Best of The Beat August 28, 2017
Best of The Beat on Afropop: Soca Star David Rudder
To highlight the upcoming New York appearances by soca master David Rudder, this week’s “Best of The Beat” will fill you in on the story of this much-beloved Trinidadian Calypso Monarch. African music historian Gary Stewart interviewed the articulate singer for The Beat in 1988.
David Rudder began in the mid-‘70s with the Charlie’s Roots soca band, and burst into international renown with his 1986 hits, “The Hammer” and the samba-flavored “Bahia Girl,” that won that year’s Calypso Monarch competition at Trinidad Carnival. He has released at least 16 albums to date.
Notable for his pan-Caribbean and African consciousness, Rudder paid a tribute to the history and resilience of the people of Haiti with this song:
