Friday, November 27, 2015

Why T&T Loves Japanese Soca Artist - Minmi

Her Performance Was Spellbinding

Is it because she's Japanese?

Exactly, it is a long journey from Japan to Trinidad and Tobago. Crossing the seas, crossing cultures and language barriers, it is indeed a long journey.

It is an honor, maybe not in the traditional Japanese sense but then again maybe, to be chosen by anyone in any foreign speaking country to take the journey to come to Trinidad and present themself in a was that everything resonates with the people.

The audience reaction to her soca musical presentation expressed that honor in the only way we know how, we get on bad, wine and misbehave. .

It is amazing that a foreign singer, and one that speak a language that only about 10 people in the entire population of T&T can speak could get such a reaction from a crowd of soca lovers. .

My conclusion is that people like anything that's different,  There are literally hundreds of soca artists in T&T, many have not commanded such excitement.  It validates that when you are different you stand out of the crowd.

Minmi, comes with a difference a big difference. She has captured the rythem of soca and expresses it in Japanese and English,

Listen to her rock the local Trinidad crowd, she will did not win a title but she deserve big ups for her performance here

Check the Japanese Soca video.






Who is Minmi?



According to an excerpt of an article posted on wikipedia..

Japanese singer in Soca Monarch.

By Joan Rampersad (Newsday).

Minmi, a 29-year-old Osaka-born Japanese hip-hop, reggae and soca singer, is among the 107 entrants for the Groovy Soca Monarch competition, and also one of the 110 artistes registered for the International Soca Monarch competition.


Locals will remember Minmi when she mesmerised the crowd while performing her 2006 soca hit “Summertime” at Machel Montano’s Alternative Concept 4 concert last year.


Patrons didn’t know what the exact lyrics were whether it was jump, wave, wine, in Japanese but the performance was one of high energy and when shouted to the crowd to “Put your hands in the air”, patrons went wild.


She started her career back in 1996 at clubs in Osaka performing both hip hop and reggae. She then released her first album in August 2003 and has since released four albums and eight singles. 


She has a big following in Japan as well as in Jamaica and here in Trinidad Tobago.

For 2007, she has recorded “Shanananana Japanese Wine” featuring Machel Montano, and on her own, “Step By Step”. The latter song is currently enjoying heavy rotation on local cable stations.


So what do you think?  

Did the fusion work for her?

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