It was at age 22 that a fearless Kevin Small entered masquerade in Barbados as a bandleader in a sector that was dominated by veterans, and at the time dominated by female prowess.
For years, there was the epic design battle between the late Gwyneth Squires and Betty West. Squires, the most decorated Crop Over bandleader, copped the top designer award a record 21 times in Grand Kadooment and 20 times in Junior Kadooment.
Betty’s achievements have also been impressive since she started in 1991.
Over the 50 years of Crop Over the sector would have seen the likes of Marcia Chandler, Winston Jordan, Robert Weekes, Reggie Cave and Renee Radcliffe, all deceased, at the forefront as well.
Ironically though, coming into an arena of giants in design did not intimidate Small, their legacies served as a motivating factor for the youngster who came on the scene and made an indelible mark.
It was at Sunshine Snacks Junior Kadooment on July 20 that Small told the live broadcast that this would be his last year of competing in masquerade as he spoke about his band Fruit Snacks. The band went on to win Topical, Best Costume Structure and Most Colourful Band.
Small’s contribution to the cultural heritage component of the festival has been highly impactful over the 10 years he has been on the scene. He is one of an elite and small group of bandleaders who bring both a Junior and Grand Kadooment Band each year.
He is part of the dying elite group which focuses heavily on traditional masquerade and not just swimsuits and feathers. His costumes tell stories, Bajan stories, stories of traditional mas’.
His creativity, his youthful energy and the grace in which he carried himself and the band brought a freshness to the competition. Apart from Crop Over, Small has also designed the outfits for couples participating and winning the Spirit of the Nation show.
In 2014, on his first entry to Crop Over he copped Best Junior Band in Junior Kadooment. The rest is history. Small’s winning streak was as if he had Midas magic.
His winnings moved to Grand Kadooment as well. On numerous occasions he won Festival Designer of the Year for both Junior and Grand Kadooment. To date, he has over 60 trophies he earned over the decade he competed in masquerade.
In 2018, he became the envy of many when the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) in partnership with Consolidated Finance put a Kia Cerato up for grabs as the prize for the top designer which he won.
In an interview at the time, he reflected that reception to his entry and winning was less than courteous by veteran band leaders. However, that did not stop him.
“The response has been a very interesting one and I will say it is a little disappointing in certain aspects, [considering] that as a new kid on the block, and you are doing it at this level and you are pretty much the youngest bandleader out there and you are stepping up to the plate and meeting the mark head-on year after year for the last three years,” he told the media.
Over the years Small spoke candidly about the challenges he faced within the sector as well as leading and commanding a team at such a young age.
In 2019, he was chosen to design the monument that was erected on the Mighty Grynner as part of the highway renaming ceremony.
At every turn he credited the NCF’s school costume design programme for piquing his interest in masquerade. At the time he worked with other seasoned bandleaders such as Gerald Walcott and Donna Howard. In turn, for the past few years Small has been a designer assigned to a school under the NCF’s Junior Masquerade Project giving back to the programme which gave him his start.
While the debate rages on about the success and failures of this year’s festival, masquerade has lost an invaluable asset. An individual who embraced traditional mas and heritage. This must be noted at a time when veteran Betty West only brought an adult band this year. Very few bands judged this year in the Heritage category.
This begs the question: What does the future of heritage masquerade look like? Who will be bold enough to step in with fresh talent and ideas to propel this aspect of mas? Will Kadooment Day be purely swimsuits and feathers? How do we ensure that traditional mas’ and heritage are a part of the next 50 years?
On Flow Grand Kadooment Day Small’s band Crop Over – Tributing the Greats paid homage to Marcia Chandler, Reggie Cave, Winston Jordan, Renee Ratcliffe, Robert Weekes, and Gwyneth Squires. He brought back bands and sections of past Kadooments to honour the designer greats. Marcia Chandler’s section was aptly named Wind Force, Reggie Cave Bathsheba Ah Come From, Winston Jordan Electric Vibes, Robert Weekes Happy Fuh Days, Renee Radcliffe Fly High and Gwyneth Proud to be a Bajan.
His efforts, in his final year, earned him Best Festival Designer – The Robert Weekes Award, Small Band of the Year, BMA Brand of Barbados Award, Best Individual Male, Best Individual Female and Best Presentation.
Small ended his masquerade journey in fine style. Just as he had started – in the winners’ row.
Beyond a shadow of a doubt: he came, he saw, he conquered. And as Small did on Flow Grand Kadooment Day as he saluted the “Greats” we too salute him.
Kevin Small, Barbados TODAY salutes you. We thank you for reinforcing the fact that not all is lost with the younger generation. We applaud your contribution to masquerade for the last 10 years. We commend you for stepping into a field of giants and making your mark. For us, in this 50th year of the festival you are the unsung hero in masquerade. We wish you well in your future ventures.
The post We, too, salute a ‘great’: Well done, Kevin Small appeared first on Barbados Today.
