Episode 247 | Kwesi Hopkinson — Corie Sheppard Podcast

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Kwesi “Hoppy” Hopkinson has been a driving force in Trinidad & Tobago’s entertainment and media landscape for decades. From his teenage years building Radioactive and Players Inc, to shaping the party culture with iconic events like Soca Picnic, to creating platforms such as Scorch Magazine, Scorch Radio, Island E-Tickets, and now Scorch TV — Hoppy’s story is one of vision, branding, and resilience.

In this episode, we talk about:

The early days of sound clashes, dubplates, and rivalries with Jugglers and others
How branding and identity (yellow crates, yellow cars, iconic logos) made Radioactive unforgettable
The entrepreneurial leap from radio personality to media owner
The birth of Scorch and why ownership mattered more than titles
His role in providing space for young DJs, artists, and creatives to grow
The evolution from magazine to radio to TV and the future of Caribbean entertainment

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