#AURAFACROPOVA! I usually head to each carnival with a certain expectation, based on stories I’ve been told and pictures I’ve seen. Always keep in mind, each experience is individually owned and pictures will only capture the highlight of an experience. I feel a combination of mixed emotions toward Crop Over. But enough intro, let’s get into it.
REGISTRATION
I usually narrow bands down to “bands worth my time” then select a costume. I was given feedback that Aura had vibes on the road and so I chose them. The band launched, and within a week or so registration was open. Registration was done via Ticketpal.com and relatively easy. [Minus the high processing fee of course]
COMMUNICATION
Aura Experience solely utilized social media to keep connected with their masqueraders. They posted updates and pictures on Instagram and Facebook. If your preference of communication is via email, you may or may not have missed some messages. I never received my costume pickup email, but thankfully, had IG to keep me abreast of all the details.
COSTUME PICKUP
Enter in HEADACHE! Maybe because it was the first day to pickup or maybe because the location was small – but I walked up to Sheraton Mall to a line that stretched out of the building complex. Overall wait time on the line was ONE HOUR. Once inside, things moved quickly. I was able to pay off balances, then pickup me and my crew’s costumes. We were greeted by friendly Aura associates and offered a beverage during our wait.
COSTUME EXPECTATION/REALITY
Now during pickup, is the first time you get to see your costume after the band launches. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the costume quality. Out of my five boxes that were checked, one package was missing a bra, another was missing the panty embellishing and gems; in my box, the gems were undone from my bra, and the gems/rhinestone selected overall were cheap.
Now that’s minor, because, it could be rectified. Gems were glued back on, and a bra was placed inside, but I was concerned about the quality control checks for so many things to be wrong. On Kadooment day (the gem fell off that morning), I found myself finding pieces of string to tie my gems back into place so that it wouldn’t fall off. You’ve got to be a bit creative when it comes to costumes. {this is why you always pack a glue gun and a needle and thread}
Note: Instructions for being on the road, when the bands meet, where it meets, and overall amenities listed for the band were not placed in any of our boxes. For a foreigner at Crop Over, you would have to source that information for yourself.
THE ROAD – Food/Music/Staff/Vibes:
We got on the road EXTREMELY LATE! Typically, this isn’t an issue because you just meet the band when you’re ready to pump. But in Barbados, you cross the judging point BEFORE the road. So essentially, we were not at the Stadium when our band was being judged. (That is our fault). I heard breakfast is given at that point but since I missed it, I won’t be able to speak to that.
The pump itself was a B- at most. For some reason, the road was too stush for me, my crew and I brought the vibes and misbehaved but there was a lot more chipping than wukking up. I’m not sure if it’s because there was more groovy/sweet soca songs for Crop Over but that element was definitely missing and somewhat disappointing.
Once I flew off my feathers, I made do and had a blast with my crew – keep that in mind, your squad can make or break your experience. travel smart.
The Food/Lunch/Rest Stop:
Now the food served at the lunch spot was delicious. Fresh and hot! Lunch was not pre-packed, rather you got a plate and someone would serve you from hot food trays.
There is no “rest stop” per say, meaning, once your band parks, the road is over. The meal is given at the end of your pump. Aura dined at the beach, and set up a tent with plastic chairs and tables for their masqueraders to eat. Some people were laid out in the sand, some masqueraders were also in the water which I am sure was cooling for them.
The nice touch was that you were able to sit in the shade and eat some food. The food line however, was a bit chaotic because there were only two lanes to get food. Patience had to be exercised.
Note: Our band pulled in at 3:15pm. THREE PM. [Crop Over concludes early]
Music:
As mentioned above, there were a lot of groovy soca songs, MOST of them I loved. Here are some of the popular songs that were played on the road.
- Marzville – Give It To Ya
- TC – Paradise
- Red Plastic Bag – Boatride
- Sanctuary – Pick Me Up
- Hypasounds – Dip
- Lil Rick – Blessing
- Lil Rick – Advantage of Me
- Stiffy – Tip and Bend Ova
- Stiffy – Mavis
CARNIVAL PREP
- Stockings: Carnivalista ; For 10% off, use code: GLOBEY2023
- MUA: @jwintermakeup
- Hair by me
- Boots from Amazon
THE FETES:
This part of the review has nothing to do with Aura but I’ll mention the fetes very briefly. My first event attended was Fyah D Wuk. I’d heard great things and decided to go. Unfortunately, it rained SO MUCH that the venue was EXTREMELY muddy. However, rain doh stop no fete so we had a really good time. And there was a lot of vibes..
My next stop was Roast Cruise. We boarded an hour later than listed on the schedule but you have to lie to Caribbean people so they will be on time. Roast was a bess fete. We were nice and drunk, the vibes was pumping and like Red Plastic Bag would say, the boat was rocking. The food situation at Roast was extremely disorganized, I didn’t even get food. Roast, please work on improving this on the Harbour Master.
sigh! more rain, We headed to Soca Brainwash, which is a staple carnival event for most. I wasn’t too fond of Soca Brainwash as a cooler fete, it forced me to stay in one location (because who gonna keep toting a cooler) for most of the event which limited the amount of wines I could have. Never the less, once the alcohol conquered us, we wined in the rain, on people’s cooler and had a good time. SBW is always a good move.
I was very impressed walking into Bliss. The venue set up was lovely, the food court, sexy lighting, the glam photo booth were all lovely touches for the event. One of my friends mentioned that she felt like it was a very fancy family reunion. Which isn’t a good thing in this event because you want people to let loose. We made it a point to get so drunk that we’d loosen up.. and so we did. By the time the johnnie hit my blood stream, I was having the time of my life LMAO.
Lastly, we played with Caesar’s Army for Foreday at Ambush. Caesar’s army is the same vibes as always. Loved the breadfruit bowl touch, there needs to be a venue change for next year though – that race track did not do Caesar’s army justice, as it limited the ability to build your momentum on the road. Also, I’d like to give Caesar’s kudos for their package pickup. It LITERALLY took me 6 minutes. I walked up with my receipt, got it stamped, got my three packages and left. That was amazing guys!
In conclusion, I’m happy I went to Crop Over but it’s not a carnival I’m looking to attend again in the near future. I think there was too much hype around Aura (because of Rihanna’s involvement) and not enough delivery from them on the product side. Of course, this is only their second year so there is definitely room for improvement. BIM, you were good to me though, not so much to my crew, four of them got pink eye [what di ass going on in that place?]
Yours in Mas,
