by Ayana Malaika Crichlow -- TheHuffingtonPost.com - Black Voices
I make no bones about it, I don’t try to hide it; in fact, I am obnoxious about it: I love soca music and steel pan, and I want the world to love it too. Hearing inflections of soca in Drake’s “One Dance” and steel pan in Nick Jonas’ “Closer” makes me over the moon happy and excited.
Yes, I know the producer of “One Dance,” Wizkid, is Nigerian and maybe our music is very similar, or maybe it’s some kind of fusion of both, but whatever it is, I definitely get a soca vibe and it’s beautiful.
But there is no mistaking the lilting sound of the steel pan notes in “Closer,” and although I know the versatility of the instrument, I am still surprised when I hear its sound in new forms and pop songs.
Music is such a melting pot and these artists have the right idea. If only the world could follow suit and create a place of diversity, acceptance, love and eventual blending of different ideas to create our own special fusion of love and friendship — what a wonderful world it would be. I know I got mushy there, but a girl can dream, can’t she?
Replies
Hey Cecil....Sorry to disappoint you, but the instrument that you are hearing is a Workstation Keyboard, with a tone generated to sound like a steel pan. No pan musician was hired or used to play. its so sad.
Thanks for the WAKE UP CALL, CARLYLE!!!
This was nice.