Come 2023 Memorial Day Weekend (May 26 – 29) in the US, the sights, sounds and vibrancy of the West Indies will energize the southern USA as the famous Atlanta Caribbean Carnival makes its return for its 36th edition.
Following a landmark 2022 event, which saw several of the Georgia state capital’s popular mas bands return to the city’s downtown core, the organising team, the Atlanta Caribbean Carnival Bandleaders Association (ACCBA), has put a full-court press on preparations and strategy for the annual cultural extravaganza that many consider to be North America’s fastest-growing carnival.
For 2023, the weekend of events,also known as the unofficial kick-off to the US summer festival season, has undergone several adjustments in terms of logistics, venues, and flow, to better cater to the increased popularity and interest for the carnival from patrons, masqueraders, spectators, and stakeholders.
Some of these adjustments include a new time for the popular ACCBA J’ouvert event, which will now take place at Atlanta’s Silverbacks Stadium Park on Friday, May 26 from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
The official downtown Atlanta Caribbean Carnival will also have a revamped 2023 parade route on May 27, along with a new accompanying post-parade concert venue, the Westside Park.
The ACCBA team members have taken into consideration all challenges faced in previous years and have created solutions as well as better equipped themselves for dealing with any situations which may arise during this year’s execution of the event.
ACCBA President Patricia Tonge Edigin shared, “We have gotten overwhelming support from everyone. Atlanta wants to see one untied and inclusive Caribbean Carnival. With the big bands returning we look forward to having one carnival. It is only fair to our patrons and masqueraders.”
In emphasis of the Atlanta Caribbean Carnival theme, ‘All Ah We Carnival’, the ACCBA has confirmed an all-encompassing Antillean cast which includes St Vincent’s Skinny Fabulous; Trinidad and Tobago’s Farmer Nappy and Shal Marshall; Barbados’s Alison Hinds, Lil Rick and DJ Cheem; Antigua’s Burning Flames and Kenne Blessin; US Virgin Island’s Pumpa; Dominica’s Asa Banton; and St Lucia’s Motto — the 2023 parade’s Grand Marshal — and many more.
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