Once you experience carnival, you realize the differences between the host cities and countries. Even though I don’t go to the West Indian American Day Carnival in Brooklyn, I always find myself in a fête. Here’s my Labor Day 2014 recap of all the fêtes I found myself in.
Labor Day Friday – 760 Rooftop
In celebration of my cousin’s birthday, we started the weekend by going to 760 Rooftop. There was no cover before midnight, and we went to see a performance by NBC’s The Voice winner Tessanne Chin. We caught a glimpse of the Jamaican songstress along with Shaggy, Kes, Wayne Marshall, and other performers, but I left around 3 since nobody performed. It wasn’t a loss for me since I got in free and the vibes were nice.
Labor Day Saturday Afternoon – Marcus Crew Cooler Fete
The afternoon was spent at Marcus Crew Cooler Fete, not too far from the Flatbush Junction. The event was in a nice venue with two floors, but talk about HOT! The AC didn’t work at all and we sweat the majority of the time. Despite the heat, the DJs played a great mix of soca and reggae tunes and I honestly enjoyed every minute of it. One minus of the event was the fact that it was a cooler fete, but NO COOLERS or ice PERMITTED. Luckily, I went with smart women and we ended up loading the ice in our chasers and funneled the drinks in. Problem solved. I’d definitely attend Marcus Crew Cooler Fete again.
Labor Day Sunday – Throw Powder Fete
I celebrated J’ouvert at Throw Powder Fete around the corner from Soca Village. This was my first J’ouvert in NY and I had ah time! A combo of paint, powder, good friends, good vibes, and performances by Soca artists Talpree and Skinny Banton made it exceptionally fun.
Labor Day Monday – Machel Monday
Three down, one more to go. Our last fete was to see Mr. Fete himself Machel Montano at Pulse 48. When we walked in, we saw the last portion of Grenadian artist Mr. Killa and Dancehall King Beenie Man’s performance. Having seen Machel perform many times before, I found this performance very rushed and pretty boring. It was his last show for Labor Day weekend and it felt that way. He himself said this Labor Day was his busiest yet. Between performing, he promoted his new hat line at the New Era store in SoHo and did several radio interviews.
That is my full Labor Day 2014 recap. All in all, it was a great weekend and I felt it the next morning. I eventually was wiped out by the end of the week. That’s expected during carnival time though…Right?
Did you fete this Labor Day Weekend?
