Destra Garcia

Destra

Picture of Destra

Destra performing in 2013
Born Destra Garcia
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Residence Trinidad and Tobago
Other names Queen of Bachanal, Lucy
Occupation
  • Singer
  • Soca Superstar
  • Songwriter
  • Dancer
  • Businesswoman
Years active 1998–present
Children 1
Parent(s)
  • Augustin Garcia
  • Debra Garcia
Website mydestra.com

Musical career

Genres
Labels Bamboo Entertainment
Associated acts Atlantik, Roy Cape All Stars, Machel Montano

Destra Garcia (born 10 November 1978) is a Trinidadian singer, songwriter and Internationally acclaimed Soca Superstar. She has Spanish, Venezuelian, Vincentian, Barbadian and Grenadian ancestry.

Biography

Childhood and early career

The eldest of four siblings, Destra was raised in the community of Desperlie Crescent, Laventille in eastern Port of Spain, and attended Woodbrook government secondary school and St James Secondary School where she discovered her passion for singing and music. She not only won her school's Calypso Monarch title for five consecutive years, she composed every one of her songs. Her musical roots came from her grandfather the late Frankie Garcia (Bourg Mulatresse, Santa Cruz), an island jazz musician. Her father Lloyd Garcia is an accomplished guitarist.

She joined a quartet called Psyke which disbanded after only one year. Following the demise of the group, Destra attended the School of Business and Management earning a diploma in Sales Management.

Music and recording career

In 1999 Roy Cape All-Stars took notice of her single titled Ah Have A Man Already with Third Bass and invited her to join the Roy Cape All-Stars band as one of the lead vocalists. She pursued a solo career briefly, but eventually joined the band Atlantik in late 2002. She remains the frontline singer for Atlantik and has forged a successful songwriting partnership with Kernel Roberts (until 2005 inclusive), churning out hits such as "Whe Yuh Want", "Negative Vibes" and "Bonnie & Clyde".

In 2003 Destra released her first album Red, White, Black which included her hit duet "It's Carnival" with fellow Soca artist Machel Montano. The song became the virtual anthem of Trinidad and Tobago carnival that year and is widely known throughout the Caribbean and by extension, the world .

Career highlights

Destra won the Road March title in 2003 at the Labour Day Carnival in Brooklyn,[1] and also placed second in the Trinidad and Tobago Soca Monarch competition in that same year.

She is yet to win either the Carnival Road March or Soca Monarch title in Trinidad although she has come close in the Road March race, placing second in 2003, 2004 and 2009. Despite this, she has become successful in the local music industry, specializing in pop-sounding soca compositions as well as fusion music encompassing aspects of East Indian culture.

In 2006, Caribbean Beat magazine described Destra's music as "the kind of sound that a young person, living at the crossroads of cultures and technologies that is Trinidad and Tobago today, is likely to produce, and the breeziness of her music may well act as an antidote to the hard edge which often characterises life not only in Trinidad and Tobago, but in many other corners of the globe.

Also in 2006, the Digicel mobile telecommunications group named Destra as its spokesperson in a two-year endorsement deal.

Image

Destra performing at UWI Splash in St.Augustine, Trinidad & Tobago

Destra is famous for her style. Due to her radical clothing choices consisting primarily of revealing clothing such as tight, short pants, and low-cut bra tops, she has captivated audiences during her performances. On stage, Destra is wild and explosive in her movements and vocals, sometimes seemingly performing in her own world due to her passion. Destra has expressed her music and fashion choices as a merger between American punk rock and Soca. This mix is evident in the instruments used in Destra's music, as she frequently utilizes rock guitar acoustics with underlying Soca rhythms.

Her 2006 look "soca fabulous" has been created by local designers such as Meiling and Peter Elias. From a new "glam" hairstyle, to her bold, risqué wardrobe, Destra's new look has been described as one which "is going to rock the town and will be a fashion force to reckon with."[2]

Albums and notable singles

Destra's released her first CD in 2003, entitled Red, White, Black. Her second CD, Laventille pre-release which featured her Bonnie and Clyde hit song, was released in 2004. Destra is well known for one of the most popular soca anthems "It's Carnival" (featuring Machel Montano)which was released in the 2003 Carnival season. Some of her later popular releases are "Come Beta" (featuring Shurwayne Winchester),and 2005 singles "Fly" and "We Say So". She also paid tribute to her home town in 2005 with a track entitled "The Hammer Revisited", a duet with Calypso veteran David Rudder. In 2006, Destra contributed her vocals to the song "Aur Chale" in conjunction with the band Dil E Nadan, and released popular songs such as "Max It Up" and "Independent Ladies." She also released a song called "Jumpin'" later that year for her album "Independent Lady" which seemed to have signalled the start for women's shout for independence. For 2007, Destra has released the following singles thus far; "Las Lap" featuring Naya George, "Soca or Die", "Sign", "Situation" with Multi Symptom, the 'made-for-pan' production, "We Luv Carnival", the most popular song of her 2007 releases, "I Dare You" (The song in which she began utilizing the ever popular dance created by Reggae Superstar Tony Matterhorn, "Dutty Wine"), all of which now form part of her "Soca Or Die" album released in 2008. Hott (2009) It was released for Barbados Soca.

Awards and nominations

Year Type Award Result
2003 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2004 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2005 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2006 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2007 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2008 COTT Music Awards Female Songwriter of the Year Won
2013 International Soca Awards (Caribbean) Song of the Year Won
2014 Black Canadian Awards Best International Act (Caribbean) Won
2015 Black Canadian Awards Best International Act (Caribbean) Won

Albums

Released Album
2004 Red, White, Black
2005 Laventille pre-release
2005 Laventille
2006 Independent Lady
2008 Soca or Die
2009 Hott
2011 Welcome Back

Singles

Year Single Chart positions Album
U.S. U.S. R&B
2001 "Tremble It" - - Red, White Black
2003 Carnival" (featuring Machel Montano) - -
"Whe Yuh Want" - -
Choo Choo" - -
2004 "Bonnie N Clyde" - - Laventille pre-release
"In D Air" - -
"Come Beta" (featuring Shurwayne Winchester) - -
"Negative Vibe" - -
"The Hammer Revisited" (featuring David Rudder) - -
2005 "Season's Yours" - - Laventille
Fly" - -
"Anyhow Ah Like It" - -
2006 "Independent Ladies" - - Independentlady
Jumpin" - -
"Max It Up" - -
"Out Ah Time" - -
"Aur Chale" (featuring Dil-E-Nadan) - -
2007 I Dare You" - - Soca Or Die
Sign" - -
"Soca Or Die" - -
"Las Lap" (featuring Naya George) - -
2008 "Free It Up" (featuring Sean Paul) - -
On the Floor" (featuring Mr. Vegas) - -
High" - -
"Wine It" - -
2009 Hott" - - Hott
"Obsessive Winers" (featuring Alison Hinds and Denise Belfon) - -
Bacchanal" - -
"Sassiness" - -
2010 Fireworks" - - Welcome Back
"Surrender" - -
"Rewind" - -
2011 "Feel Like Wukkin" - -
"Proppa" - -
Welcome Back" - -
"Cool It Down" - -
"Mad Party" (featuring Skinny Fabulous) - -
"Middle Ah D Road" (featuring Swappi) - -
"Feel To Wine" (featuring Super Jigga TC) - -
"We Own It" - -

Trivia

References

  1. ↑ Super User. "Destra Garcia".
  2. ↑ The Trinidad Guardian -Online Edition Ver 2.0

External links

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