00:00Why you moving that I want to know why you getting on so
00:04I on the stage and I standing up and the girl don't want to whine low pretty
00:09She pay for she make up and you know she just will be stiff
00:13I know somebody go catch you on the camera put you on TV 6
00:17And say why you doing that baby you don't want to whine in the party
00:21You spent all of the money to stand up and just look at me
00:25So when I put you on the TV screen and the reporter say
00:29This is TV 6 and you know we don't want a woman in the party
00:33Get you out of the pocket
00:34Maloney-born soccer singer Akeem Preeti-Chance
00:38Believes that carnival and culture matter now more than ever
00:42Especially in uncertain economic and regional times
00:46Carnival 2026 is an interesting year
00:49I think it's an enduring year, it's not an easy season
00:52Because of the economic turmoil you're going through
00:56And the regional tensions
00:58I think a lot of people second guessing
01:00How things are going to turn out for the carnival
01:03However, he says moments like these reveal just how valuable Trinidad and Tobago's culture really is
01:10I think we second guess and underappreciate our culture and the value of our culture
01:15And it's only when we see how people see us on the international scale
01:19And that when we realise, oh, this old youth man from Maloney is not normal
01:24They see him as, so I want to kind of urge everybody to kind of understand that we are something that the world sees as gold
01:35But sometimes you have to get, we have to get beyond our shores to see the true value in what we offer
01:40This carnival season also places Preeti back in the competitive spotlight
01:46As he will be defending his freestyle crown
01:49This year I am defending and shout out to Orlando
01:52I know you're coming hard and shout out to anybody coming in
01:54I know all they're coming, I know all they're coming from the truth
01:57But listen, all they're going to have to fight, fight, you know, because it ain't getting easy
02:01He is also setting his sights on winning the Young King competition this year
02:06The Young Kings, I'm entering the Young Kings
02:08I'm actually in the finals, I'm performing at number 8
02:12Singing, jamming, so I'm excited for that also
02:16Preeti's music is crafted from instinct rather than formulas
02:20My writing process is, I actually freestyle a lot of my songs
02:25So the process for me is, once the energy hits me, I go with the energy lies
02:30I don't try to force, to always try to create a hit or create a song that will make plenty of money
02:37For him, songwriting is about authenticity
02:41It's just about creating something that sonically is appeasing to the mind, spirit and body
02:48So I wish I could give something more in-depth, I could teach you how to write, you know
02:53But I can't tell you how I just write
02:55His Carnival 2026 catalogue includes tracks like Gimme Waste, Jamming, No Complaints, Mood, My Home
03:04And the collaboration Bacchanal Road with Patrice Roberts
03:07Which has re-established him in the Soca conversation this year
03:12Gimme Waste with Travis Will, which is my highest streaming song right now
03:16Which replays some of the songs that I never thought would have been beaten
03:20And jamming my single shortout to Smitty, Star Blue
03:24And the other songs
03:25This year, 2026 music from Preeti sounding amazing, man, for sure
03:29Wherever he performs, Preeti stays true to his roots
03:33Representing Trinidad and Tobago with pride
03:36And connecting deeply with fans on the road
03:39For me, I always try to connect to the ground
03:41I always try to connect to the individual
03:44I don't see myself as high and mighty or better than
03:48So I enjoy chatting with the people
03:51And this year, jamming, jamming is doing amazing
03:56Just performing a song, I haven't gotten a reaction like that from any of the songs
04:02So this season is just, you know, ball and scream
04:07Ball and scream, boy
04:08Plenty whining down, I love it, I love it
04:10Can't lie
04:11Alexander Brucewell, TV6 News
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