Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) on Tuesday, Aug. 11, announced \u201cJourney of a Soca King: The Exhibition,\u201d celebrating the life and career of acclaimed Trinidadian Soca superstar Machel Montano.<\/p>\n
Opening on Aug. 22 at Central Library and created by the Machel Montano Foundation for Greatness, BPL said the exhibition is accompanied by programming at branches all across the borough, and showcases Montano\u2019s lifelong contributions to Soca music and Caribbean culture.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOver five decades, Machel Montano has been a major player in the worldwide spread of Soca music, a genre that originated in Montano\u2019s native Trinidad and Tobago,\u201d BPL noted, stating that Montano began performing in 1982 at 7, with his debut album, \u201cToo Young To Soca\u201d (1985), achieving widespread acclaim.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n BPL said the exhibition includes curated artifacts from Montano\u2019s career, including costumes, trophies, and vinyl records.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Visitors to the exhibition will be able to listen to a selection of Montano\u2019s music at Central Library\u2019s vinyl listening station and watch key moments from his life and career, \u201cinviting visitors to experience the artist\u2019s work in a personal and immersive way,\u201d BPL said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It said the exhibition follows the release of the documentary \u201cLike Ah Boss: Journey of a Soca King\u201d (2026), which centers on Montano\u2019s 16 performances during the 2015 Carnival season and much more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n BPL said the documentary will be projected on the facade of Central Library on Sept. 3.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c\u2019Journey of a Soca King: The Exhibition\u2019 highlights the key role that Brooklyn played in Montano\u2019s early career,\u201d said BPL, disclosing that, in 1984, at just 9, Montano spent time in the borough after being selected for a scholarship to Marie Brooks\u2019 summer programming.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThere, he engaged in workshops that were formative to his career,\u201d it added.<\/span><\/p>\n BPL said Montano later debuted at Madison Square Garden, supporting calypso legends, like the Mighty Sparrow, the Mighty Shadow and Lord Kitchener.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In the mid-1990s, BPL said Montano lived on Utica Avenue in Brooklyn and recorded his first road march, \u201cBig Truck,\u201d in Brooklyn.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re thrilled to welcome Machel Montano to Brooklyn Public Library,\u201d said Linda E. Johnson, BPL president and CEO. \u201cBrooklyn is home to one of the largest Caribbean populations outside the Caribbean, and the library is committed to preserving and sharing the stories, histories and cultural contributions of the communities we serve.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThis exhibition will offer visitors an opportunity to explore the enduring impact of Caribbean music and culture through the life and career of one of its most influential and beloved artists,\u201d she added.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Montano said: \u201cBrooklyn helped raise me. I lived here, I learned here, and some of my earliest audiences were right in these neighborhoods.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo, for this work to come back to Brooklyn, in a place that is free and open to anybody who walks through the door, means everything,\u201d he said. \u201cThe Caribbean community built a home here, and this exhibition is a way of acknowledging the mark we as a people have made on this city.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n