‘Still Standing’, an event by The Braata Singers saluting the diversity of Caribbean culture, takes place October 26 at Holy Family Auditorium in Brooklyn, New York.

That group, formed in New York City, is currently celebrating its 15th anniversary. It will recognise the music of Grenada, St Lucia, St Vincent and The Grenadines and Haiti.

Andrew Clarke, a Jamaican who founded The Braata Singers, spoke to Observer Online about the importance of shows like Still Standing.

“It’s a welcome opportunity for us as Caribbean people to celebrate the achievement of independence of our Caribbean brothers and sisters. An opportunity for us to share in their triumphs, to highlight the things that make us unique as people from the islands and also celebrate those things that we all share in common,” he said. “This year in particular is special as well on the heels of the Olympics and the historic win by (in the women’s 100 metres) Julien Alfred of St Lucia, but also as we seek to help raise funds for those islands recently affected by the passage of Hurricane Beryl.

Alfred, who lived and trained in Jamaica, is the first athlete from her country to win an Olympic gold medal. A Category 4 hurricane, Beryl hit Grenada and the neighbouring island of Carriacou on July 1 and caused severe damage. It also struck Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

Still Standing focuses on traditional sounds found in the Eastern Caribbean and Haiti, including gospel, calypso and zouk, as well as contemporary soca and dancehall.

The Braata Singers recently returned from Florida where they did two shows paying homage to the legacy of folklorist Louise Bennett Coverley, whose 105th birthday is being observed this year.

– Howard Campbell