大象传媒

A cloak of black oil was my passage to deliverance. When I covered myself in oil to participate in , a central aspect of the country鈥檚 Spicemas celebration, it was nothing short of a revolutionary experience. For years, I鈥檇 looked forward to , an endeavor that deeply transformed my relationship with my West Indian heritage and the processions our ancestors expressed themselves through.

When I played for the first time, the feeling was transcendent. For a brief moment, the oil masquerade granted anonymity to engage in bacchanal and revelry, a direct to the expectation of respectability and decorum demanded specifically from women. J鈥檕uvert strips back the fanfare and glamor of feathered costumes, compelling participants to surrender themselves to the collective prerogative of the mas.

J鈥檕uvert restored me. When I finished playing, I hopped into a motorboat water taxi and headed to Grenada鈥檚 Grand Anse beach. The sands were lined with people washing off themselves with water after an energizing morning of marching on the road. It was a shedding鈥攁nd I reemerged feeling revived.

Connecting to the Past

Though J鈥檕uvert is commemorated across the Caribbean鈥攑articularly in countries subjected to French colonial rule鈥攖he celebration is unique in Grenada because its participants transform into the Jab or Jab Jab character. The procession is creolized with and , but playing Jab during J鈥檕uvert also has roots in enslavement.

According to the , 鈥淸t]he Jab Jab portrays the spirit of a slave who met his [death] when he accidentally fell (or may even have been pushed by his white master) into a copper vat of boiling molasses. His ghost comes back every year during Carnival to torment his former master.鈥�

Prior to Grenada鈥檚 emancipation from slavery in 1838, enslaved Afro-Grenadian people were referred to as devils. As an act of satire, the enslaved rubbed any substance that would blacken their skin鈥攎olasses, tar, mud, or soot鈥攐ver their bodies, made helmets emulating the devil with cattle or goat horns fastened onto a construction helmet (early iterations of the helmet were made from found materials such as the large posey bowls found on plantations), and walked around with chains. The Jab turned any descriptor deemed to be transgressive鈥攂eing Black, being in chains, being the devil鈥攊nto a symbol of rebellion, resilience, liberation, and freedom.

Now, on J鈥檕uvert morning, Grenadians of all ages gather right before day break鈥斺�淛鈥檕uvert鈥� is a combination of the French words jour, which means 鈥渄ay,鈥� and ouvert, which means 鈥渙pen鈥濃�攖o march through town to a percussive beat (in St. Georges, Grenada, it is often paired with sound systems) and remind themselves of who they are and what their people have overcome.

For Kered Clement, a United Kingdom鈥揵orn journalist currently residing in Grenada, Jab is a structured ancestral practice. When she moved to Grenada 10 years ago, she attended J鈥檕uvert with her cousin. But it wasn鈥檛 until she played Jab with a family friend that she realized the ritualistic nature of the procession. 鈥淭here were rules I didn鈥檛 even know [when I played] with my cousin,鈥� she says. 鈥淎s Jab Jabs, we don鈥檛 laugh, we don鈥檛 smile. We鈥檙e having fun, but this is serious business.鈥�

Outside of its ancestral heritage, J鈥檕uvert is also accessible: Costumes aren鈥檛 required, so participants are encouraged to wear old clothing. However, as Carnival in Grenada has become more popular and attended by celebrities and influencers, the once-insular celebration is now a shared experience with those who aren鈥檛 native to the island.

Given this expansion, Clement sees the importance of reminding people that their engagement with J鈥檕uvert derives from a structured cultural practice. She describes her process of getting ready saying, 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 in the same place. Together, we put lard on, but we don鈥檛 apply the oil yet. We take our bucket of oil down Tanteen Road where the real Jab Jab band leaves off, and that鈥檚 where we put on our oil. We march through the streets with a band. When the sun gets intense, we depart. We walk through the streets back to the same location where there鈥檚 bakes and saltfish waiting for us.鈥�

Clement鈥檚 reverence for J鈥檕uvert extends to what she wears on the road. This year, , released the song 鈥�,鈥� whose title references a burlap sack . Clement also decided to this year. 鈥淚鈥檓 gonna get a Grenadian designer [named] Ali Creations to design me a crocus bag dress,鈥� she says. 鈥淚nitially, [wearing the dress] was about the song and doing something different, but a lot of people messaged me and said, 鈥榃ow, I feel like you brought back the culture and the uniqueness.鈥欌��

For this year鈥檚 Spicemas, also created a costume, , inspired by Grenada鈥檚 connection to Africa, Jab, and the Black women who play it. Nevlyn John, a representative with ORO, says Mecca is indicative of 鈥渢he strength of women, and the appreciation of our African heritage and [its] influence in our Carnival and our society. So, when we speak about [Mecca] being the 鈥榪ueen of queens,鈥� it is about celebrating our womanhood where the Blackness and authenticity stems from.鈥�

In the Land of 100,000 Jabs

Though J鈥檕uvert鈥檚 visual economy of imagery is dominated by men, women also take part in the celebration. For Black women who play Jab, there are a variety of benefits that contribute to their overall cultural, mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness. 鈥淲hen I talk to folks about Jab Jab, they felt that spiritual connection even more deeply,鈥� says Sherine Andreine Powerful, DrPH. 鈥淚t recruits so many different emotions for people that you can鈥檛 help but feel very present and even more connected in that moment.鈥�

For her , Dr. Powerful explored how the quarantine impacted the ability to play mas and what this meant for Caribbean people in the region and the broader diaspora. Ninety percent of her research participants were Black women who described their involvement as a 鈥渃ollective social self-care ritual,鈥� she shares. 鈥淸Playing Jab mas] provides a space for catharsis, a space for joy, a space for release and space for healing.鈥�

After Saharrah Green, who was born in Grenada, moved to Toronto at the onset of COVID-19 to pursue a degree, she felt disconnected from J鈥檕uvert. But playing J鈥檕uvert in 2024 helped her re-ground herself in her heritage. 鈥淵ou really get a chance to just be free,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to think. I just get to be myself. I get to just be home, allow myself to fully be in that moment around people that truly get me.鈥�

Tamika Nelson, who is based in the United Kingdom, agrees. She began playing J鈥檕uvert when she was around 13. Now, she describes her participation in J鈥檕uvert as a way to improve her mental health. 鈥淧laying mas, no one cares really what you look like,鈥� she says. 鈥淵ou just go out there to have a great time. 鈥� You always find like-minded people on the road and without even thinking, you鈥檙e in a better mental state.鈥� 

For Black women, Jab is something to look forward to that embraces body positivity. It is also an opportunity to reconnect with heritage or continue Caribbean cultural practices that celebrate individual expression. 

When Black women play Jab, it offers both great comfort and great power鈥攁n opportunity to free themselves. 鈥淥ur ancestors have these healing practices that combine body, mind, and spirit,鈥� Dr. Powerful concludes. 鈥淭hat connection has never been severed. From what I鈥檝e experienced 鈥� Carnival brings us back to that ancestral body, mind, and spirit are all connected. People feel all of that on the road.鈥�

CORRECTION: This article was updated at 12:23 p.m. PT on December 9, 2024, to update the honorific for Sherine Andreine Powerful, DrPH and correct the spelling of Kered Clement鈥檚 name.听Read our corrections policy here.听