There will be a Jamaican presence in Toronto Caribbean Carnival 2022

BY PAUL JUNOR

Johanna Grant is driven to succeed in all her endeavours as a nurse, mother of six children, entrepreneur, and now a bandleader of the Freedom Mas Band. On Sunday, March 20^th, 2022, she had her band launch at 5 Gateway Blvd in Brampton. The launch was the first Jamaican float featuring custom-made carnival costumes. This was truly an epic event as it showcased distinctive Jamaican themes that will add to the flavour of 55-year-old Toronto international carnival affectionately known as Caribana.

She is excited to bring back the Jamaican Band after a 16-year absence. She states, “Honestly, one of the reasons I decided to get into this (the Carnival business) was because my children have never seen our (Jamaican) Flag in the parade. God willing it will happen this summer.”

Johanna enjoys the carnival culture and played mas over the years with several well-known bands such as: Tribal, Carnival Nationz, and the Revellers. She became acquainted with many aspects of the masquerade experience and decided to enter a band in 2021. After founding a rental space, she had to curtail her plans because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the cancellation of the festival. The choice of Brampton is an ideal location as there is a large African Canadian community there who are wholeheartedly supportive of the Toronto carnival and often must trek over to Scarborough where most of the mas camps are located.

As an entrepreneur, Johanna, in addition to serving as CEO and band leader at Freedom Mas Band, is also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and founder at Fit with Freedom. Johanna is a registered nurse with over 20 years of experience. Fit with Freedom is a Nurse-managed Health and Wellness Company. There is a lot of information about vitamins and supplements that are made in Canada at the websitthwww.fitwithfreedom.org/vitamins.html.

I interviewed Johanna on Saturday, April 30^th, 2022, and she shared with me details about the challenges and struggles that she is facing especially with the logistics and supply chain issues with respect to getting materials from China. She realized that one of the challenges is overcoming the negative stereotypes that are often associated with dancehall culture. She has a strong and cohesive team that is supportive of her vision and mission in order to empower the theme of “Genesis” which is appropriate in this her first year.

Her mas band has eight sections, and she is expecting about 500 masqueraders to participate. She is aware of the legal, moral and ethical aspects along with the risks and liabilities of running a band. She told me of the exorbitant cost of renting warehouse space, and will be using space at 173 Advance Blvd, Unit 55 in Brampton.

As the countdown to the 2022 Toronto Carnival begins, Johanna is looking for more sponsors and to increase awareness to the wider community. “Building an organization is a lot of work, and the most challenging part is getting a male’s perspective without threatening the man. They think they know it all and have all the answers.”

Anyone interested in Freedom Mas Band can check out the following to get more information.

Website:www.freedomamasband

Facebook:  Freedom Mas Band

Instagram: @freedommasband