Last night the Saint Lucia Soca Monarch competition took place at the Beausejour Cricket Grounds. It was a difficult task following the show that was broadcast live via Choice TV because the video feed crashed continuously during the Groovy segment. However, the second segment (Party/Power Soca) category streamed properly. It was a night when two new winners were expected to be crowned Groovy and Party Monarchs. However, as the night progressed those in attendance looked towards one man as their Lucian Soca saviour after the previous year's monarch refused to participate this year.
The Groovy Soca monarch show launched the competition but it was not easy to follow the show because of the 'sticking video feed'. The crowd looked sparse (for this segment of the competition) but the people who attended looked like they enjoyed every bit of the proceedings. The intermission came and the video was crisp and did not stick... go figure!
Most of the people who were interviewed as well as people in the chat box thought that Ricky T and Arthur (some also selected Mongstar) did the best during the Groovy Monarch Competition. I thought that this would have been Arthur's year to be crowned Groovy Monarch! However, the one man show upstaged any celebration the fans of Arthur had planned. Ricky T emerged as winner of the Groovy Soca Category!
In the end the results were as follows for the Groovy Category:
- Ricky T - 40 Days and 40 Nights (411 points)
- Arthur - Jumping Alone (389 points)
- Sir Lancelot - The Happy Song (385 points)
Next up was the Party Monarch Competition (Power Monarch) with nine contestants. The show started and progressed with a decent stream and audio feed. However, the performances did not appear to create the impact that a Soca Monarch competition usually creates. Nothing came close to a Machel Montano or skinny Fabulous mash up the place performance.
The stage performances were not great and the props were sparse and did nothing to enhance the artists stage presence. Someone needs to advise these artists regarding their stage presentations. Their dress code (singers and dancers) was poor... not professional looking at all! I am sure that money is an issue.
The show had a surprise stage sighting when Sir Lancelot brought on Saint Vincent's Power Soca/Road March champion Skinny Fabulous. As expected the crowd went crazy as he brought an end to Sir Lancelot's stage presentation.
Ricky T is the only performer who had a little of everything in place last night (but still needs improvement in this area). He had the crowd participating and he kept pace with the music. His vocals were good and the supporting cast danced like they were there to win; they added some spice to the performance. Ricky T looked the part; he looked confident and behaved like he knew he was the winner! He was full of confidence and was the crowd favorite.
You know the saying, rain only stops cricket! however, when the rain began to fall I am sure it put a damper on the festivities. The final artist/contestant had to contend with the rain. However, it was Patakpatatak by Yardie without any ill effects from the falling rain.
Last night Choice Tv brought the video feed with a chat box... that chat box disrespected the people and culture of Saint Lucia! The postings were disgusting and very disrespectful. The system administrator should have blocked the mischievous posters or simply shut down that chat box.
Here are the results for the Party (Power) Soca Monarch Category:
- Ricky T - Mass Attack (364 points)
- DJ HP - Ah Def (328 points)
- Sir Lancelot - Tear It Up (318 points)