Reigning Carib Soca Monarch Adrian Dutchin is bound to face challenges this year. He copped the crown for the last two consecutive years but with a number of new faces popping up he is endeavouring to “deal with the competition”.
Adrian will this year put on his 2007 special “Big Damn Celebration”, which he said is all about “Guyanese coming together as one to celebrate the country’s independence and all its achievements.”
Over the past two years, Adrian said, the monarchy has afforded him a whole range of opportunities and has opened his eyes to many things. And on competition night Adrian says he and Kross Kolour records will have got a lot of tricks up their sleeves.
“Definitely I will have sparks flying. That’s the way we love doing it and so it’s all about that night and I am looking forward to the challenges.”
In his new song, Adrian has continued on the same thread of unity, urging revellers to,
“Jump, fete and come
as one …
On a band, on a truck,
Down de road in the sun
And we jumping like
we crazy.”
Adrian copped the Carib Soca crown in 2005 with his piece, ” Display” which sent shock waves throughout the Mash celebrations that year and was able to retain the title in 2006 with his rendition, “One”.
But prepared to take Adrian to task is the popular Rudolph ‘Sweet Kendingo’ Kendall who had entered the Carib Soca Monarch competition in 2000, when he also took part in the Mash Calypso competition. This time Sweet Kendingo hopes to make his mark in both competitions.
The born and bred Berbician will be coming with his, “Granddad! Trailer Coming”. Kendingo told the scene that Mashramani is for everyone and his selection is “off of waving and jumping.” He said he is still asking himself how he came up with the song, but insists that it’s just his natural flow that was working once more.
“I think I will come out as the best performer and it’s the second time I am taking part and I will win the second time around,” Kendingo said,
The name Kendingo would ring a bell particularly with those die-hard calypso fans and especially since he was able to cop the Calypso King crown with his special “Awe a going down.”
Just to give a taste of what the sweet Kendingo has to offer:
“I used to take meh kids out to se Carnival day
For dem to see de big
band play.
Now they on they own and
they gone and gig,
You know how pickney
stay when they get big.
The big one lef she youth
man in my lap,
She say granddad you got
to try wid dat.”
Sweet Kendingo is confident that his fans will enjoy his song and “Definitely I will take the crown,” he said.
Stephen Dunbar is a ‘new kid on the block’ and instead of being too much in the competition spirit he told The Scene that he is instead using the competition to make the lyrics of his song register in the heart and minds of Guyana. In his very conservative frame of mind, Stephen told The Scene that his inspiration comes from a feeling that Guyana will be a better place if people only appreciated each other and determined to live as one. His song is entitled, “Living in Love.”
He said in the midst of the big celebrations people must understand that they must live in peace and harmony even after the celebrations are over.
“In my song I am pleading with Guyana to live in harmony since this is the cry of my heart and we must have respect for each other’s culture and come together as one to build Guyana.”
And so he implores:
“I want to see Guyanese
living in unity,
I want to see Guyanese
Living in love,
I long to see Guyanese
living in peace and
I want to see Guyana
living as one.”
“Instead of competing I am focusing on making my song register to hearts and manifest how people should treat each other,” he said.
Clifton ‘Passion’ Adolphus is again making his mark in the Soca Monarch competition after placing 7th and 6th in the 2005 and 2006 competitions respectively.
This time around, Passion is coming with his very own “Survivor” and told The Scene, he “always likes to do it differently.” His song celebrates life and the different challenges that individuals face on a day-to-day basis, Passion said.
This Linden born young man says he hopes to please the hearts of Lindeners when he arrives on stage, since the quarter finals will be held in the mining town.
“I am going to my hometown and this is where I represent and I plan to put on my best performance.
“Flags in de air,
Flags in de air,
All Survivors
Say it everywhere,
All Survivors
Put it up, put it up, put it up.”
After dropping out of the 2004 and 2005 competitions, Delroy Dash is determined to make it big this year with his tune “Oh Oh.”
“Basically my song is about the way Guyanese people celebrate Mash,” Delroy said.
He sings:
“Oh, Oh, Oh, look at de
rags how they waving high,
I love it so, the feeling I feel
I would tell no lie.
In this celebration we
healing de nation,
The passion for soca, got
we getting on wild.”
He believes that his experience in competitions will provide him a chance of coping the crown this time around. “This time I am more eager to win the monarchy.”
“It’s all about something different and so what I am saying is that we don’t have to do everything when the place is bright and all we need to do is have a flashlight.”
This is how Jamal ‘Steel’ Gittens, who is also new in the competition, described his inspiration for his song, “Flashlight.”
Jamal is a member of the group ‘G-Money” and said his group is versatile and so “we got big plans for competition night and we will have the place dark so we’ll be the centre of attraction.”
Steel told The Scene that he wants to bring something different to soca in Guyana.
“It’s nice to have a flashlight,”
Steel said. And so he sings:
“Celebrating part of our
own history,
Rising up to a dynasty,
Mayor passing out the
town key
Because bashment in the
place and we lock de city.”
Ronella Woseley intends to create a stir when she steps on stage to do her thing at the Carib Soca Monarch quarter finals in Linden come February 3. A Star Guyana finalist Ronella or Ro Ro, her stage name, is entering the competition having penned her own lyrics for the first time. At 16 years old she is probably the youngest entrant to the annual scorcher. She has already won accolades as a dancer and capturing the soca crown could only be an addition to her achievements. The song she prepared for the competition is called “It’s Party Time” and the words are:
“We starting to move
We starting to groove
We mashing till sundown
Everybody it’s party time
Don’t stop the lime
The feeling is fine
Whether its rain or sunshine.”
Nicole Osborne is planning to raise the temperature with her Carib Soca Monarch entry called “Soca Fever”.
Seeking to pluck the crown the first time out Nicole, 20, said she has been performing for the last three years. She has worked with the Unison Band featuring Lorna and Bobby Diamond in the past.
She says her sister, who is also a vocalist with the Extreme Band encouraged her to get involved in the competition this year. Having to write a song, she said, led her to think about soca itself and she wrote a song about it.
“Soca music is in meh body
I can feel it deep within me
Soca fever is taking over
And it’s making my heart
beat faster
When de soca music play
I does start to move
meh waist.”
Be sure to read next week’s edition for the remaining quarter finalists for this year’s Carib Soca Monarch competition. crazycoolh
ep@yahoo.com
