Photos by Natasha Mc

Well yes, big big band launching tonight and all day if you only ask somebody “Where yuh going tonight?”, they watching yuh like yuh crazy.... “Big Phat Fish of course!!” And like we said before, when the 2nd Saturday of the month come round yuh know where to find the TJJ Crew, down the road, round the corner, by the bar in Big Phat Fish. Miami/Broward Carnival is a mere 3 months away, so that means it's time for all the band leaders to begin displaying their Mas Presentations for the upcoming Carnival.

Photos by Natasha Mc
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All were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Island Elite Mas presentation because this year would be a special year for Jono, Troy and the Island Elite crew because they were branching out with an entire mas band of their very own. As we said before, when we jumped up Island Elite in past years, we found it to be quite like being in a section in TnT Carnival; and to that end, they have followed the likes of ISLANDpeople and TRIBE and now doing it all for themselves.

But before we even get to the band launch, it have party going on. And even though the TJJ crew was rolling deep tonight, we still managed to arrive around 1AM, after having scooped up the newest member of the TJJ fam, Natasha aka "Sig Juice". So we arrive at Big Fish and there is actually a line outside, so you dun know iz nuff people in de fete already. As usual, in two two's we were on the inside. Wouldn't you know it... place almost ram out, and this is early for a fete here in South Florida. We can see the VIP area that usually takes up the area of the raised platform in front the DJ has been transformed into a runway/catwalk all decked out with lights and ting. So the place is paced and getting more full with each passing minute, and did we mention that it's hot as heck here in Florida... lawd have his mercy! Ah tell yuh if you stand still too fast you will sweat, and ladies we're sure many of you got your hair did before coming, but you know what that humidity does to the do!

So now it's time for the main event as DJ Eternal Vibes announces that the presentation is about to start. We take up position in front cause we want to see everything up close. Folks are always skeptical about costumes outside of Trini Carnival, but we can honestly say that Island Elite Mas did not jus slap some beads on a bikini and call that pretty mas, you can see some time and effort went into the concept, design and building of their costumes. The band's presentation for 2007 is called "Into the West", and it has a Western motif with section names like "Gunslinger" and "Saloon Girls". There are 9 sections in total, though there are 4 different colored Saloon Girls, so maybe they all in 1 section. All the sexy ladies came out on stage strutted their stuff and showed of the costumes.... the paparazzi snapped their photos and very efficiently and smoothly the presentation was over and it was time to party again. We are definitely looking forward to seeing Island Elite Mas on the road come Miami Carnival 2k7!

For more information on Island Elite Mas, visit www.islandelitemas.com.

Spudz McKenzie

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