Radica

Any Guyanese person and Peace Corps Volunteer in Guyana will personally know the title of this blog the second they look at it. Radica, a phenomenon sweeping across Guyana, is the title of a song here that blares at all hours of the day and night, for birthday and wedding celebrations, while people are "sporting" (guyanese term for drinking and partying), at sports games, and many more occasions.

Let me further explain: first of all it's a chutney music song that's catchy and annoying all at the same time. Chutney music is a "form of music indigenous to the southern Caribbean, primarily Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana, which derives elements from soca and Indian film songs" (Wikipedia). It's very upbeat and was first religious in nature and sung by families but has since caught like wildfire and become one of the most popular forms of music, aside from soca, here in the Caribbean.

The song, also followed up by three additional versions, has the following lyrics:

Since you leave me
I am alone
I am like a dog
Without a bone,
And I don't want to be alone

So Radica why you leave and go?
oh oh oh oh
So Radica why you leave and go?

To listen to it fully click or paste here:
http://www.toronto-lime.com/music/chutney/CHUTNEY%202K9%20-%20Kenneth%20Salick%20-%20Radica.htm

Of course, there's Radica's reply:

Since I left you
I'm so happy
You didn't say how ill you treat me
You meant so much but not enough to me

Ah (I) had ah (a) right to leave and go
oh oh oh oh
Ah had ah right to leave and go

Again, listen to the song, it'll all make sense:
http://www.toronto-lime.com/music/chutney/CHUTNEY%202K9%20-%20Devika%20Ram%20-%20Ah%20Had%20Ah%20Right%20To%20Leave%20(Radica%20Reply).htm

You might be asking yourself why I'm telling you this information. Well my friends, I hear this song almost every single day. It's in my sleep and dreams, it's at the restaurants I eat at, it's on the commercials and in the cars passing by. It haunts me. Now I pass it on to you so you too can have it going round and round in your heads all day long. Enjoy! It's a small taste of my life here in Guyana wherever you may be.


P.S. For background information about why the song is the way it is, click on this link. I didn't know this until today, so I thought it was interesting to add. Cheers!
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_news?id=161437886