The National Cultural Centre (NCC) Friday evening came alive as the 19 finalists of the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) Bollywood and English segments of the jingle and song competition took to the stage leaving their mark as the competition winds down.
The English segment saw a sold-out NCC as the contestants’ fans walked with their placards, posters and other materials that evidently showed their support. After their performances which thrilled the thousands present, undoubtedly Natasha Yhap for her vocal ability and creativity; Ryan Hoppie for vocal ability, crowd appeal, and stage performance; Lerone Souvenir for vocal ability and crowd appeal; and Dorian Obbermuller for vocal ability and crowd appeal were the top contenders.Michael Small also did a fantastic job and will be remembered for relevance and crowd appeal. He has a powerful voice, but his song selection was not up to par.
The English segment of the competition commenced with T’Shanna Cort, who performed the song “A Moment Like This”. She started off pretty well, but suffered a vocal disorder coming down to the end of the song. She has definitely blossomed into a wonderful performer.
Souvenir, who performed Bob Marley’s “Could You Be Loved”, definitely created the vibes and had the crowd rocking. His performance was the best in the competition thus far.
Small, the little Berbician with a big voice, made his appearance on stage using the aisles of the NCC, performing the popular reggae tune with the lyrics “How Many More Jah”.
Next was Edward Perez, who belted out Beres Hammond’s “Feel Good”; he had all the groovy moves but his vocals let him down, nevertheless he was encouraged to continue doing what he loves to do.
With one of the most powerful voices, Yhap took the stage by storm, pushing her rivals into a corner. She performed “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor, and made it her own. Darren Benjamin was responsible for his own downfall. He sang the tune “Be Your Driver”. His presentation included calling a young woman on stage as he serenaded her which did not go down well with the judges. Lemuel Chestor took to the stage after Benjamin and sang the song with the lyrics, “When I see your face”.
The crowd went crazy as Ryan Hoppie made his way on stage and started his performance in a dramatic way after which he was missing for a few seconds and then returned in an all white suit. He sang Chris Brown’s version of “Crawl” and did an excellent job while performing. After his performance, the hostess had to wait a while until the crowd was settled before asking for the judges’ comments.
He made way for former calypso singer Diana Chapman who did “Roll On The River (Proud Mary)” by Tina Turner. Decked in a golden outfit, it was a total imitation of Turner’s performance when she sang the song decades ago.
Closing off the night was the popular Dorian Obbermuller. Dressed in a black costume, he performed “Titanium” by Cia. His vocals were on par, making him one of the top contenders for the $1 million and brand new motor car up for grabs.
The contestants will have to wait for a while to find out their fate, since immediately after the airing of the finals on national television, the voting, which will last for two weeks, started. The contestant will each have a number so that fans can vote for them.