“’Her’ great battle for freedom,
the Haitian Revolution, is
the only successful slave revolt
in the history of humanity that
led to results,” she added, stating
that she embodied that
spirit, and more, in her latest
shoot.
Driven said her expertise as
a managing partner of Playbook
Media Group, otherwise
known as PlaybookMG, has
produced many Caribbean
stars throughout the past decades,
with her “dedication and
hard work.”
Driven said her resume
and current rosters feature
“an impressive and extensive
amount of talent from the
islands.”
That list includes: Remy Ma,
Papoose; Kranium; celebrity
stylist Kidear Youmans; Dancehall
Queen Spice; Tara Wallace;
Chef Patrick; Stevie J; Tony
Sunshine; Future Fambo; Alexus
Rose; QQ; Mr Lexx; Cham;
Ricky Blaze; Peter Gunz; Wyclef
Jean, Jr.; Reid; Marian Hall,
previously known as Lady Saw;
Kranium; and Mr. Vegas.
Driven said she has also
“helped the islands with influencer
marketing,” stating that
she “bridges the gap between
Marie Drven displays Haiti ‘iconic items.’ Cliff/CliffArt Photography
Comedy Bahamian opens dance studio
is now available on the Amazon
platform.
“Nou Chaje ak Pwoblèm” is a
one-hour stand-up comedy performance,
written and produced
by Se Joe, according to Yanatha
Desouvre, a Miami-based, Haitian
born publicist and film
director.
“It is rooted in Haitian folklore
traditions that emphasize
the politics of both Haiti and
America, the importance of language
and the contradictions of
religion,” he said.
Born in Brooklyn but raised in
Haiti, Desouvre said Se Joe experienced
a presidential coup d’état,
embargo and American military
invasion and occupation.
“Because of this, he learned
to hunt and garden, sometimes
spending weeks without electricity,
water or food,” he said.
Desouvre said Se Joe attended
an all-boys Catholic School and
played soccer throughout the
Caribbean.
During one of his first trips
back to New York, Desouvre said
Se Joe asked his mother, “why
there was so much food walking
influencers and companies in
the islands on a daily and rapid
rate.”
Entering a new decade, in
2020, Driven said she also
worked “to continue bridging
and closing the gap between
the Caribbeans and mainstream
around?”
She responded: “Baby, Americans
don’t eat pigeons,” according
to Desouvre said.
Off the heels of his own
“Coming to America” journey,
SeJoe ventured to South Florida,
where he eventually studied biology,
chemistry and French at
Florida State University, Desouvre
said.
He said SeJoe began posting
videos online in 2009 “in an
effort to cope with his decision
to reject medical school.
“Today, that channel has over
36.5 million views on YouTube,
and Sejoe has generated over
250K (thousand) followers across
social media,” Desouvre said.
Caribbean L 34 ife, JANUARY 8-14, 2021
culture.”
She said her intuition is
serving her “greatly,” adding
that she strives to achieve her
goal “more every day.”
As the face of Playbook Media
Group and co-founder of the
company who got her started
as a celebrity publicist, Driven
said she is “a recognized player
on the entertainment scene.”
She said she represents
“what it means to have a pulse
on popular culture while also
narrowing in on establishing
a presence in emerging markets.”
Playbook Media Group was
formed in 2014 when Jean
Jones and Driven joined forces
in launching “modernized
services for today’s entrepreneurial
culture.”
Driven said they have “quite
an impressive roster of current
and former project affiliations,
a high-profile account of publicity,
from rappers, to record
companies, to clothing lines.”
Continued from Page 33
Haitian comedian Se Joe.
Continued from Page 33
and Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival
for three years with local
artists.
Prior to furthering her
career in the arts, Smith said
she has always looked at education
as a pivotal factor in
her life. He obtained a BA in
marketing at The University
of The Bahamas.
Since graduating, Smith
said she has been working
to establish her career as a
dancer, artistic director and
teaching artist on PEI. She
is a graduate of Holland College’s
School of Performing
Arts.
The amazing Smith’s
recent work includes artistic
director in the Stratford
Fall Festival, performing in
the Island Fringe Festival’s
“Pounding the Pavement”
and in the 2019 River Clyde
Pageant, as well as being a
featured artist for the Confederation
Centre’s “Postcards
from the Island” project.
In early June, Smith said
she was seeking support to
present a full-length showcase
of her dance work.
Through her vision, she
reached out to “three most
amazing innovative women
on the island of PEI”: Megan
Stewart (artistic director/
producer of River Clyde Pageant),
Tamara Steele (executive
director of Black Cultural
Society) and Grace
Kimpinski (festival director
of the Island Fringe Festival),
“who agreed to partner
on the project and lend their
combined expertise in live
event production to present
‘Calypso Secrets.’”
Created in the midst of
the COVID-19 pandemic,
Smith said Oshun Dance is
“a vision brought to life to
bring young women artists
of all ethnicities together to
find empowerment and to
access outlets for creative
expression through dance.”
Continued from Page 33
DRIVEN BY LOVE
From left: Dawn Ward, Asia MacMillian Centered and Reequal
Smith in front of The Confederation Centre of the
Arts just before Oshuns hit the Ampitheatre stage at
Pounding the Pavement. Patricia Brown