BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE musical career of former road march winner Michael ‘Mic Stokes’ Heyliger began during his prime age and he is now mentoring youths and adults in the art form. But where is Mic Stokes now?
With no hesitation, Heyliger agreed to sit down with SKNVibes Entertainment at Subway, where he explained that his musical career began way before he became popular in the twin-island Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.
“I have an uncle by the name of Len Harris. He was a cricketer and at one time the captain of the Leeward’s team. He was also a calypsonian called Lord Mikes, and growing up with him in Irish Town I remember seeing him 3 o’clock in the morning under a lamp writing songs,” Heyliger said
Heyliger added that as a child, he remembered looking at his uncle and being inspired to also write his own music and to one day perform onstage. “He actually groomed me as a youth to be a song writer,” he said.
Heyliger said that after residing in Irish Town for a number of years, the family moved to Newtown where one of his neighbours was Calypso legend Ellie Matt.
“After we moved there, we became great neighbours and friends. They were also men like Vin Charles and June Charles who lived in the area, and the Bertie brothers had a band called Thunder Birds. So’ from that area, it was a lot of music.”
Heyliger said that he also remembers the mini-shows that were staged in a garage in his neighbourhood, highlighting a number of bands and providing patrons pure entertainment for a small cover charge.
“In Newtown we had shows in those days for five and 10 cents per person and everyone would listen and enjoy the music while having a good time,” the former road march champ said.
Television, tablets and smart phones were a far distance of entertainment, according Mic Stokes, as he explained growing up in Newtown called for listening to radio and attending matinees.
“We use to go and see movies at the Apollo, starring Elvis Presley and the Beach Boys with some others, but that was the only time when we got to see what these men look like. That was the type of life I had growing up,” Heyliger said.
After the crowds became bigger and fans asking for more, Heyliger and the band members decided to move their mini-shows to the Apollo Cinema, where they staged shows every Sunday.
He explained that the Apollo was a stage where many performers had their make or break moments in St. Kitts.
Leaving St. Kitts
Heyliger said that when musician and bicycle stuntman Rex Harrison from Grenada came to the Federation for a show in Cayon, he was fortunate to get the opportunity to play on the night of the show.
Harrison later offered him a job to tour with him.
“The Thunder Birds Band performed for him that night and I was signing. He came up to me and said that he was impressed by what he heard and asked me to tour the Caribbean with him.”
With no time to say goodbye and a promising music career ahead, Heyliger said he did not inform anyone that he was leaving the island…not even his foster parents.
“I grew up with adopted parents and for four to five years while performing from island to island they didn’t know where I was, and I never got in contact with them until I returned to St. Kitts.”
The interview does not end here. Look out for Part Two in which Heyliger talks about his road march wins and his hobby of mentoring young upcoming artistes.
Editor-in-Chief’s Note: SKNVibes solicits suggestions from the public in identifying other individuals who have made significant contributions to the Calypso art form in St. Kitts and Nevis. Feel free to email us at newsroom@sknvibes.com or call us at (869) 466-9242 or (869) 662-3901 and pass on the relevant information.
