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SOCA TWINS

How it all began

The Soca Twins arrival on the scene is tightly connected to the general development of Soca music in Germany. The main man in the Soca Twins, Berlin-born FRANKY FIRE first heard of Soca in 1999 when his friend DJ Lou Weed gave him a mixtape. When the veteran DJ Barney Millah then played the first Soca tunes on radio in the year 2000 Franky became more and more interested in this music and bought his first Soca records. In 2001, it was Barney who gave Franky his first opportunity to DJ on the second floor of the "United Colors of Soundsystem" club series, which was the first strictly Soca zone in a German club.

Germanys first Soca Sound

The idea to make his own Soca sound came when Frank met the Reggae DJ Chris the Rock, who was similarly beginning to incorporate Soca into his sets. As a result of the striking similarity in appearance as well as dance style, the two's name of "Soca Twins" was especially apt. In May 2002 the Soca Twins arranged the first Soca club night in Germany whose success was modest. With the help of other Berlin DJs, it wasn't too long until the first towels were swinging in the air and the Soca Twins could be considered a success. At this time, the first dubplate specials were recorded for the sound.

With the release of the first Soca Twins mixtape "Jump 'n' Wine", the number of local bookings increased rapidly. A breakthrough in quality was reached as Frank visited the Carnival in Trinidad in 2003 and returned with suitcases filled with dubplate trophies. Among them, the Roadmarch winner Naya George and Fay Ann Lyons. This moment can be seen as a small revolution as he was the first soundbwoy to visit "The land of fete" and not, like all the others, return empty-handed. Back in Berlin the mix CD "Trini 2 Di Bone" was compiled. Lauded by the critics, it spawned a series of booking requests from all over Germany.

Unfortunately the original composition of the Soca Twins decided to part ways as Chris wanted to concentrate more intensely on his Sound Rocketeer project and Tommy joined, taking over the role of MC.

The breakthrough

Towards the end of 2003 the Soca Twins set another milestone in the history of German Soca with the creation of the Soca Twins Productions label and the release of the first German-language Soca single, "Aus Berlin" featuring Kodiak.

In 2004 the Trinidad Carnival was revisited, where once again numerous dubplates were voiced. The season was crowned by the mix CD "Carnival iz bout this" which managed to surpass the quality of its predecessors and received similarly widespread praise from the critics. A further highlight of 2004 was Germany's first "Glow" party in Frankfurt.

At the beginning of 2005, after the now obligatory TnT visit, the Soca Twins decided to face up to the challenge of a sound clash. To this end, they called for reinforcement from the Berlin soundbwoy and musician BOONE CHATTA, who over the last few years had similarly succumbed to the persuasions of Soca. This show proved that Franky was born to DJ and showed Boone's affinity with the mic. Boone soon took over the task of MCing, warming up the massive and became an official sound member.

The next level was reached with the release of the mix CD "Trinidad On Fire". What followed shortly was a request from BBC Radio (UK) to supply a Soca mix, which has been hot property as a demo since.

Going international

After a wild Carnival of the Cultures in Berlin and the first international booking in Switzerland a further highlight of 2005 was achieved with the invitation to the Summer Jam in Cologne. It was here that the Soca sound was reproduced successfully in front of a large audience for the first time. The legendary performance was the catalyst for numerous further bookings in Germany as well as new requests from abroad. For personal reasons, Tommy decided to leave the sound in the Autumn. Since then the Soca Twins have been heaving the Massive as a two-man show and are constantly being asked if they actually are twins.

In 2006 things began to develop at blinding speed. The Soca Twins homepage was completely redesigned as a result of the much increased number of visitors it received. New features were added to it and it was translated into English. At the Carnival in Trinidad the Twins became the first German sound system to DJ and play on radio. To keep up relations on the island, their friend Nickolas was appointed the official "Soca Twins Ambassador" to Trinidad.

During the football World Cup the team from Trinidad & Tobago was supported by the "Soca Twins – Soca Warriors Tour 2006". This saw the Twins play live support to numerous international Soca stars like Machel Montano, Rupee, Alison Hinds, Destra Garcia, Maximus Dan, Benjai, Calypso Rose, the Reggae legend Jimmy Cliff and many more. After the World Cup final a large showdown took place at the legendary After Game Fan meeting point, Breitscheidplatz in Berlin. There Franky & Boone rocked out to over 5000 enthusiastic football fans, the majority of whom were experiencing Soca music for the first time.

Next up was the release of the pumping 2006 mix CD "Ting 4 D Road" which was quickly nominated for the award of "Best Soca DJ Mix". Not only that, the Soca Twins were also nominated for the "International Soca DJ of the Year" award. At the venue they played for the first time in the US.

In 2007 Soca Twins created a little Media-Hype in Trinidad. Several TV-Stations invited them and they play on various Radio-Stations across the country as well as on th legendary "Glow" and other fetes in front of thousends of people. Again, they were nominated for the Soca Awards along Mix "De Trini In Meh" but could not get the throphy yet. Maybe in 2008, because for the third time in a row, they are nominated as "International Soca DJ Of The Year" and "Addicted 2 Soca" as best Soca Mix worldwide.

Their presence on the international scene has created lots of fans. Soca Twins want to follow their mission to represent and spread Soca Music in the future and defend their reputation as one of the world's best Soca Sounds. None of this would have been possible without the support of the German, but above all, the Berlin Massive, who have made the Twins what they are today.

Book Soca Twins @ www.socatwins.com

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