Celena Seusahai, three-time Carnival Queen of the Bands and CEO of Tribal Carnival, has as soon as once more raised the bar for Caribbean tradition by making a daring assertion on the worldwide stage.
On March 31, she was featured in Drake’s newest music video, Nokia, an inventive IMAX manufacturing that not solely showcases Toronto’s vibrant tradition however highlights the sweetness and grandeur of Caribbean mas’ and Carnival.
For Celena, this wasn’t simply one other efficiency—it was a historic achievement. Past being featured as a dancer, she performed a key artistic position, serving because the artistic director and designer for the frilly costumes that introduced the video’s Carnival scenes to life.
This formidable undertaking was produced in simply 4 days, a testomony to Seusahai’s potential to execute beneath strain. It was made potential with the dedication of her close-knit staff, particularly her mother and father, Dexter and Gail Seusahai, who’ve been instrumental within the evolution of Tribal Carnival. Dexter designed the majestic King and Queen costumes, whereas Gail meticulously crafted the lead bodywear worn by the dancers.
Bridging cultures, making mas’ mainstream
This collaboration with Drake, one of many greatest artists on the earth, is not only a private victory for Seusahai. It’s a main win for the Caribbean neighborhood. By integrating mas’ and carnival into mainstream leisure, Celena is proving that the colourful traditions of the Caribbean should not simply regional celebrations however a world motion.
Seusahai’s imaginative and prescient has at all times prolonged past the parade route. Her affect on the earth of trend, leisure, and model collaborations speaks volumes. Through the years, she has partnered with main manufacturers similar to Lululemon, Nike, Sephora, The Mane Alternative, DDSB, and Brock College, repeatedly increasing the attain of mas’ and carnival past the normal West Indian viewers. She envisions a future the place Carnival is acknowledged worldwide—not simply as a pageant, however as an artwork kind, an expertise, and a cultural legacy.
Her management of Tribal Carnival has already set a excessive normal in costume craftsmanship and presentation. In 2024, the band was awarded “Band of the 12 months” with its beautiful theme, The Artwork of Mas’, a undertaking that embodied her ardour for mixing creativity, heritage, and modernism. This theme resonates deeply with Seusahai’s mission—to show the artwork, magnificence, and craftsmanship behind Carnival whereas making certain its continued evolution for generations to return.
A Chief, Educator, and Cultural Ambassador
Seusahai is a agency believer in training and neighborhood engagement. She actively finds artistic methods to ask the neighborhood into the carnival expertise. For Black Historical past Month 2025, she hosted a sequence of workshops on the Tribal Mas Camp, instructing members how you can create their very own wire bras and tiaras, making certain that each younger and outdated, whether or not seasoned revelers or newcomers, may get a hands-on introduction to the fantastic thing about mas’.
Via her work, she is breaking limitations for the following technology,showcasing that carnival is greater than only a parade, however an area the place creativity, historical past, and innovation intersect. She is not only a bandleader; she is a cultural ambassador, a mentor, and a drive of nature throughout the trade.
Taking management of the narrative
As tribal carnival continues to achieve worldwide recognition, Seusahai is evident concerning the path forward:
“Trying forward, we see Tribal Carnival taking part in a pivotal position in shaping how Toronto’s carnival tradition is represented and built-in into mainstream media. Being a part of Drake’s Nokia video wasn’t only a second—it was a message.
“We’re not only a avenue parade; we’re a motion. Our focus isn’t on titles or recognition. It’s concerning the neighborhood, the tradition, and the unbelievable individuals who assist carry these productions to life.
“This can be a turning level. As an alternative of getting upset when our tradition is misrepresented, we’re selecting to take management of our narrative. Via considerate collaborations and high-level manufacturing, we’re proving that carnival is not only leisure—it’s artwork, it’s id, and it belongs on the worldwide stage. What we’re constructing will proceed to push the tradition ahead for many years.”
Seusahai’s phrases replicate a daring and essential shift in the way in which Caribbean tradition is positioned in world leisure. Slightly than ready for outdoor validation, she and her staff are actively shaping the story, making certain that carnival is represented authentically and respectfully. This imaginative and prescient—rooted in neighborhood, collaboration, and innovation—is not going to solely maintain the tradition however elevate it to new heights for generations to return.
Placing Toronto’s carnival on the worldwide map
Along with her contributions to Nokia, Seusahai has not solely elevated herself but in addition Toronto’s carnival scene, cementing it as an integral a part of town’s cultural id. Scarborough, the beating coronary heart of Toronto’s Carnival neighborhood—residence to many mas’ camps, band launches, and pan yards, in addition to the beloved kiddies parade on Neilson Highway—has now been positioned firmly on the worldwide stage.
Although Seusahai could not say it outright, she embodies the idea that Tribal is household, Tribal is residence, and carnival is residence. Her unwavering dedication to tradition, creativity, and neighborhood is obvious in all the pieces she does, making these round her really feel the heat, unity, and pleasure that carnival represents. Her achievements stand as a testomony to the facility of ardour, resilience, and cultural pleasure.
From the streets of Toronto to the world stage, Celena Seusahai is proving that carnival is greater than only a pageant—it’s a world artwork kind and she or he is set to make sure that the world acknowledges it as such.
