BRADES, Montserrat – For the second time in three years, Herman ‘Cupid’ Francis is Montserrat’s Calypso Monarch. A packed Cultural Centre enjoyed the fiercely competitive finals, which was the culmination of the eliminations and the semi-finals and saw 33 calypsonians whittled down to nine to take on the reigning monarch.
Staking his claim very early in the competition last Thursday evening with ‘The Tree’, Cupid won the crown with 774 points, 46 points ahead of the first runner up Black Jaguar. The Black Jaguar, who was making his first appearance in the calypso competition, also won the “Best Newcomer” prize.
Last year’s monarch Silvena ‘Kandi’ Malone was third with 721 points. Kandi seemed poised to retain her crown with her first round performance of “Trouble in Paradise” but flubbing some of her lines in her second song “Sweetness is my Weakness,” cost her the crown.
After winning the crown, Cupid gave a hearty thank you to the Black Rhythms Band who accompanied him and all of the other competitors, to the fans and local radio station ZJB Radio Montserrat, which gave his songs ‘The Tree’ and ‘Before I Die’ much airplay. Cupid takes home $10,000 in prize money while each runner up also gets a cash prize for their final placement in the competition.
The other competitors were very close in the final points standing.
The full results are as follows:
Calypso Monarch – Cupid – The Tree, Before I Die (774 pts.)
1st – Black Jaguar – Nations Rise, Another Day in Paradise (728 pts.)
2nd – Kandie – Trouble in Paradise, Sweetness is my Weakness (721 pts.)
3rd – Silk – Conditions, Mankind in Danger (716 pts.)
4th – Tabu – Back to Square One, A Place to Unwine (713 pts)
5th – Storm – Talk Talk Talk, Next in Line (691 pts)
6th – Vejon – Rain Come Dung, Legends Don’t Die (690 pts)
7th – Rakatang – Time to do Something, Got to Clean Up (685 pts)
8th – Tiger – Right and Wrong – A Just Can’t Wait (678 pts)
9th – Bimsha – What Have You Learnt, Wishing You the Best (662 pts)
Most Improved Calypsonian ($250) – Lady Here I Come
Best Newcomer – Black Jaguar
Most Creative Composition ($550) – Cupid with ‘Before I Die’
Best Environmental Song ($1000) – Dynamite with ‘Preserve it’
Best Diabetic Song ($500) – Candie with ‘Sweetness is My Weakness’
Best Social Commentary – Candie with ‘Sweetness is My Weakness’
Crowd Favorite – Tiger
The Calypso Finals was one of the premiere events in the annual cultural festivities which this year was dubbed ArrowFest, in honor of the late Soca King of the World Arrow.
View pictures from the calypso finals and other ArrowFest 2010 activities on the Spirit of Montserrat Facebook fan page.
-ENDS –
Captions:
1- Calypso Monarch for Montserrat’s ArrowFest 2010 is Herman ‘Cupid’ Francis. Here he is performing ‘The Tree.’ (Photo by Nerissa Golden)
2- Black Jaguar won best newcomer and 2nd Runner Up in the ArrowFest 2010 Calypso Finals (Photo by Phillip Brade)
