Newcomers took over the winning line up at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports’ recent Mashramani competitions, which the ministry has deemed successful noting that even though they were held virtually for the first time ever as a result of the pandemic, they attracted larger audiences including Guyanese from the diaspora.
The competitions referred to are: Chutney Monarch, Soca Monarch, Calypso Monarch, Junior Soca Monarch, Junior Calypso Monarch, and Steel Band Panorama in Junior Solo, Senior Solo, Pan Duet, and Pan Jazz categories.
Coordinator of the competitions Andrew Tyndall said, “The ministry went above and beyond to ensure that we were able to host the competitions despite the pandemic. We have improved the quality of the music produced this season… At the ministry, our mission is to praise and promote and develop Guyanese talent.”
According to him, some of the improvements this year were better lighting and sound engineering as well as rehearsals three weeks before the finals of the competitions. He said finalists usually shy away from doing their entire performance during rehearsals, but because they needed everything to run as smoothly as possible, all finalists were required to rehearse their entire performance as well as have their backup dancers at rehearsals. He added that because of the pandemic they tried their best to be COVID cautious.
“The team really enjoyed putting this together. We had the guidance of our minister… Charles Ramson who was critically involved and was very hands-on,” he said.
The competitions saw over 80 entries with the Chutney Monarch attracting 18; Soca Monarch, 26; Calypso Monarch, 28; Junior Soca Monarch, 11; and Junior Calypso Monarch 9. The competitions among adults were each shortlisted to 10
finalists, while for the Junior Calypso Monarch had 9 and the Junior Calypso Monarch 6. The Steel Band Panorama across the four categories saw a total of 30 entries.
Across the board for the monarchy competitions, all the winners were newcomers who also copped ‘Best Newcomer Award’. Asked whether it was previously decided for the monarch titles to be awarded to newcomers, the coordinator said it was not and it was the newcomers who brought their best game and emerged winners.
Prior to the airing of the competitions, several calypsonians had claimed that their songs did not make the finals because they sang about politics.
“Being a calypsonian isn’t about being against any political party, it’s about social commentary. It’s unfair the way artistes are being treated. What is the basis of eliminating somebody’s song? That should be based on performance,” Mark Ferdinand had said.
Mark’s song “Claudette Swing” had been released on social media about a month and a half ago had garnered hundreds of fans within a matter of days. It reflected Guyana’s general elections last year, which had impacted the lives of all Guyanese.
Two other calypsonians, Lisa Banton who sang “Two Faced” and Jovinski Thorne who sang “Is It Safe To Sing Calypso?” also did not make it to the finals and had concluded that their songs were not chosen because of their play on politics.
When this was put to Tyndall, he responded that the ministry has never practiced censorship of songs. He also said that the competition was the ministry’s and he and other individuals who were responsible for it were not going to be liable for songs with information that could not be confirmed. “We have guidelines which say your content shouldn’t be slanderous or libellous,” Tyndall added.
He then stated that in fact songs that had political content were in the finals of the Calypso Monarch competition.
Meanwhile, winner of the Soca Monarch Competition Samuel Medas said he was overjoyed to have been awarded the title. Samuel is a Gospel singer and while his participation in the Soca competition came as a surprise to many, following his exceptional performance, a large percentage were sure that he was the new monarch.
The singer said he did not enter the competition for the prize money or the crown but to deliver a message. His song spoke of Guyanese, despite their ethnicities, always uniting and celebrating at the Stadium for sports and pining for those days to come again. “I know we had a tough year… Jesus said you gon be alright,” he sang.
He ended his song that night with “Yeah, yeah, my buddy”. And he told The Scene, “Whenever I go on the road now, I have fans quoting the song and saying to me ‘Yeah, yeah, my buddy’.”
Though a popular artiste and a seasoned one at that, Samuel said he was a novice in the competition as he was going up against talented Soca singers who had competed before and won more than once, like four-time monarch Jumo Primo.
Asked whether this was the first time he contemplated entering the competition, the singer said it was the first time he seriously considered it though he joked about it two years ago on Facebook. It was shortly after the release of his song “Blowing My Mind” that Samuel joked about entering the competition and many supported his comment.
However, despite his spectacular performance, Samuel does not plan on competing again. He felt he did what he had hoped to do, which was deliver a message. “I just wanted to inspire singers, and writers… Maybe I might be a judge or something next time,” he said.
The Soca Monarch scored 282 points. Singer Diana Chapman came second with 275 for her song “Stage”. Nekeita DeFreitas secured 273 for “Vibez Again”, while Jumo ‘Rubber Waist’ Primo finished fourth with 266 points for his song “Party In Meh House”.
The Scene also spoke with winner of the Chutney Monarch Competition, Kevin Satrohan Singh of Zeelugt West Coast Demerara, whose patriotic piece “My Baby Guyana”, captured the judges’ hearts. “I feel ecstatic about such an opportunity…,” Kevin said. He stated that in the run up to the finals, he was confident he was in the top four.
His song which was played on several radio stations and was released on YouTube had already attracted a fan base and when they learned that it was being entered in the Chutney Monarch Competition, they were certain he would win.
This is the first time Kevin has written and performed a Chutney song as he usually only sings Bollywood or Classical Indian songs. However, he is no stranger to competitions; he was a finalist at the e-Networks competition in 2014.
The Chutney Monarch secured the top spot with 257 points. His runners up were Bunty Singh with 253 points for “Treat Yuh Woman Right”, Vanita Willie with 247 points for “Meh Dulaha” and Roger ‘Young Bill Rogers’ Hinds in fourth place with 244 points for “The Larkis Man”.
In the Calypso competition Faith Corrica was crowned monarch. Young Bill Rogers was second, Wilbur Levans third and Quacy ‘Ego’ Lacon fourth.
Osei ‘OKC’ Clarke won the Junior Calypso Monarchy with Ulex Henry in second place, and Akeem Alexander third. OKC also won the Junior Soca Monarchy. Last year’s Junior Soca Monarch, visually impaired singer Rellon Summer finished in second and Akeem Alexander was third.
In the Junior Solo for the Steel Band Panorama Competition, Andrew Charles won with “Flue Studies #22”, Chris Blake was second with “Moleque Moura” and Hadassah Lewi third with “Sonata #2 in A Minor”. The Senior Solo winner was Detroy Dey with “Carousel”, Michael Smith Jr second with “Touch and Go” and Jovanka Williams third with “Pandemic Vibes”.
In the Pan Duet, Don Johnson and Jovanka Williams were first with “Rain-O-Rama”, Adrian Benjamin and Andrew Charles with “Pan in A Minor”, and Denicia Sullivan and Donwin Stuart third with “Allegro in F”.
Kurjah Steel Ensemble won the Pan Jazz category with “Nora” and Parkside Orchestra was second with “Rain-O-Rama”. National School of Music with “Cheers to Life” and Fantastic 7 with “Jamming” tied for third place.
The Chutney and Soca Monarch competitions were aired on March 27, Steel Band Panorama on March 29, Junior Soca Monarch on March 31, Junior Calypso Monarch on April 1, and Calypso Monarch on April 3. All competitions can be viewed on the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Facebook page.
