I have not seen ONE POLITICIAN turn the whole nation upside down with one little sentence since DESMOND CARTY said: "ALL AH WE TIEF!!!" Ah think that it was in 1986 that he made that statement.
Now, on the surface, to somebody like me -- A REAL TRINIDADIAN -- I could have taken that statement in stride and not given it A SECOND THOUGHT (except to chuckle to myself that DOLLY and I think alike when it comes to where PAN belongs). Because there is a dichotomized view of STEELBAND MUSIC in TRINIDAD and that is not widely discussed. And since it has become fashionable for so many people to JUMP ON THE PAN BANDWAGON (I like to say "PIMP THE PAN")-- the voices of SHALLOW PRAISE often win the day.
But what really intrigued me most about the statement was its niche audience, the targeted demographic and the sincerity of the retort in an unfiltered trend of thought. My mother always talked about the "unguarded moment" -- I am trying to think if it applies here.
In Trinidad they talk about every creed and race finding an EQUAL PLACE -- but in this case only a small core in the entire nation could really find an EQUAL PLACE in this discussion and fully appreciate the intrinsic message.
If you are AN INDIAN from CARONI -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you are A SYRIAN -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you are A MEMBER OF THE CHINESE STEELBAND -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you are A MEMBER OF THE ONE PERCENT -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you came from Grenada or St Vincent on a boat -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If your mother or father came from Grenada or St. Vincent on a boat -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you came from GUYANA on a boat -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said!!!
If you are some WHITE PROFESSOR from AMERICA who wrote a BEST SELLING BOOK on PAN -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said.
If you are a JOURNALIST in TRINIDAD writing in the LOCAL NEWSPAPER -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said.
If you just came from TOBAGO and they put you in charge of ALL THE STEELBANDS in Trinidad -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said.
If you belong to any of the BIG 6 STEELBANDS in TRINIDAD -- you cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said.
I might have left out a few more PEOPLE who cannot understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said. But to put it another way: You will be LUCKY to find TEN PEOPLE in the whole world of PAN who could understand what DOCTOR DOLLY said and appreciate it for its CULTURAL HONESTY.
Replies
A CONVERSATION WITH CULTURE MINISTER DR. NYAN GADSBY-DOLLY
Soyini Nneka
Published on Feb 16, 2017
Lord Nelson - We Like It