Crazy

The story so far.

Written and edited by Smokiller

Crazy is the stage name of Edwin Ayoung, a veteran calypsonian known for classics such as "Paul Yuh Mother Come" and "Nani Wine". The Trinidad Guardian describes him as the pioneer of parang soca, a Christmas style that blends traditional Spanish-language parang with soca and English lyrics. Ayoung, whose mother Rosalia Alcazar-Ayoung was Venezuelan, says he drew on that Spanish ancestry to create the form, and that other calypsonians first mocked it. His 1978 hit "Parang Soca", widely known as "Maria", introduced the term, and he followed it with "Muchacha" in 1979. Other parang hits include "Yvonne" and "Tito Lara". He has said that he never sang a dirty parang soca song and has urged younger artists to keep Christmas music clean. He later saw stalwarts such as Baron and Scrunter take up the style. Ayoung also credits Lord Kitchener as a teacher, and he has performed in the Revue and Klassic Ruso calypso tents.