The bar has been set high for the 2015 Carib Soca Monarch Final set for February 14. Fourteen artistes will meet defending champion Kwasi “Ace” Edmondson to vie for the crown. The 14 were selected after competing in the semi-finals at the New Amsterdam Stelling Road on Sunday morning.
Those who successfully competed in front of several thousand Berbicians are George “Chiney” Abrams; Jumo “Rubber Waist” Primo; Devon Lewis; Ernesta Nelson; Jonathan “Lil Red” King; Jory Hector; Kemmyanna Garnett; Levar Gittens; Mark “Iya Man” Amar; Melissa “Vanilla” Roberts; Onassis “Varity” Croker; Orlando “Bones Man” Johashen; Quacy “Avalanche” Coates and Timika “Lady T” Nicholson.
Despite the absence of crowd pleaser Adrian Dutchin, the 16 participants showcased the variety in soca music, but it was the last man on the stage Jumo ‘Jumo “Rubber Waist” Primo who put the icing on the cake and signalled that it was not going to be easy come February 14.
Primo, singing “Unruly” sent the crowd into an unruly mood after giving a little for the judges. He then focused on his fans and gave them a five-minute show. But the “Rubber Waist” was not the only crowd pleaser as Melissa “Vanilla” Roberts hit the stage with “Massive” and had most in the audience jumping to the rhythm. The lyrics were good and she was able to relate the crowd. She will be one to watch at the final. When Orlando “Bones Man” Johashen took the stage, he quickly spread the “Ebola” fever and had all dancing to the hit song.
Other good performances came from Timika “Lady T” Nicholson with her song “Feva”. Many Berbicians turned out to see her perform but some did not seem to get the “Feva” and remained motionless as she performed. Also disappointing was Ashanti Hostad with her song “Wickidee Wine”. At the end of the performance, the crowd was still waiting to see the wine. Despite the lyrics being great, her performance did not find favour with the judges.
Levar Gittens’ “Monster Attack” went down well with the Berbicians and the judges while Jonathan “Lil Red” King singing “Mash Up De Place” and his troupe of dancers all dressed in their Mash costumes really did ‘Mash up De Place’. Kemmyanna Garnett also gave a performance which made her worthy of a place in the final when she performed “Wave For My Country”. The Berbician dressed in silver sequins and spandex commanded a large section of the crowd, most of whom had something waving throughout her performance.
Quacy “Avalanche” Coates sang “She Ready” but as he performed the song which many may conclude has beautiful lyrics, the crowd did not seem not ready. In contrast, seasoned campaigner George “Chiney” Abrams has the crowd asking for more of his ‘”Mirrors”.