Omolora

Part 1/ The idea of Carnival in Jamaica was birthed at UWI Mona in the 50s, where a blend of islanders being homesick wanted to replicate the carnival celebrations of back home, which eventually evolved into ‘RING ROAD’. I remember attending UWI Ring Road as a very young child with my Mother in the late 80s - there were hundreds upon hundreds of revelers feting to FAB 5 (a Jamaican Band) playing music on a truck while it maneuvered around ring road. Fab 5 was a Jamaican band that created some amazing hits in 80s & early 90s, with perhaps their biggest hit ‘all night party’ & ‘Ring Road Jam’. This music was completely Jamaican and appreciated as our carnival sound at that season/time. Simultaneously, during this era, Jamaican Icon, Byron Lee was dominating the airwaves with his band Byron Lee & the Dragonaires with hits such as Tiny Winey, Nani Wine, etc etc. During the late 80s into early 90s there were also other niche groups providing soca experiences in Jamaica. Some of these groups visited Trinidad carnival annually and brought back their experience and packaged an exclusive Carnival Experience to their network of friends - eg. orange carnival Frenchmen etc.