by SHARMAIN BABOOLAL
Duvonne Stewart opened the gates of hell and met them face to face; the killer and the man who killed the killer.
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| Duvonne Stewart hears the results. Photo Maria Nunes |
He faced the demons, conquered them and had love to spare ..with a little bit of help from his “close friend, mentor, motivator, critic” Wayne Alleyne whom he saw lying in a pool of blood on the ground just outside his home on Queen Street in Port of Spain.
A murder statistic for the rest of Trinidad and Tobago, but this 59-year-old man was another one who was killed only to send a message to the other side in the turf war in the battle zone of East Port of Spain; the heartland of the island’s top three steelbands; Desperadoes, Renegades and All Stars.
“They made an example of Wayne. He was so close to me that it was real. It hit me hard. Every single thing that was expressed musically in the performance of Renegades, I turned around that experience and transformed it,” Duvonne said about the murder on December 11th 2017.
Yet when he cried, in front of the whole world to see, he stifled the tears in the soulful and expressive arrangement of Year For Love which ended a twenty-year-drought-long transition from its record breaking success with the late Dr Jit Samaroo.
Replies
Congratulations Sharmain ...you captured some of the the grit and joy behind the Renegades win!!! Even GREATER admiration and accolades for Duvonne Stewart...now that I know him better.......after reading this piece. ..He is a shining example for the boys and girls behind the bridge. You can win ALL with music and sheer guts. DUVONNE..Thanks for your fiery determination.!!