5 Questions with Mical Teja

The smash hit song DNA has fast become a staple in fetes this 2024 carnival season. The artiste behind the song, Mical Teja, may sound unfamiliar to the ears of many fans of soca. But, he has long existed in the space as writer and producer behind the songs of established soca artistes like Kes, Machel Montano, Patrice Roberts and Nailah Blackman.

Having been behind the scenes since he was 15, his story is akin to that of rapper and producer Kanye West, using his technical music skills as a launch pad to his eventual rise as leading act within soca music. His talent is undeniable in his earlier tracks such as Runaway and Hall of Fame and has now manifested into the high honour of Trinidad and Tobago Road March winner 2024.

He catches up with The Gleaner’s Five Questions to further share more about himself.

1. Winning the Trinidad and Tobago Road March 2024 against veteran acts for whom you once wrote and produced music as a teenager, must be a profound full-circle moment for you. How does it feel to receive the highest accolade of Carnival, and how will you allow it to push you further in your career?

Winning Trinidad and Tobago Road March 2024 truly was an amazing accomplishment by the team and myself. Competing was never our mission, just being mentioned as a road march contender surpassed all our expectations and just showed how much DNA was able to touch the hearts of the people.

2. Your winning song DNA enjoys over 3 million views on YouTube in just five months. What do you think makes the song so special for masqueraders across the Caribbean and the world?

DNA having over 3 million views is a testament that the song has definitely touched a nerve with people all over the world, including people who never heard soca. Many people truly identify with the line ‘ No place like home’.

3. Having started your career primarily as a producer and songwriter, what inspired the transition into singing, and was performing always something you wanted to do?

Whilst I did start off my career as a producer and songwriter, being an artiste was always there from a younger age. I was always performing and singing for crowds, it’s just that production and songwriting is what got my foot in the door of the Soca Arena.

4. As an artiste who is part of the new generation of Soca music and is already carving out a distinct path, what new energies and ideas do you hope to bring to the genre?

As a young artiste, I’m truly pushing to make music that touches the hearts of people. Soca is a very high-energy genre that mostly focuses on jumping and waving, but I want to infuse the jump and wave with emotions that anyone around the world can relate to.

5. You’ve been slated to perform at ‘Illuminate’ here in Jamaica on Carnival Wednesday and you’ll be jumping at Road March, what can Jamaican fans expect from you?

I cannot wait to perform at Illuminate, it’s actually going to be my first performance in Jamaica. Jamaica can definitely expect high energy and a moment that we will all remember.

BRAWTA

Across dancehall and reggae, who are your top three favourite artistes?

There are so many dancehall and reggae artistes that I love to be honest. It’s so hard to give a top three, so let me at least give five: Chronixx, Jr Gong, Popcaan, Lila Iké and of course, the ‘World Boss’ Vybz Kartel.

entertainment@gleanerjm.com