Image © TUCO
Tonight, the Grandstand at the Queen's Park Savannah, Port of Spain, came alive for the Calypso Monarch Competition 2024. Party, social, and political topics shone brightly as the deserving finalists attempted to sway the judges in their favor. Would there be a new or repeat monarch adding to the list of Calypso Kings now monarchs that started back in 1939? It would take much for the current crop of artists to accomplish what Chalkdust (9 wins), Sparrow (8 wins), or Stalin's 5 wins have attained, but the show has to go on, and tonight was a good night for Calypso!This year, the competition was held on February 11, 2024, at the Queen's Park Savannah, the Calypso Mecca, and the home of the Dimanche Gras. Twelve finalists competed for the coveted crown, facing the reigning monarch, Ta'zyah O'Connor, and the Tobago monarch, Dillon Thomas. Among the finalists were some familiar names, such as Brian London, Helon Francis, Karene Asche, Kurt Allen, Chuck Gordon, and Winston "Gypsy" Peters. Also adding some spice to the finals were newcomers Aaron Duncan, Stacey Sobers, and Mr. D.N.A. himself, Mical "Mical Teja" Williams.
However, the most surprising and exciting finalist was none other than Machel Montano, the Soca superstar who has dominated the carnival scene for decades. Montano, who is known for his high-energy, fast-paced, and often unpredictable on-stage performances, decided to return to his musical roots and enter the calypso arena. Motivated by his current studies at the University of the West Indies, he penned a Calypso gem that lit a fire in his Calypso roots, leading to the Calypso finals. He was awesome on stage tonight! Montano delivered a stunning performance at the finals, singing "Soul of Calypso" that had the audience going wild and YouTube chat boxes breaking the speed limit for one's ability to read the posts.
At the end of the night, the results were announced, and Montano was crowned the new Calypso Monarch, making history as the first artist to win both the Soca Monarch and the Calypso Monarch titles. Most online viewers who watched the show expected Machel to win and he did!
Montano's win was widely celebrated and praised by fans, media, and fellow artists, who hailed him as a versatile and talented musician and a true ambassador of Caribbean culture. Montano, who has been in the music industry for over 40 years, said he was humbled and honored by the recognition and vowed to continue to promote and preserve the legacy of Calypso and Soca music.
The results were as follows:
Name of Singer
|
Sobriquet
|
Name of Song
|
Let us promote the culture of the Caribbean diaspora:
Our mission is to advance music producers, performers, and Caribbean culture. Take up the role of the cultural vulture and disseminate this article among your acquaintances and on all social media channels. We are on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and SoundCloud. All our posts are available on FeedSpot/RSS Feed, Innoreader/RSS Feed, Threads, Bluesky, and via Email Subscription. Thank you in advance.
Production Notes/Music Credits:
Event: National Calypso Monarch Finals 2024
Origin: Port of Spain, Trinidad
Genre: Calypso
Please be advised that the music is presented here for your listening pleasure and for promotional purposes only ("Fair Use" Musical Content Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976). No copyright infringement is intended! We don't own the rights to this music; it is presented here for promotional use only. We encourage you to promote the artists and their music; please don't download and share them and rob the artists of needed income! I, nor this blog, make any claims of ownership over any of the videos, songs, photos, or graphics used for this post because they all belong to their respective owners.
♫Please click the music player button below to listen now (a small triangle in the Music player/TV Frame).