By: Tony Nicholas - St. Lucia Times
During recent watch parties in celebration of Saint Lucian Gold and Silver Olympic medalist Julien Alfred, Saint Lucians have displayed what some are describing as a resurgence of national pride, with the song “Damn Proud Lucian,” resonating through it all.
St. Lucia Times caught up with the singer Sylvinius “Sly” Charles on Tuesday, following his performance at the Derek Walcott Square for Julien Alfred’s 200m Olympic watch party.
Sly had just whipped up fans into a frenzy as they all sang along to “Damn Proud Lucian” in celebration of Alfred’s second medal at the Paris Olympics.
The song had won “Sly” the Groovy Soca Monarch title here in July and had now become an anthem of pride, resilience, perseverance and success for the nation.
We asked the entertainer about his feelings toward acceptance and love for the song and performing it to honour Julien Alfred.
“Every time I get on stage and start to sing this song it gives me chills, just feeling the energy, it is almost tangible. And doing this for Julien Alfred, she represented us extremely well and I think we also represented her well with the outpouring of love and support that Saint Lucians are showing,” Sly said.
“Damn Proud Lucian” released earlier this year ahead of Saint Lucia’s Independence anniversary, has grown in popularity, slowly at first.
Sly’s reaction; “Well the anticipation was for it to grow on people at home and the diaspora as well. We constructed the song for that purpose and yes, it grew slowly and has now exploded. Everything fell into alignment at the right time. I mean the song helped me capture the Groovy Soca Monarch title in July, then Shan Lucien brought home the Miss Jaycees pageant title from Antigua and now with Julien, Michael and the others representing us well at the Paris Olympics and of course Alfred capturing gold and now silver. So all this gave the song fuel, as well. It is growing even on me as the artiste.”
“I am so thankful for this and seeing everyone singing along showing their pride to represent as Saint Lucians, I really could not ask for more,” Sly said with a wide smile.
Asked about the thought process that went into creating the song, Sly told St. Lucia Times that he started working on the lyrics late last year but wanted it to be something other than just for the occasion of independence.
“During the process I ran into a friend, MC Donnerville, who told me that he was having an event and the theme was damn proud Lucian. So I told him I would fuse the two and it gave birth to the song,” Sly revealed.
“I just wanted to capture the essence of Saint Lucia, the cultural aspect, the folk, the natural beauty, the colours, the love, the people the vibe and I think that was well executed,” he said.
Sly disclosed that he did have concerns over the use of the word “damn” at first, especially going into the groovy soca monarch competition.
However, he sought clarity from the event organizers and close friends.
“The word damn was just used for emphasis on that overwhelming pride we felt and we had for Saint Lucia and I am happy that everyone was okay with it and took it for what it was,” he said.
Following his immense success so far this year with “Damn Proud Lucian” as well as his power soca hit “Breakaway,” Sly announced it was time to hit the regional and international stages.
“Right now we are putting things in place to go on tour in certain parts of the Caribbean and also looking forward to Europe, England, France and Canada. We also have more music to put out as well. So it does not stop there it is a journey, and we are thankful.”
He thanked his fans and supporters for being part of that journey, which started in his community of Belle Vue with “Vye Twizin Boys,” which he says is not dead.
Sly also invited Saint Lucians to join him on August 24 and 25 in Belle Vue for “Mas in Da Vue,” where the celebration of Lucian pride would continue.
