Карлен Уэллс завершила карьеру светской звезды калипсо и посвятила себя христианскому служению

A name synonymous with the entertainment industry of Trinidad and Tobago, and who stood in the arena alongside several other strong female frontline acts who helped to pave the way for many of the talents happening today, is Carlene Wells. Wells, during her secular years as an entertainer, is a former Junior Calypso Monarch winner, placed third as a previous Song Festival finalist, and a female frontline act with several of the leading calypso bands in the 1980s, including the William Munroe-led MECCA Tent, Calypso Revue and the National Carnival Commission tent. She later dabbled in the Chutney/Soca arena, performing with bands JMC Triveni, Rukshun, She Bang and Dil-E-Nadan. Wells was one of T&T’s female entertainers to have dominated the parties with her voice, captivating audiences with her smooth, sultry voice that lent itself well to her 2003 hit, Party Mood. A change of direction Through careful introspection and coming from a place of belonging, she developed a deeper sense of faith, battled with the harsh realities of life and family issues, and decided to make a decision. She did, and was baptised ten years ago; Wells has been ministering to a different audience and singing for the Lord as she continues to lift her voice in praise. Feeling a sense of accomplishment and fulfilment, Wells said she is not ashamed of her beginning, but she is content with where life has taken her as a born-again Christian. On September 26, she is set to raise the roof at the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Commerce in Westmoorings with heavenly songs, with musical surprises in Japanese and reggae. Memories of Japan Wells said when the all-girl band She Bang was formed, they were given an opportunity to visit Japan to perform, and there she was asked to sing in Japanese. She said she learned to sing a song in one week, and gradually she learnt the language. “We made three consecutive trips to Japan, so when I was there we sang at this huge club; and there was a popular Japanese singer, Itsumi Osawa. She used to come to the club to see us perform, and she wanted me to learn one of her songs, and that is where I learned Japanese and how to sing in Japanese, and one of the Japanese songs I did, I would be performing it to a reggae beat at the concert. I never did anything like that before,” Wells said. Finding her faith Wells is heavily rooted in her spiritual side; she said she is a living testimony that life’s circle does not keep you in a loop, but redirects your path only if you want the change. She said, “After all those things, I got baptised and started singing gospel, changed my life, got to know the Lord, and I am a gospel artiste now. I did my first gospel song four years ago, and it was part of the gospel awards at SAPA. I was one of the contenders in the awards; I was in the first five, up there with Jaron Nurse. It was a song called Take It All Away From Me.” She continued, “How I used to sing in the world, I tell God, take it all away from me, and I want to sing for him. All the gospel songs I did are about me. I just want to serve him. And another one I did is I Only Want to Sing For You. A pastor told me we need to do a cardinal concert, where you were before and where you are now. To let the people see the transition. I prayed about it. But the Lord guided me to show the people where I am now. I want it to be an inspiration for people.” Leaving the world stage Wells spoke of an early toxic relationship in her career. She felt unfilled and incomplete. She felt alone, and it was at this point, during a quiet moment, that she called on the Lord for renewed vision and perspective for her life. She said, “I have been off the world stage for more than 20 years. I had just gone into the church; I didn’t miss it (world stage), for how it happened. I have been a victim of domestic violence, and people are going through the same thing. I was away, went through problems and because of that, I am free from it now. One day I sat quietly and tell the Lord, I had no one, and I tell the Lord, Father, I don’t want to sing for the world anymore; I only want to sing for you, and that is when the transition came. I was desperate to turn to the Lord. I didn’t want to go back anymore, because of what I went through; I don’t miss it.” She said she cannot imagine herself still performing as a local artist, calypso or soca, given the performances expected of artistes today. Jokingly, she said, “I would be naked,” looking at performances by entertainers and artistes today. She said, however, she is not attacking anyone for their creativity, but “it’s just not for me.” She said her transition is more than the dollars and cents; it is about finding self and serving the Lord. She is the proud mother of two children, one 25 and 15 years old. She runs her own studio, CWG Studio, and remains a resident of Belmont, deeply rooted in doing the Lord’s work.