CONSCIOUS CAFE

Hemp Meister's New Project

He calls himself Keiser. A tall, slender, chocolate-skinned young man, who
seemed to hold Zorro as his sartorial hero. An image in black-suit, shirt,
head kerchief-he plays a short, lilting tune on a black recorder before
regaling the small audience with a poetic "Discourse Between Knowledge and
Wisdom." The conclusion? "The beginning of all wisdom is love."

And love-or at least mention of it-was all abound last Thursday night at
the Conscious Cafe, Trinidad's newest "haven for creative expression"-love
for your fellow man, love for the environment, love for "Jah," and finally
love for hemp, the most misunderstood of herbs, the one that is definitely
not marijuana.

"This plant can save the world if we let it," Conscious Cafe founder Troy
Hadeed said in an impassioned speech before the performances began.

Hadeed is also the owner of Mystic Hemp, a store devoted almost entirely to
hemp products-clothes, bracelets, necklaces, belts, writing paper, soaps,
dietary supplements and a huge wall hanging of Bob Marley.

Hemp, according to Hadeed, was grown and used extensively in past-the first
American flag was made of it and the country's constitution was written on
it-before the taboo on marijuana extended to its far less potent relative.

Hemp as fuel produces less emissions than oil and gas, as cloth is stronger
than cotton and is "one of the most nutritional seeds known to man."

Mystic Hemp, originally on the Ceramic Trinidad Tile compound near the
foreshore, is now on Mucurapo Road, St James, in a two-storey,
multicoloured building. Now it boasts the addition of a juice bar, a
surfing supply shop and Conscious Cafe.

"I believe there is a lot of talent in Trinidad," Hadeed told the Express,
"But nowhere to express it."

The Mystic Hemp/Conscious Cafe combo opened a month ago. Thursday
night--which climaxed with a combined acoustic performance by members of
Orange Sky and Hadeed's brother Wayne and cousin Peter-was about "letting
people know it's here."

The media were invited, as well as friends, family-Hadeed's parents Joe and
Myrna were proudly present-and other guests.

There were poets-the afore mentioned Keiser and the young, curly-haired,
slightly nervous Christian Kong, who said he'd been published twice since
beginning his career at 16. One Midnight Robber-like character, in Crow
face paint, white cotton bra and panties, the latter partially covered by
dirty army pants, and short brown boots, called him/herself Nikki B (for
Bin Bad Bird) . S/he crotched and moved menacingly around the very small
stage, which looked like a converted wooden crate.

"The immensity of my density is beyond the realm of human comprehension,"
Nikki said cryptically.

Reggae duo Jah Defender and Jah Melody performed three numbers, one calling
for "no more war and kidnapping." "Let's give Jah the glory," sang Defender.

And Hadeed himself, in long white robe, took the "stage"-two sheets of copy
paper with typed words in his right hand. Short, with aquiline looks, a
ready smile, scraggly, shoulder-length, dark blond hair and a coming to
come beard, he resembles Tom Cruise, in Born on the Fourth of July mode.

It wasn't clear what he was supposed to represent, but that was the point.

"There is nothing that I am not," Hadeed announced.

"You bury me in garbage. You poison my air," he chastised the audience,
before proffering another hemp plug.

"I give you a helpful, everyday, nourishing plant, and you call it a
narcotic, you call it a drug, you forbid it from being grown."

Two stoic African drummers provided back-up for the performers.

As host Hadeed is enthusiastic and earnest. He listens intently to everyone
on stage.

He claps along when invited to, and encourages others in the audience to do
the same. He's eager to talk about Conscious Cafe, hemp and his life. "At
23 I've been through so much," he said. "I would like to encourage people
to follow their dreams."

Mystic Hemp's current location was derelict when he found it and he was
advised against the move. He ignored the nay-sayers.

"As soon as I saw this spot I had a vision. I knew this was it."

"Troy is a real righteous dude," said Nigel Rojas, Orange Sky's chunky,
dread locked lead singer, in between songs. That night, he said, he felt
"real Troyness, real love."