Carnival Conversations: Protest Whines at Rotterdam Carnival 2023

London’s very own Street and Portrait Photographer Aaron Plange shares his experience of the controversial 2023 Rotterdam Carnival!

For those who may not know, the Rotterdam administration fined some of the bands who participated in 2022’s fete for sexually explicit/vulgar dancing, so this year the bands contacted their revelers to ask them to tone down the spirit of carnival a little bit.

However, this understandably went out the window as soon as the music started and the bands hit the road!! All bands and supporters upped the ante as they passed City Hall in protest… we’ll leave what happened outside here to your imagination, as we eagerly await Rotterdam Carnival 2024!

About Aaron…

What country do you represent?

UK

Where are you based?

London, England

What you know about this Soka Tribe life? 😉 (i.e. what is your affiliation, how long, how did it start)

All I kn0w was that they represent a positive soca family, deliver some banging dance classes and events for true soca lovers!

What brought you to this particular carnival?

Friends and family had been previously and hadn’t stopped talking about it – I don’t like missing out!

Have you played mas before? When and where?

Yes. Chocolate más at Notting Hill Carnival.

What carnivals would you rinse and repeat?

Rotterdam & London

What do you wish you knew about this carnival before going?

Nothing it was perfectly organised!

What would you say makes this carnival different from others?

In comparison to Notting Hill Carnival, the people are a vibe and the whole city seems to support the carnival

Soca Artist that you would want to fete with?

ASA bantan

Anything else the Soka Tribe should know about you?

I’m warming up for the Caribbean carnivals, but in the meantime, I took some dope pics from this carnival, all of which can be found on my IG or you can DM me for more pics, happy to share!!

My social media handle is:

@Hyper.aesthetic