Music promoter, culture man, and charismatic Artist Elsworth James has transcended

BY MICHAEL THOMAS

Artist, music promoter, and one-of-a-kind culture man Mr. Elsworth James has passed away. James was known for his wide smile and charismatic performances on stage as an artist. He had several signature tunes from: “I Love Calypso Music,” “Afeisha,” and who can forget the famous anthems “Crabs in a Barrel,” Plus “Hail Minister Farrakhan.”

Elsworth was also an exceptionally well-known promoter of Caribbean artists and their music here in Toronto Canada and beyond. Just name the Soca, or Calypso entertainer and Elsworth most likely have presented them to a Canadian audience at some point in time.

It is said that Elsworth James was responsible for introducing many Caribbean Calypso and Soca performers to Canada for their first show.

Coming from humble beginnings on the Caribbean Island of Saint Vincent and growing up in Trinbago, Elsworth was a perfect example that winners never quit, and he demonstrated that on stage as well as behind the scenes. Elsworth was nominated for both: the Canadian Music Award, and the Juno Award, a great feat considering the industry’s ambivalence for Calypso and Soca music.

I had the privilege of speaking with his daughter Afeisha, the young lady he named one of his hit songs after about the family side of “Father James” as the younger people would call him.

“Dad was the Caribbean man,” Afeisha told me, “To the community and the larger diaspora. There was not a space where Caribbean music played that he was not a part of, or instrumental in growing.”

I asked Afeisha how she remembered Elsworth, and she answered, “To me he was dad, he was my first love. He was the biggest gentlest soul and I had him wrapped around my finger,” she laughed.

Afeisha told me her dad could reach people on any level. “Especially when you are a younger person going through adolescence and feel like the world does not understand you; he was compassionate.”

Elsworth was a man who read everything and even though he was mostly self-educated, his songwriting talent was exceptional, Afeisha said of her dad.

For a child whose mom died when he was just a few weeks old, his daughter described his parenting skills as excellent. “I used to be scared of the idea of disappointing my dad,” she told me. “That would make me burst into tears. That is how much faith he had in me, I never wanted to let him down.”

Elsworth passed away on June 6^th, 2024, after being ill for some time. Our condolences and Nuff Respect to the love of his life Mrs. Margaret James and the rest of the James family.