Kobo Town - Mr Monday (2013)

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Directed by Sean Escayg

Kobo Town, the Canadian band fronted by Trinidadian Drew Gonsalves, has won the Juno Award for Best World Music Album. The awards were held last Saturday March 24 2018.

The band won the prestigious award, considered the Canadian version of the Grammys, for their album Where the Galleon Sank. It was the second time the band was nominated.

Gonsalves said the title of the album came to him while he was out on a fishing boat in the Gulf of Paria.

"On the way out I saw shadows of sunken ships and I thought about how much of our history in the Caribbean is buried under the ocean. Many of the songs on the album use places or events of historical significance as points of lyrical departure, so I imagined that writing them was somewhat like trying to raise one of these sunken vessels to the surface again," he said in an interview with the Sta Albert Gazette.

Gonsalves was born and raised in Trinidad and migrated to Canada at the age of 13. There, he embraced his Caribbean roots and in 2004 formed Kobo Town, inspired by the nickname given to the waterfront in Port-of-Spain at one time.

The band plays a fusion of calypso, ska, rapso, reggae and zouk.

The band was not present to collect the Juno but writing on Facebook, Gonsalves said: "Wow. I am speechless with all of your kind and lovely words about our JUNO Award. I cannot possibly tell you how much the support and encouragement means to me and the rest of the band. This meandering musical life has been quite an adventure and the honour for a recognition like this really belongs to many, many people.

"From the day we embarked on this project we have been blessed to be surrounded by the most wonderful community of family (hi Mom!), friends, fellow artists, supporters and well-wishers. You have graced us with your presence and energy at our shows, you have picked us up when we were doubtful and discouraged, you have given us direction when we felt lost, inspired us with your own music, and you have made this road a sublime joy to travel," he said.