Inside Freaks Mas’ “RAW” Section | A Taste of Confectionz for New York Carnival 2014
In summer 2014, Freaks Mas was preparing to return to Eastern Parkway with A Taste of Confectionz, a Carnival presentation inspired by sugar, sweets and the deeper Caribbean history connected to the sugar industry.
As part of Julianspromos’ coverage, Chandelle “Chandy” De Riggs went inside the Freaks Mas camp in Brooklyn for a closer look at RAW, one of the sections being prepared for the 2014 West Indian American Day Carnival.
The surviving video features section leader Desma and gives masqueraders an up-close preview of RAW before the costumes reached the road.
A Taste of Confectionz
Freaks Mas built its 2014 presentation around more than just candy-inspired visuals.
Band leader Ray Bruce explained at the time that A Taste of Confectionz also referenced the Caribbean's historical connection to sugar, including the labor of ancestors who worked within the sugar industry. The complete band consisted of seven sections: Bittersweet, Candy Couture, Cotton Candy Crush, Honey Seduction, Paradise Plum, RAW, and Tasty Treats: Sweet & Sour.
RAW was presented by Wideshut Promotions, giving the section its own identity within the larger Freaks Mas concept.
Chandy Goes Inside the Mas Camp
Rather than simply showing costumes from a distance, the Julianspromos feature put Chandelle “Chandy” De Riggs on camera to introduce viewers to the section and the people behind it.
That style of coverage reflected how Julianspromos’ Carnival media was evolving by 2014. Mas was no longer being documented only through road footage and event highlights. The platform was also going inside the mas camps and giving individual sections space to tell their own stories.
The Freaks Mas camp was located at 4515 Avenue D in Brooklyn, placing Julianspromos directly inside the preparation period leading into New York Carnival.
From the Mas Camp to Eastern Parkway
By Labor Day, A Taste of Confectionz would move from costume preparation to the streets of Brooklyn.
Freaks Mas had already developed a strong presence within New York Carnival, and contemporary reporting described the band as carrying hundreds of masqueraders while regularly competing among the larger bands on Eastern Parkway.
The RAW feature preserves the stage before all of that happens: the costumes, section identity and anticipation while Carnival is still being assembled inside the mas camp.
For the Julianspromos archive, it is another reminder that Carnival coverage is not only about what happens on the road. Much of the story begins weeks earlier, behind the scenes.
