As a gieNETWORK intern this summer, I was given the once in a lifetime opportunity to meet and interview many musical artistes, all of whom taught me very valuable lessons. One of the artistes who stood out from the rest was the King of Soca himself, Machel Montano. Machel started off by telling the campers at the TSTT Foundation's Annual Sports and Cultural camp that he was born with no heartbeat and consequently, his parents always said, "Machel, you have a purpose."
Growing up in a poor family, Machel said he never dreamed that he would be what he is today and thanks his parents for working so hard to support him. He said, "My friends always thought that my calypso songs were very boring, so I started to sing other songs yet still tried to add a bit of what was ME to it." What I admired the most of what he had to share was, "Be true to who you are; no matter what you want to do, do your best, you don't have to be a doctor or businessman..." When asked about his book, Boy Boy and The Magic Drum, Machel said the purpose of it was to give back to and be able to connect with the younger generation.
Trinidad is becoming too Americanised, he said–something that I totally agree with. Machel mentioned that many youths know about so many American heroes and fail to realise that there are numerous heroes right here in Trinidad. He wanted to create a hero for the youths and make them aware that Trinidad created the steel pan and because of that, Trinidad is a leader of the world. He also mentioned that we all need to go green, saying, "Here's your purpose, save the earth." Machel went on to educate the campers on ways they can go green and help solve this world crisis. He wanted Boy Boy to be an inspiration to and show them that "No matter where you come from, you can achieve a big goal."
As more of a rocker than a Soca fan, I was mesmerised when he did the acoustic versions of his songs on the guitar. That seemed to pierce the depths of my soul and spirit, and I told him that it was the most amazing local performance I've ever seen. The lyrics of his songs suddenly seemed so inspirational and profound to me and still echo through my head today: " I know we gunna make it/Yeahh yeheyy/Cause I heard the children say/We not giving up."
I asked if he planned on doing an acoustic album someday.
When asked which Soca artiste he admired the most, he said that he sees them all of as his children and sees a part of himself in each of them. He expressed his deep love for music, saying, "I'm somebody who music passes through' and that 'Fame pushes you to be a better person." Machel also shared that his musical heroes are Michael Jackson and Bob Marley, and that he has read both Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Ghandi's books.
It is important for me to say that no matter how the press has offended his name from time to time, I see him as a role model to all. Coming from an area close to his, I understand how hard it must have been for him to excel so immensely and even though he did so well academically, he went along with what his heart told him to do–music. Though he didn't come from the best background, he shone out from the rest to be the star that he is today.
