International
Soca artists Marzville and 5StarAkil confirmed to perform

It will be one for the
history books for Caribbean Carnivals worldwide, as Cayman’s
national carnival, Batabano, launches its first ever Virtual Street
Parade this Saturday May 9th in the Cayman Islands, featuring
international Soca performers Marszville and 5Star Akil.

“Batabano is
celebrating its 37th anniversary this year, and while
we await the government’s final decision on the main street parade
being possible this Fall, we are excited to introduce a Virtual
Street Parade for the first time in the carnival’s history, and
certainly one of the first such virtual parades in the history of
Caribbean carnivals overall,” said Batabano Chairperson Donna
Myrie-Stephen, stressing that the actual Batabano Street Parade is
still merely postponed for 2020, not cancelled. “As people in
Cayman know, we fought long and hard to confirm this date, so while
we are adhering to the government’s decisions in terms of the
health and safety for our people during this Coronavirus pandemic, we
remain determined to offer our masqueraders a unique experience of a
lifetime on Saturday May 9th.”

Starting at 1pm, the 37th
Annual Batabano Street Parade will take the format of a “Virtual”
Street Parade, with live performances by Marszville out of Barbados
and 5Star Akil out of Trinidad. 

5Star Akil, best known
for his breakthrough single “Partier” as well as “To Meh
Heart”, “Noise”, “Islands Adventure”, “Never Done”, and
“Tuh Night”, had this to say about the Virtual Batabano Street
Parade: “This is the first ever, and my first ever, Cayman Carnival
Batabano Virtual Carnival, and you don’t want to miss it! Song
after song, it will be a virtual concert performance, so get your
friends and family involved, organize your crew, get connected, stay
home, stay safe.”

There will also be
international DJ’s participating in the virtual parade, including
DJ Storm out of Atlanta, DJ Ang from New York, and DJ Omar from
Jamaica, alongside some of Cayman’s top DJ’s - DJ Fross, DJ
Menace, Sound Revolution, and DJ Lin.

Local radio stations are
also participating to help take masqueraders virtually down West Bay
Road, including Hot 104.1 and Radio Cayman.

Fetedayz iRadio out of
Jamaica will also carry the Cayman Carnival Batabano Virtual Street
Parade live.

The following Mas Bands
were registered for Batabano 2020: Tribal Carnival (the reigning
Batabano Band Of The Year, 2018 & 2019); Fresh Carnival; Renegade
Mas; Party Animals; Revel Unit; Local Carnival; Kaotic Mas Band; Mas
Azucar; Iconz; Cayman Aids Foundation; Quintessential Movement; Reba
Dilbert Creations; Tipsy Tomatoes; Honduras Band; and Coconuts.

Carnival chasers and masqueraders locally and around the world are invited to wear one of their favourite carnival costumes or simply represent their country flag and join the virtual Batabano Street Parade via Zoom and Facebook Live starting at 1pm. Zoom access details will be provided via the Batabano Facebook page www.facebook.com/batabanocayman and via email for those signed up for Batabano’s newsletters via www.caymancarnival.com.

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ABOUT
CAYMAN CARNIVAL BATABANO

Established in 1983 by the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman, Cayman Carnival Batabano is the National Carnival of the Cayman Islands. A salute to Cayman’s turtling heritage, “Batabano” is the native name for tracks left in the sand when sea turtles go ashore to nest, which has always been cause for celebration in the Cayman Islands. From humble beginnings, Cayman Carnival Batabano has grown from a small parade with homemade costumes and floats, to an international tourism attraction with hundreds of masqueraders donning professional costumes by local and international designers, parading down West Bay Road just steps from Cayman’s iconic Seven Mile Beach. A unique carnival that fuses culture and the arts via creative costumes, Caribbean music, local crafts, and a Food Festival worthy of the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean, Batabano is symbolically held over the first two weekends of May (including Junior Batabano) as part of the celebration and awareness of the start of Turtle Nesting Season. Today, the non-profit Cayman Carnival Batabano Board of Directors is proud to use its platform to promote and support local turtle conservation efforts in the Cayman Islands. Part-proceeds from Batabano sponsorships will help support select turtle conservation initiatives locally, made possible only through the financial contributions of Cayman’s corporate community and the local Government.

For more details, visit www.caymancarnival.com and follow www.facebook.com/batabanocayman, www.instagram.com/caymancarnivalbatabano, and www.twitter.com/batabano_cayman.