Dear Editor,
I’d like to congratulate both the senior/junior Calypso Monarchs for this year 2011. They were well deserved victories. However, being a lover and follower of this particular art form over the years I cannot sit and not comment on the ridiculous and biased decisions made by some judges in some of these competitions. This one is no different. As a result too many good songs go to waste.
While I am aware that competitions will always be controversial, there needs to be an investigation into some of these decisions because it is so blatant before the eyes of the general public that these decisions are too faulty and completely wrong like the songs they send forth.
I think the time has come for those judges to be held responsible for those ridiculous decisions and be answerable and also penalized. Being one of the patrons at Banks DIH, I enjoyed the competition immensely and the competitors who deserved to be there, but I cannot imagine how the two songs appealing for the crown reached the finals, the blind guy’s song was beautifully constructed but neither of the two had any substance to compete, there were a few others that should not have been there, it was too much of the same thing in their messages.
I also wish to touch on the radio stations and television stations where the bias seems to be spreading too. I overheard someone saying and complaining the other day that a radio announcer thinks he is God’s gift to radio. Taking lengthy periods to censor and release artistes recordings in the system. There should be an investigation there too. We are all Guyanese and it’s our radio station not his.
I listened to a few of the new calypsos one time too many, it seems as though they were the only calypsos in the competition for this year. It’s unfair to the general public to be promoting only one set of songs, when the public is aware that there were more, all the songs in the competition should be given air play every day until the competition is over if all cannot be aired in one programme, then whenever it is possible promote another set of the songs.
Like the Carib Soca and Banks Groovy Soca competitions all the songs should be placed on a CD for the radio and every song should be played, same goes for the television stations. The Minister of Culture should ensure that this happens for the 2012 Calypso Competition. With a no nonsense approach to those announcers at the radio stations.
I am aware that not every contestant records but I heard songs and saw DVDs that were being promoted more than some and even the announcer `bigging up’ some contestants more than some. It is wrong it can cause the other contestants to lose confidence in themselves.
Finally it was sickening to hear last year’s calypsos being aired more than this year’s entries on radio. Come on guys let’s get it right next time round. Happy Mashramani to all.
Yours faithfully,
Eleazer Jordan-Carter
