BRADES, Montserrat – The calypso competition is heating up now that the final nine have been selected to vie for the calypso monarch title now held by Sylvina “Candie” Malone.
On Friday evening, 15 contestants sang in two rounds before a packed house at the Montserrat Cultural Centre. The calypso semi-finals followed a short opening ceremony for ArrowFest 2010 which runs until January 1, 2011.
The 15 competitors who included four women were: William “Black Jaguar” Sweeney, Maudell “Vejon” Weekes, Davon “Rakatang” Williams, “Maxine” Lee, Roseanna “Lady Here I Come” Weekes, Herman “Cupid” Francis, Neilson “Tiger” Duberry, Lloyd “Bimsha” Francis, Garnette “Silk” Thompson, Denny “Jack Sprat” Bramble, “Maggie” Destouche, Vicky “Storm” Locker, Franklyn “Fyah” Hixon, Jester “Iceman” Weekes and Kelvin “Tabu” Duberry.
The final nine selected are: Tabu, Tiger, Bimsha, Black Jaguar, Cupid, Rakatang, Silk, Vejon and Storm. Vicky ‘Storm’ Locker is the only female who made it into the final nine. They will face the defending monarch Candie in the finals on December 30th.
Herman Sargeant, Manager of ZJB Radio Montserrat and one of Friday evening’s commentators said he was “very impressed with all the calypsos this year. The performances on Friday night indicated to me that the calypsonians have put in a lot of hard work and effort into their product. The competition was keenly contested and that augers well for the future of the calypso monarch competition and for the art form in general.”
Sargeant said he is impressed with the newcomers to the competition Black Jaguar, Vejon, Tiger and Maggie D even though she did not make it into the final nine. “Their emergence this year gives me hope that there is a bright future for calypso here. The topics and depths, to which they delved into the issues, reflect a serious consciousness by calypsonians for the social development of Montserrat.”
The calypso eliminations, semi-finals, and finals are organized by the Montserrat Festival Committee (MonFest) and sponsored by the Office of the Chief Minister and platinum sponsor LIME.
The finals can be heard and viewed live on December 30th on www.zjb.gov.ms.
See backstage interviews and highlights from Friday’s Calypso Semi-Finals here… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikNdm2B83Ng.
-ENDS –
