Roaring Lion was a Trinidadian calypsonian. His 65-year career began in the early 1930s and he is best known for his compositions "Ugly Woman", "Mary Ann" and "Netty, Netty", which are still performed today. The song "If You Wanna Be Happy", which hit number one on the BillboardHot 100 on 18 May 1963, as well as the R&B singles chart, is based on Roaring Lion's "Ugly Woman".
Early life
Lion was born Rafael de Leon in Aroquita, in the Caura Hills of northern Trinidad, to a mother named Basalicion de Leon and a father named Arias Cairi Llama. An illegitimate child, Lion spent some of his earliest years in two orphanages, before being taken in, following his mother's illness, by an elderly woman named Miss Charles who lived on Coffee Street in the southwestern city ofSan Fernando. Finally, he was presented by Charles to a Muslim Indian family in San Fernando who wanted him; he was adopted by Najeeran Khan, who became his adoptive mother. He championed orphanages throughout his career, with songs such as 1940s "Orphan home", for example. Although there has long been confusion about his full name, he himself gave it as Rafael Arias Cairi Llama de Leon. He later met his biological father, who told him that his name, Cairi, was another name for Trinidad, and that "Llama" is a sort of goat or deer from South America. In a 1990 interview, Roaring Lion stated that "from fear that I might be styled a thief, I only use Rafael Deleon."
Career as a Calypsonian
From a young age, Roaring Lion became known for his skill in creating calypsos. Contrary to his humble origins, he cultivated a refined stage persona and always appeared sharply dressed. His career officially began in 1924; he cut his first sides in his late teens. He recorded extensively between the 1930s and 1950s, and was one of the calypsonians who deserves the most credit for the increasing international popularity of the genre during this period. In March 1934 the Trinidadian phonograph merchant Eduardo Sa Gomes sent Roaring Lion and Attila The Hun to New York to record; they became the first calypsonians to record abroad. He was also the only calypsonian vocalist of his generation who could read and write musical notation. On that trip Lion entertained the President of the United States-President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the Waldorf Astoria in New York. This was a distinction that no other calypsonian had at that time. When Lion was asked by President Roosevelt where he & Atilla were from, Lion responded “The Land of Calypso” a name which Trinidad is still known by. Roaring Lion achieved fame for his linguistic prowess as much as for his catchy tunes. His lyrics, delivered in rapid-fire style, show an impeccable command of the English language, and are replete with witty turns of phrase, humorous metaphors, and clever alliteration and internal rhymes. Of all the early calypsonians, he was by far the most scandalous, with the most banned songs by a large margin. His "Netty Netty", the song of a prostitute who left town to have an abortion operation, shocked not only Trinidad and Tobago, but also neighbouring countries such as Grenada, where he was banned for a while. Further, the lyrics of many of his "war calypsoes" presage those of similar hip-hopbattle rap songs by over 50 years. An extract from his lyrics to "War" is a particularly good example of such lyrics:
Later life
Roaring Lion died on 11 July 1999, at the age of 91, in Mt. Lambert, Trinidad. Reports claim that he had ten children. His sons include Ibn Llama de Leon, Ishmael de Leon, Akenathon de Leon, Rafael Charles de Leon, Mohondas deLeon, Karelius de Leon, Christobal de Leon, and Krishna de Leon. His daughters are Victoria Peters, and the late Pamela de Leon-Lewis. He was formerly married to Marie Louise de Leon, of Norway and she was the mother of four of his children. In 2002 Akenathon announced plans to turn his father's Mt. Lambert property into a Roaring Lion Museum.
