Skinny’s beast mauls ‘em

The thousands of dollars estimated to have been spent on his presentation and performance, which captivated the capacity crowd at the Victoria Park, definitely contributed to Gamal ‘Skinny Fabulous’ Doyle earning a second round knock out of the 19 other competitors who challenged him for his soca monarch title last Saturday.{{more}}

Accompanied by a two headed monster, ghouls, a werewolf, thousands of glow sticks and glow stick dancers among the cast, Skinny Fabulous unleashed the beast in the largest crowd ever at a soca monarch finals, with his rendition of “The Beast Let Go”.

For his energetic performance, Skinny walked away with a cool EC$22,000 for placing first. The exertion on stage, however, took its toll on the artiste, as he reportedly suffered a severe asthma attack after leaving the stage and was late in returning to the stage for his crowning.

Not disappointing the fans who danced and cheered all night long through rain, fireworks and confetti, Doyle returned to the stage shirtless, giving the crowd another verse of his hit before heading backstage for medical attention.

For the second straight year, Skinny Fabulous gained the judges’ nod over Delroy ‘Fireman’ Hooper, a former multiple crowned monarch.

Hooper, performing ‘Ragz Invasion’ held off Shertz ‘Problem Child’ James, who took the third position with his song “Mad House”.

“Rum Junkie” Montgomery ‘Demus’ Laborde secured the 4th position on a night where the top four places were identical to 2008.

Creditable performance were also put in by artistes like the veteran Man Stone, as well as Top Notch Swift, Sharlene Samuel, Icon, DJ 20 and Full Clip among others.

The event went ahead almost flawlessly, much to the delight of the record breaking crowd, with the exception of one artiste’s set being cut short (Recka singing ‘Gimme Room’), when the stage was invaded by patrons.

Guest appearances were made by Prima Donna Bascombe, The Xpress Band, Lively and members of the LIME Vincy Soca Dans.(JJ)