Three years of waiting culminated in an explosion of colour and rhythm at the Jean Pierre Complex, on Saturday night, as the six bands under the Tribe Family of Bands (FOB) displayed their costumes before an eager crowd.
The event marked the high point of the band's Sunsetwkn series of events which began on Friday afternoon with a street theatre on Ariapita Avenue and ended with the Las Jam Carnival fete on Sunday.
The launch was highly anticipated as the last Tribe band launch was held in July 2019, before the beginning of the covid19 pandemic the following year.
In March, Tribe opened a 'pop-up' registration for Carnival 2023, which was sold out in less than 24 hours, but management promised the public that they would have other chances to register after their launch.
While the show officially began at 9 pm, patrons packed the stadium from as early as 8 pm and were kept entertained by live DJ performances and giveaways.
For the first event, patrons were treated to a 'sound clash' between DJs Private Ryan and Travis World.
Speaking with Newsday after his performance, Travis World, real name Travis Hosein, said he was impressed with the turnout of patrons and was confident Carnival 2023 would be one of the largest Carnivals yet.
"Since yesterday (Friday) we've seen the crowd, everybody is ready, everybody is anticipating Carnival 2023, I think it will be one of the better Carnivals we've ever had and I'm excited for it.
[caption id="attachment_966477" align="alignnone" width="1024"] EMERALD TONES: In Peter Elias and Jeneile McCarthy's design for the Lost Tribe's 2023 presentation, emerald was the focus for the section, The Washing.Richard Lyder/TRIBEThe washing by Peter Elias and Jeneile McCarthy for the Lost Tribe 2023 presentation, 202WE - Richard Lyder/TRIBE[/caption]
"Honestly yesterday (Friday) on Ariapita Avenue was an eye opener for me because I thought people would have been hesitant or scared because the pandemic is still going on but I think people are starting to free up a bit more which is good and everyone is really excited for the road."
The DJ's played and remixed music from two separate trucks on either side of the stadium as dancers and Moko Jumbies walked among spectators.
Beginning promptly at 10 pm the band began their presentations.
Briefly stopping the music and dimming the stadium lights for greater effect, a silence fell over the crowd as patrons eagerly awaited the first costumes and greeted the models with roaring cheers as they strut onto the stage.
Tribe's sections for their 2023 line-up drew inspiration from mythology, making full use of bright colours and accessories to represent their source material while remaining practical for masqueraders on the road.
One of their sections Aella, means 'whirlwind', in Greek and is also an Amazon warrior in Greek mythology.
Another section, Loki, which refers to Norse god of mischief was also featured, while their other sections, Amazon, Worldwind, Gaia, Inciendo, Sahara, Dhalia, Chuma, Mazu, Falco and Diosa, pay hom
