Calypsonian

A calypsonian, originally known as a chantwell, is a musician from the anglophone Caribbean who sings songs of the calypso genre.

Calypsos are musical renditions having their origins in the West African griot tradition. Originally called "Kaiso" in Trinidad, these songs, based on West African Yoruba, Ewe-Fon and Akan musical beats, were sung by slaves and later ex-slaves in Trinidad and Tobago during recreation time and about a host of topics – their land of origin, social relationships on the plantations and the lives of community members, including plantation managers, overseers and owners.

Traditionalists see calypso as social commentary because in earlier years it served the purpose of telling stories, relaying news events and giving criticisms of persons and policy. Calypso was therefore divided into two classes: the social commentaries, which had songs dealing with politics and community issues; and the humorous calypso, which told stories of events, real or imagined, with the intent of making the audience laugh.

By the late 19th century the British began large-scale immigration projects, mainly from Barbados, in an effort to anglicise Trinidad, which resulted in a decline in the use of French Creole in the songs so that by the 1930s English Creole became the language of Trinidad Calypso. Despite the changeover, many words and expressions survived in Trinidad Creole and as a result also survived in its calypsos, including terms such as "santimanitay" from the original sans humanité, among others.

Trinidad became the mecca of calypso in part because it was the most prosperous territory in the region and consequently many migrants headed to the island during the 20th century, including performers. As a direct result, Trinidad became known as the land of calypso.

Many early kaiso/calypsos were sung in French Creole, as Trinidad gained a significant number of free and enslaved blacks from the French Antilles of Martinique, Guadeloupe, French-dominated Grenada and Dominica following the Cedula of population of 1783. The patois or French creole was the original language of the calypsonian and calypso music.