Former Soca queen Shellon ‘Shelly G’ Garraway has apologized to her fans for failing to defend her title at last weekend’s Carib Soca Monarch competition at the National Park.
“I just want to say sorry. Sorry to my fans,” Shelly G, who copped the crown last year, said when The Scene caught up with her recently.
But the “Touch Me” singer revealed that while her fans would have been shocked at her no show the organizers of the competition would have expected it as she never rehearsed her song with the band that backed the artistes on competition night.
The artiste–in the presence of her manager Eon Johnson–told The Scene that she had told the organizers that “if certain things were not taken care of I would not be performing.” Asked about the “certain things” the young singer explained that since last November she and two other artistes–Alabama and Fojo–were banned from entering the HJTV Queenstown compound.
The ban came as a result of the raging war between her manager and the owners of the television station and others in the music business that saw the production of a song—“Mr Limpy”—written and sung by Jory. In the song, Jory attacks Johnson for short-changing him during a performance–a claim the promoter has not denied–but in the song Jory also makes some remarks about Shelly G who finds them “derogatory.”
According to Shelly G, she has not been at the studio since last year November when she was told by Rawle Ferguson–one of the two owners of the television station–that he did not want her “in his space’.
Following the revelation that the Heat Wave band–based at the television station–had won the contract to provide the back-up music for the competitors, Shelly G said she asked Troy Cadogan of Carib to “tell Rawle to call me and tell me it is okay to go to the studio.” She said she had indicated that if this was not done she would not perform and did not attend any of the rehearsals.
And while the organizers continued to advertise that she would have been at the show, the young woman said they would have been fully aware that she would not attend because she did not rehearse.
“The artiste cannot perform at a place she is not comfortable, she wanted them to make her comfortable,” Johnson joined in.
And to make matters worse when Carib launched its Mash celebration it wanted Shelly G to perform on the same stage with Jory and she indicated that she would not do so because of what he has been saying about her.
“I met with Mr Troy Cadogan and he said Jory was not going to perform but when we left his office about two hours later we received a call from Mr Nigel Worrell and he said it was his show and that we should choose because Jory was going to perform,” Shelly G said.
She did not turn up and she was further sidelined, as, according to her, she was not invited to the press conference when this year’s competition was launched even though she was the reigning queen.
And the singer also pointed out that she never learnt about her proposed performance at the Mash launch show until she saw her picture on a flyer advertising the show and that she “was facing Jory” and had to visit the Carib office to learn more.
However, the singer said she is more about positive energy and she really does not have anything against the company and just wanted her fans to know why she did not defend her title.
“The reason why I did not say anything before is because I did not want to put a damper on this year’s show. I did not want to be a side attraction,” she said.
Her manager said that they are grateful to the Carib company for all it has done for artistes in Guyana, “but there are certain elements we have a problem with.”
Shelly G commented that she really does not have a problem with anyone and she does not understand why she is being targeted by those in the music industry.
Shelly G revealed that she was in Trinidad from February 8 to February 22 where she recorded four songs with three Trinidadians and an Antiguan and fans can expect a taste of these soon. She will soon be back in the twin island to record with the “Do Wuh Yuh Want With Me” soca diva Denise Belfon.
Asked whether she will be appearing in future Carib competitions, Johnson said that his artiste’s “wounds are still raw” and unless there is “healing” then she would opt out of future competitions. (samantha_alleyne2000@yahoo.com)
