Etienne Charles: Jazz, Kaiso, and the Responsibility of Culture | The Corie Sheppard Podcast

Send us Fan MailIn this episode of The Corie Sheppard Podcast, we sit with internationally acclaimed trumpeter, composer, and educator Etienne Charles for a wide-ranging conversation on music, memory, and cultural responsibility.Etienne reflects on growing up in Trinidad, his formative years at Fatima College, and how calypso, jazz, steelband, and African diasporic traditions shaped his artistic voice. We explore his commitment to live music, his philosophy on albums as historical documents, and why he believes Caribbean artists have a duty to preserve and contextualise their culture on global stages.The conversation also touches on mentorship, discipline, education, fashion as expression, ancestry, and what it means to stand in the gap between generations — carrying stories forward while creating space for what comes next.This is a deep, reflective discussion on legacy, excellence, and why culture must be treated with care.