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Kory Mendez has a voice that easily reverberates through performance spaces. This tenor now sings primarily with The Lydians. He is a former music festival champion and he has performed with Picoplat Music Development Foundation, Trinidad All Stars Steel Orchestra, Desperadoes Steel Orchestra. Recently, Kory co-founded MW Productions in 2021, doing three productions to date. But who would have thought that this man with so many performances under his belt, was once petrified of public performances? Here is the journey of this “soul replenisher”, from the school music room to the stage of the National Academy for the Performing Arts:–

My faith and family support system played a monumental role in the development of my character and sense of self. My extended family was very religious at their core, very loving, caring and supportive. Church was a must on the weekend, either Saturday evening or Sunday morning. This excludes the extra-curricular “church” activities such as weekly seminars, youth group meetings or assisting the St. Vincent De Paul Society. I remember my grandmother having weekly church group meetings at various houses within our community where we would meet to pray for members within the specific household. When we prayed, we prayed for everyone. It was not about self, it was about society, country, the world. I believe this was the birth of my spirit of service, volunteerism and selflessness.    

I wasn’t always involved in the arts and music. As a child, I participated in karate, cricket  and as I grew into my teenage years, tennis. I also had an unusual proclivity for “march-past” competitions. I probably participated in every march-past hosted by my primary and secondary schools.  The steel pan was my instrument of choice and I competed in multiple junior panorama competitions with my secondary school . This may have been the formal start of my musical journey. The “music room” in school was my place of refuge.

The stage petrified me

Many may not believe it but as a child, I lacked self confidence. This is the reason I struggled with performing in my younger years. The stage petrified me. Moments before any performance, speech or presentation, were filled with crippling anxiety. Now, I am certain that is where I belong.

My first love was, and maybe still is, teaching. I fell in love with teaching during my primary school years. I would come home and pretend to “teach” the plants in my aunt’s garden, correct blank pieces of paper and conduct “morning” assembly. Upon reflection, It was quite embarrassing as I would be talking to the plants as if they were children, “beating” them when they didn’t listen and celebrating them when they did. My fondest moment in conducting morning assembly at “my school” was the singing. In primary school, we sang hymns during assembly and to an extent this is where I believe my love for singing emanated. In fact, it was not until 2015, while pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology that I stumbled upon a The Lydians rehearsal in the halls of Bishop Anstey High School. Soon afterward, I “fell”  into their Tenor ranks. This was when the formal training for a career in singing began. 

“A Soul Replenisher”

Performing is special but some of my most treasured moments as a performer have occurred post performance during my interactions with the audience. I remember performing at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity a couple years ago with The Lydian Singers, and after the performance, an 80 year old lady, assisted by her daughter approached me saying, “Thank You. I am ill but when I heard you guys (The Lydians) were performing, I had to leave my bed. Your performance moved me deeply. Thank you.”

This is the reason I sing. I see music as a catalyst for transformational healing. In my view, music isn’t for recreation only. It serves as an educator, counsellor, and emotional curator. Music feeds our souls. This is the high point of my field, I don’t see myself as a singer, I am a Soul Replenisher. 

“I come as one, but I stand as ten thousand”

This is a phrase that I recite before each stage performance. It’s from a poem by the late Dr. Maya Angelou, entitled, “Our Grandmothers”. This phrase reminds me that the performance is not about me.

When I stand before an audience, I am not alone, I stand with all ancestors. I am only a vessel through which a character’s message and intention are conveyed. Emotions felt and conveyed are in relation to the character’s state of mind, however, they come from my life experiences. For a performance to be sincere, you must study the character and the message and marry that with your life experiences. 

In 2021, I co-founded MW Productions with Anton Williams. It came from the need to create a safe space for creatives to hone and develop their skills as well as to cultivate a culture of creative entrepreneurship. I have found that we have a wealth of talent in Trinidad and Tobago, however, we need to marry talent with business acumen to ensure we can survive. 

I love what I do. My inspiration comes from finding my true purpose. I believe that we are all placed on earth to fulfill the highest, truest, expression of ourselves and I am en route. I remember hearing Steve Harvey say once, “the two most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why”.

Selfless support

My journey would not have been possible without the involvement and support of some key individuals.I am blessed to be surrounded by an ecosystem of professional support including Dr. Leah Brown, Natalia Dopwell, Dr. Edward Cumberbatch, Dr. Richard Tang Yuk and Dr. Roger Henry, just to name a few. On a choral level, The Lydian Singers, The Academy for the Performing Arts Ensemble and Picoplat Music Development Foundation have certainly inspired me. On a personal level, Anton Williams, Michael Hudlin, Carl-Anthony Hines, Kadesh Clouden, Olusanmi Reid, Joshua Joseph, Shurvone Brathwaite, Jason Lawrence, Mark Anthony Peter: all musicians, friends, colleagues who serve selflessly and support fearlessly.

As a black Trinbagonian male, I do agree that there are sufficient examples of black male leaders in our country who are worthy mentors. However, I would like to propose that our leaders consider an empathetic leadership style when mentoring our young black males. This leadership style allows for more focus to be given on the management of their vulnerabilities, emotions and sense of self.

Our young black men need love. Cliché as it may sound, when we don’t love ourselves we seek to find love in anything else and we don’t know how to give love to anyone else.

Your passion is akin to fuel

To that teenager who may be confused about their career or passion I say, “stay the course”.  Rest assured this journey will present obstacles but take comfort in the fact that your reward will be greater than the sum of all the challenges faced. Finding your true calling (passion) and marrying that with your career allows you to become more of yourself and to grow yourself into the best of yourself.

When your passion gives birth to your career you can become profitable (mentally, spiritually, financially, emotionally, physically). When loving what you do as a career is the motivation behind staying the course, it re-energizes and reawakens your passion to continue to thrive. Your passion is akin to fuel and your career is the motor vehicle.

Boundaries and Balance

One word, Boundaries. I have self-diagnosed myself as having the “disease to please”. In other words, I say “yes” when I really want to say “no” and sometimes “hell no”. Managing these responsibilities (performer, producer, underwriter) have taught me to set boundaries for myself, where I am the author of every chapter in the pages of my life and I am no longer driven by what others want me to do. Boundaries then birth balance. Balance makes time for recreation, passion, and service. This helps me not to find the time, but to make the time.

I maintain a good work-life balance through prioritisation. I have come to realise that I must make myself a priority and ensure that I adhere to the boundaries set for myself. As individuals, we often give our time and energy to everyone but take no time for ourselves, to rest, reflect, relax and enjoy the beautiful gift of life. In fact, one of my favourite quotes from Iyanla Vanzant is “When you give to others to the degree that you sacrifice yourself, you make the other person a thief because they are stealing from you, what you need and they don’t even know it”.

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Kory attended Maraval R.C. Primary School, St. James Government Secondary School, College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago, University of Trinidad and Tobago and The UWI, St Augustine. He has a Bachelor’s degree (Hons) Psychology,  Artistic Diploma (“AD”) in Music Performance and a Post Graduate Diploma in Mediation Studies. He is now pursuing a Master’s degree in Mediation Studies. His most recent production, Iere X Tabago: A Chorale Jubilee was held in July 2022.

Photo: Saul Ramlal | The Trinidad and Tobago Arts Performing Arts Network