The Great Dennery Segment Debate

The reaction of Saint Lucians to the song that won the Dennery Segment Song of the Year award at the recent Caribbean Music Awards was somewhat predictable. Many were livid and expressed their disappointment that Klassik , a non-Saint Lucian artiste, had won the award for a genre that was distinctively Saint Lucian, with the song Dansa . However, I believe that the disappointment and backlash that ensued were misplaced and lacked an understanding of how the award system and the music ecosystem in general work. The reality is that music awards generally do not tie genres to where they originated or award recipients based on ethnicity. So why should the Caribbean Music Awards be any different? Then again, truth be told, some of those I spoke to could not say definitively what exactly Dennery Segment is.

They also could not make the connection between the singer and the song until I played Dansa, and they instinctively started nodding and saying, “Oh yeah, dat song. ” I am sure, too, that many of those who were crying foul were among the millions who had viewed, liked and shared the video of Dansa last year, making it easily one of the biggest standout songs in that category. I reiterate here that the vitriol I saw levelled at the singer on social media was uncalled for. And maybe his response to some of it may not have helped either. After all, Klassik did not hand himself the award. After putting in the work, the rewards came: the tours, the bookings and then the Dennery Segment Song of the Year award. Strangely, though, I did not see any backlash from music fans in Jamaica regarding the Dancehall Album of the Year award, which went to Prince Swanny of Trinidad. Then there was the Bouyon Song of the Year award, which went to 1T1 of Guadeloupe for the song Bouwey . Did we…