some of those very vivid and emotional stories are going to be told – even the ones that led to death.
Urban radio personality and influencer, Smooth of Boomchampions 94.1FM said he was diagnosed with Covid-19 and it was an experience he wishes on no none. He also lost an aunt. Together with others in entertainment, Smooth and Nestle Nutri-GO- a brand he’s endorsed by, begin the journey to recovery, accepting the truth of the past year and four months, while excitedly prepping for the return, post pandemic.
Nestle Nutri-Go is this time around, challenging others, even those outside the entertainment biz, to be an inspiration and to motivate those around them. They’re dishing out an honest campaign – launching at 7pm tonight on social media, and featuring the true stories of people like Smooth, boat ride boss, Kevon X who’s a voice at urban radio station, RED 96.7FM, Anthony Claxton from the very popular, Krew Kutz barbershop, Ainka Williams who’s an extremely popular face in entertainment, working at TTT and Next 99.1FM, among other awesome influencers. The campaign will feature these various influencers in separate posts each Tuesday, through the end of July, with a bonus feature that spotlights entertainer, Nessa Preppy.
The idea is to basically get us all back in gear – shifting focus from the negatives that exasperated everyone over the past year, and looking toward the possibilities that lie in wait. Like the Nestle Nutrigo brand’s hashtags, #KeepGoing and #GetBackOnTheGo, they’re reinvigorating the mental mindset, and what better way to do that, than to show us all that no one was spared from the truth of the pandemic – not even those you may have thought were just fine!
“With this particular project I realized the company and the brand truly care about the people they’re selling their product to. They are actually showing that they really, really care about the people, especially during this time, with the pandemic,” said Smooth in a chat with us. He said he got very real in executing this campaign, highlighting that both he and his wife were diagnosed with Covid-19. “I just hope people really listen to what I said and start being responsible. There are still so many people being irresponsible. It’s a really serious thing,” he said.
Smooth lost one of his aunts to Covid-19 and while that was devastating for him personally, he said he’s truly concerned about the thousands of people who’ve been under tremendous financial strain over the past 16 months. He’s not the only one.
Tasked with coming up with the right message for this effort by Nestle and its NutriGo brand, the creative team sought to highlight these people Smooth spoke about, in the realest possible way. They wanted to send a clear message that nobody is alone during this time.
The three-part visual campaign will deliver a rollercoaster of emotions, according to the creative unit. “We had to work in a very controlled environment because of the pandemic. We couldn’t go out and speak with the man on the street like we would’ve wanted to. We thought that maybe stripping off a couple layers of the people who may be seen as invincible- seen as influential, could bring that sense of real- and one word to describe the NutriGo brand is real.”
The realness of #GetBackOnTheGo – an effort by NutriGo, will quite possibly show everyone, no matter who they are, where they’re located, and what their circumstances are, that they form part of a whole that if united, can and will be strong again in the weeks and months ahead.
We encourage you guys to check out NestleNutriGo on Instagram and Facebook.
This one’s for the WIN! It’s time to get back on the go!
Ebuzz News
Stevie Wonder Joins KestheBand On Stage at DC Jazz Fest – A Big Moment for Caribbean Culture.
Internationally loved and embraced Soca band, KesTheBand delivered yet another unforgettable moment for Caribbean music last Saturday, September 5th – this time at the DC Jazz Festival. It was there, in the midst of the enjoyment that a special opportunity presented itself – Kees Dieffentaller would meet the global music icon, Stevie Wonder.
The surprise appearance marked a continuation of a weekend that placed KestheBand and Caribbean music at the center of some of the most significant cultural moments of Labour Day weekend. The set included an uptempo lyrical mashup of “I Just Called To Say I Love You” and “Savannah Grass,” which received thunderous applause from adoring fans.
Crediting his parents in an emotional social media post following their debut at DC Jazz Fest, lead singer, Kees Dieffenthaller shared that the Stevie Wonder hit “was the first record I had on repeat as a child.” The moment was a powerful one as Soca music and a Trinidad and Tobago band that dedicatedly promotes the genre along with their country, came face to face with one of the most influential global artistes in music history.
Just one night earlier, on Friday, September 4th, KesTheBand electrified Soca Fest at Brooklyn museum in New York, where the band was introduced by Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani. The appearance brought together Caribbean music, culture and community in one of New York’s most prominent Labor Day weekend celebrations and venues.
Kees went on to serve as an Honorary Grand Marshal of the West Indian Day Parade. The honor was shared with dancehall and reggae superstar, Buju Banton.
Kes the Band with New York City Mayor, Zohran Kwame Mamdani
Ebuzz News
A Band That’s Building Legacy for Culture. Blow Mano Blow Promises Memorable Carnival 2027 with Tribute to The Birdie.
Amid a chorus of consistent calls across the length and breath of the country for more creativity and commitment to cultural preservation in Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago, one band continues to answer the call. Bert and Dianne Marcellin’s ‘Blow Mano Blow’ have once again stepped up to the cultural plate, prepared to remind the world, through mas, of the contributions made by a true stalwart of Trinidad and Tobago’s carnival and culture.
Though born in Grenada, The Mighty Sparrow was raised in Trinidad and Tobago from a young age. His achievements over decades at the forefront of Calypso music, have been plenty. World- over The Mighty Sparrow is known as The Calypso King of the World. Now, ahead of another Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago in 2027, ‘Blow Mano Blow’ – an all-inclusive, Carnival Monday T-Shirt band, is set to revel with five well thought-out sections that were revealed this past Saturday night, in Port-of-Spain. The theme is for 2027 is ‘To Birdie with Love.’
The band launch, hosted at the Garden Theatre of the Queen’s Hall in St. Ann’s, saw band faithfuls and friends gather to view and choose the sections they’d be hitting the streets in, come Monday, February 8th, 2027. A well-produced theatrical showcase unfolded just after 10pm – marking the start of what would be a band launch filled with much humour and excitement. From ‘Happy School Days’ to ‘Congo Man,’ ‘Marajhin,’ ‘Margarita’ and ‘Jean and Dinah,’ the songs that have brought great laughter and joy to Calypso lovers around the world for many years, now becomes tangible expressions for the road in T&T Carnival 2027.
On launch night, Bert Marcellin said he was pleased to continue the work that his father, Mano Marcellin began many years ago. With his father’s dedication at the core of Bert’s determination to keep culture alive, the younger Marcellin paid it forward on Saturday night.
Presenting a young, female musician with a gift from the the band, he shared that his father believed musicians were lovers. “Tonight we are paying tribute to Sparrow but we also need to pass the baton on. My dad used to say, musicians are lovers, not fighters so all the folks who have kids, get them to pick up an instrument and get into music; Do something positive,” said Bert, explaining that music is a recipe for stress relief. The owner of Brass 2 the World, the brass band that accompanies his mas band on the road on Carnival Monday, Bert advocates for creatives in a strong way. “Music is enjoyment, it’s an occupation and it makes people happy,” he said, before presenting Tiquana Joseph with an instrument, courtesy Brass 2 The World. “Tiquana started her music career. She is in the Trinidad and Tobago cadets and she just started her theory. She is reading music and we want to give her a start,” he said before presenting the young lady with her very own trombone.
The band is all-inclusive and presents an alternative option that’s reasonably priced, safe and at its core – an ode to Trinidad and Tobago’s culture. In 2026, Blow Mano Blow will be joined in partnership with Sweet 100FM. The radio station presents Jean and Dinah for the road. Over the years, Blow Mano Blow has paid tribute to several well known and well loved legends, among them, Calypso Rose and Lord Kitchener.
Fun, culturally sound and welcoming to every true fan of Trinidad and Tobago’s Greatest Show on Earth, Bert and Dianne Marcellin’s Blow Mano Blow is expected to once again offer patrons an amazing time on the road on Carnival Monday. Live instrumental accompaniment courtesy Brass 2 The World, with Snakey and Sanelle Dempster, food, drinks and a costume that pays homage – what more could a real culture lover want? On Saturday night, patrons got a taste of what’s to come on the road come 2027. The band delivered powerfully, Sanelle proving that she is still the woman who can command any audience. Also appearing as a guest at the event was Ding Dong who made the crowd feel every bit of excitement for yet another carnival on the way.
The energy of the season of revelry in T&T may be months away, but for die hard carnival lovers, this taste of what’s to come was incentive enough to go secure their costumes with Blow Mano Blow. In the audience, one patron could be heard discussing her choice for the road – “I like Congo Man,” she told her friend excitedly. “That is what we going with eh!”
No matter which section’s chosen, one thing’s for sure, Blow Mano Blow will deliver yet again, with the people in mind, on Carnival Monday next year.
For more information on how you can play with Blow Mano Blow, follow them on Facebook.