Ram Jam Monday Bash 2012 Miami Carnival: Burning Flames, Red Hot Flames & Pumpa
Miami Carnival weekend didn’t end when the road did.
On Monday, October 8, 2012, Ram Jam 4 Life kept the energy going with De Official RamJam Monday Bash at Revolution Live in Fort Lauderdale, bringing together King Onyan & Burning Flames, Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames, and Pumpa & The Unit for one more night of Soca after Miami Broward Carnival.
The event began at 6 PM at Revolution Live, 100 SW 3rd Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with Jah Baba, Dynasty Soundz, Choice-One and The Stanman also advertised on the bill.
Julianspromos was there with Sheniele “Vivaa” Dodson conducting interviews with Pumpa and Sir Oungku, while Julian C. Hackett shot and edited all four surviving videos from the night.
Ram Jam 4 Life presents De Official RamJam Monday Bash for Miami Broward Carnival 2012.
Burning Flames and Red Hot Flames on the Same Bill
For longtime Soca fans, one of the most interesting things about Ram Jam Bash was seeing Onyan & Burning Flames and Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames appearing at the same event.
Burning Flames came out of Antigua in the 1980s and became one of the most influential bands in Eastern Caribbean Soca. Onyan and Oungku were both part of that musical history before their careers later moved in separate directions, with Oungku eventually forming Red Hot Flames.
That made this more than a regular Carnival Monday lineup. Fans were getting two major parts of the Flames legacy in the same building.
Onyan & Burning Flames Meet Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames
One surviving Julianspromos video captures Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames together with Onyan & Burning Flames during the event.
The footage is one of the strongest pieces in the archive because it preserves both camps during the same Miami Carnival event instead of treating them as separate stories.
The video was uploaded on October 14, 2012.
Sir Oungku Talks With Vivaa
Julianspromos also captured a dedicated Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames performance feature, followed by an interview with Sheniele “Vivaa” Dodson.
The interview gave fans more than the live performance alone, offering a chance to hear directly from Oungku during Miami Carnival weekend.
That video was also uploaded on October 14, 2012.
Pumpa Brings Virgin Islands Soca to Ram Jam
The lineup also featured Pumpa & The Unit.
Pumpa built his career in the U.S. Virgin Islands after moving to St. Croix as a child, becoming closely associated with Virgin Islands Soca.
At Ram Jam Bash, Julianspromos captured both his performance and an interview with Vivaa.
One More Night After Miami Carnival
Ram Jam Bash took place the day after the main Miami Broward Carnival celebration, when a lot of Carnival visitors were still in South Florida and not quite ready for the weekend to end.
That made Monday Bash exactly what the name suggested: one more chance to hear live Caribbean music, reconnect with the crowd and stretch Carnival weekend a little further.
And the lineup gave the night a distinctly Eastern Caribbean feel.
Antigua and Barbuda were represented by Onyan, Burning Flames, Sir Oungku and Red Hot Flames, while Pumpa brought the Virgin Islands into the mix.
It was a reminder that Miami Carnival was never only about one island or one style of Soca.
From the Julianspromos Archives
Four Julianspromos videos from Ram Jam Bash 2012 survive today:
Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames with Onyan & Burning Flames
Sir Oungku & Red Hot Flames performance and interview with Vivaa
Pumpa interview and performance with Vivaa
Pumpa performance highlights
All four videos were shot and edited by Julian C. Hackett and uploaded on October 14, 2012.
With Vivaa interviewing Pumpa and Sir Oungku, the surviving footage gives fans both sides of the night — the live performances and the personalities behind them — while preserving a memorable meeting of the Burning Flames and Red Hot Flames musical legacies during Miami Carnival 2012.
