JMC 3Veni, acclaimed by many as the Caribbean's premier crossover band, kicked off the New Year alongside international recording artistes John Legend and Beres Hammond at the Guyana National Stadium, last Saturday.
The band, fronted by Chutney Soca Monarch KI, was ecstatic to have performed on such a big event after a ten-day family vacation in Toronto, Canada. 3Veni also performed for West Indian cricketer Ramnaresh Sarwan at his recent wedding in Guyana. KI's singing sidekicks, Nishard M and Neval Chatelal are overwhelmed by the magnificent reception to their Carnival 2014 releases.
Thus far, 3Veni has released KI's Runaway, remixed with Olatunji; Professor Feter, on the Bad Influence Riddim, featuring KI, Nadia Batson and Lyrikal; and Lolita, with vocals by KI and Neval Chatelal. Nishard M is also the voice on the chutney soca single Mammy Say.
Speaking to the T&T Guardian this week, KI said: "Look out for more as we've only just begun releasing songs for the season, and there are a lot more to come, including one of the first ever Chutney Soca Riddims (CurryQue Riddim) produced by MillBeatz Ent.
The handsome young singer added that 3Veni also intends releasing No Conduct, produced by he and Rishi Mahato of Maha Productions; Tremble It, on the CurryQue Riddim; Chip, produced and written by Rich Persad, KI's younger brother; and, Carnival Symptoms, produced by Precision Productions and London Future.
KI said the band will be representing T&T "on a different scale this year." In September 2013, the aggregation did a 14-day cultural exchange to China for the ninth annual China Folk Art Music Festival.
Veerendra Persad, KI's father, 3Veni founder and keyboardist, expressed gratitude to all who have supported the band through the years. He said he is looking forward to the hectic Carnival season and being on the road with Trini Revellers.
The band will also be on the road for J'Ouvert, providing music for First Trace. The band is one of the few that still play live music for masquerade bands on Carnival days.
about JMC 3Veni
JMC 3Veni was founded in 1977 as a local East-Indian oriented band. Initially the band brought East-Indian culture to the forefront, playing music focusing on film songs, playback and more. Within a few years of existence, 3Veni (then known as Triveni) had captivated the hearts of many Indo-Trinidadians with its music. The band had successfully brought to the larger audience of T&T a vibrant and captivating East-Indian music band capable of standing its ground on stages with other bands focused more on soca or calypso; sometimes even captivating its audiences more than the conventional music band of that time.
The year 1987 was a major turning point for the band, as it, for the first time, ventured into the soca/calypso arena as Triveni Brass, having successfully conquered the East-Indian audience. Triveni Brass was hired to play on the road for Carnival mas band Rabs Immortelle and was awarded second Best Sounding Band for that year. It was then, the band was dubbed "the premier crossover" band, becoming the band of choice for many popular Carnival mas bands including Showcase, Raoul Garib, Max Awon, D' Midas & Associates and, for the past 12 years, three-time Band of the Year winner Trini Revellers.
In 1993, the band partnered with JMC Entertainment (Mohan Jaikaran) out of New York City, under the leadership of master musician/keyboardist Veerendra Persad, becoming JMC Triveni. Persad has since then lead the band to its current success, working diligently to promote the music and culture of T&T internationally over the past years. Seven years ago, Persad had reinvented the band's image once again, changing the spelling of the name to "3Veni."
Apart from being a premier band at many of the Carnival fetes and all-inclusive parties, the band plays a major role in all of the Chutney Soca events throughout the season, including The Chutney Soca Monarch, Chutney Glow and Chutney Brass. Having won the Crossover Band of The Year award at the 2010 International Chutney Soca Awards, 3Veni continues to work vigorously to hold the title of the Best Crossover Band out of T&T. 3Veni once again won the title for Best Sounding Band on the Road for Downtown Carnival in 2012.
JMC 3Veni now boasts of its talented frontline of KI, Nishard M and Chatelal.
Travelling to North America, South America, the Caribbean, and Europe annually, the band has managed to attain many merits to their name, including;
Sunshine Award winners–four consecutive years
Indo Caribbean & TnT Awards–three consecutive years
Awards at the 103 FM Annual Hall of Fame Awards
Best Crossover Band, The International Soca Awards at the Apollo Centre, New York
Crossover Song of the Year 2006–Doi Festival, The COTT Awards, Trinidad
The opportunity to perform for former New York mayor Rudolf Giuliani–four consecutive years
Six-time winners of the Best Sounding Band, Downtown Carnival, Trinidad, including 2012
Crossover Band Of The Yea –International Chutney Music Awards 2010 � NAPA
Crossover Band of The Year–National Chutney Awards 2012
Most Performed Chutney Soca Band Locally–National Chutney Awards 2012