Devon Seale, the reigning National Calypso Monarch, is pushing the borders of calypso even further internationally as he embarks on a concert tour of Costa Rica on Monday.
Seale is one of the chosen headline acts for the Fourth International Calypso Festival in Cahuita, Costa Rica. The festival is taking place on July 8-10, but Seale leaves early to conduct a workshop for the children involved.
"It's all about going to new markets and trying something new," Seale said this week. "On Costa Rica's Caribbean coast, there are alot of West Indian immigrants who maintained their Afro Caribbean culture. As such, the Costa Rican Government recognised the importance of this type of music to the country's cultural and historical identity and officially declared calypso a national patrimony in 2012.
Speaking about his life since winning calypso's most prestigious prize, Seale said: "Devon Seale is still the cool and humble guy everyone is accustomed to. But as the national calypso monarch more opportunities in terms of performing are coming my way. I meet a number of people who are truly elated that I was successful this year and then you recognise the amount of persons who were following your career from the beginning.
With 20 years in the senior category , I think calypso lovers deserve to see Devon in concert–'Seale(D) with thanks'."
Born in Tunapuna, Seale grew up in Bon Air Gardens, and attended Tunapuna Anglican Primary School, Arima Government Secondary and El Dorado Secondary Comprehensive. Additionally, he lived in Brasil for four years where he pursued a BSc in Computer Science and in 2014 graduated with distinction honors at the Arthur Lok Jack GSB.
About his young life, Seale disclosed: "I started singing calypso at the age of 11. In fact, my aunt Singing Sonia wrote my first calypso. Eventually, I started singing compositions by George Martin which took me to approximately six finals as a junior calypsonian.
"As a younger man I played three musical instruments (piano, violin, pan). In the younger days it was always calypso and classical music. I started singing classical music at first, tutored by Esther Batson, taking part in competitions like the T&T Musical Festival and 12 and Under."
The local bards to influence Seale most are Black Stalin, Explainer and Bro Valentino but he added: "After being exposed to Brazilian music, I love to see Gilberto Gil and Ivette Sangalo perform."
Three songwriters are responsible for the material Seale sings. They are Gregory Ballantyne, Marlon Rondon and Christophe Grant.
Seale thinks that local music and singers are on par with any other in the world. He said: "I think we produce great music locally and we have very talented artistes, however we have
limited venues where local musicians can showcase and develop their talents.
With the younger generation in calypso emerging, I don't think it is a dying art form. As calypsonians we just have to find more creative ways of getting the message out there to the younger generation. It's all about utilising the technology."
Seale, who describes himself as a "focussed and committed calypsonian," said: "I'd really like to see the day when we can have a calypso museum, to showcase the works of our icons."
With his sights set on holding on to the national title in 2017, he added with a chuckle: "Seven months away from Carnival 2017 is a bit too early but I can warn my challengers that with the material I already have, it's not going to be easy to dethrone me. This year I had four songs and any two could have worked. Next year, look for new things from Devon Seale."