Throughout the length and breadth of the Caribbean, Soca Monarch Finals are the most anticipated events of Carnivals.
And for Spice Mas 2004, Grenada’s Carnival, the Cable & Wireless National Soca Monarch Competition was no exception. {{more}}
By 9 p.m. Friday, August 6, the National Stadium was thronged by thousands of Grenadians and foreigners set to have a fun-filled night. The young, who came out in numbers, gyrated with a frenzy long before the show started, so too did the middle aged and the old who showed that they can still groove and were not ready to hang up their dance shoes. At the time they were about to be entertained by the biggest Soca Stage in the Caribbean.
Spice Mas 2004 Soca Monarch Finals was action from the very start. “Why Me‚ (Horn Song) one of the favourite Soca tunes in Grenada for the year, was about to be performed live. Elimus “Inspector” Gilbert, had hardly taken to the stage when fans started shouting Moooo! Mooooo! It was the perfect song to get the crowd warm. The song’s storyline was about a man who had divorced his wife to be with his lover and now his lover was cheating on him. As he questioned “Why me?” he walked the street and mooed like a cow.
With much creativity, Inspector’s introduction commenced with the singing of the nursery rhyme, Old Mc Donald had a farm ye yah ye yah yuhhh and on that farm he had a cow ye ya ye ya yuhhhh.Moooooooo! This song heightened the tempo at the National Stadium and sent fans wild with excitement.
Inspector’s great performance signaled that fans were about to witness a stiff competition since the other artistes would have had to raise their performance to another level if they were to beat Inspector.
Inspector’s presentation was followed by other great performances from Sheldon Douglas who sang “Today”, Jerry “Papa Jerry” Baptiste “Patriot”, Wayne “General Pepe” Aird “Never Say Never”, Steve Theodore “D Carnival Start”, Heslyn “Hess” Flanders “Bam Bam In De Road,” Findley “Scholar” Jeffrey “Brief Case‚”, Hayden “Terror P” Francis “Saddam,” Kenrick “Japs” Austin “The Prayer‚” Evlyn “Zingo” Alexander “Magic‚” David “Boogie B” Peters “Burn Dem Out‚” Hollis “Baby Killa” Map “Thunder Rags‚” George “Lazer” Noel “Road To Athens‚” Will “Tallpree” Cambridge, Linford “Tiger T” Edgar “More Chinee‚” and Edson “Ajamu” Mitchell.
It’s agreed in some circles that what made the Soca Monarch competition memorable was the spectacular and scintillating performance put on by Baby Killa which earned him the judges’ nod to claim the title at age 19, making him Grenada’s youngest Soca Monarch.
Although injuring his neck, two days before the competition, in an accident, the artiste came straight from the hospital and with much emotion and adrenalin flowing from the crowd sang his heart out with three goals. One, to entertain his fans, two, to silence his critics and three, to become the youngest Soca Artiste ever to claim the title in Grenada. He fulfilled all three.
Taking to the stage in position number 12 from a slate of 16 artistes, Baby Killa was introduced to the large crowd as a once loved entertainer that had been cast under a spell for 3000 years. The crowd was told that they can break the jinx by shouting Baby Killa‚ three times. This fictitious scene appeared so real that when Baby Killa uttered the first melodious lines from his lips ˆit was as if he had been set free.
Baby Killa was a blast in his shimmering white butterfly costume. The young artiste who had made a name for himself as a dancer had the large audience submitting to all the commands of Thunder Rags‚ in true Soca fashion. This artiste will, for a long time, be a force to reckon with in the Soca arena. He was presented EC$27, 500 for his feat.
The versatile Ajamu who would go on to win the Calypso Monarch two nights later romped home in second position. He was presented with a cheque for EC$22, 000.
And as expected, Inspector placed high in the order by claiming the third position while General Pepe, draped in the Grenadian flag, settled in fourth spot with Never Say Never‚. He was awarded EC$10,000.
Tallpree, the 2003 Soca Monarch, defended his title stoically and could have narrowly won this year’s competition had he not failed to conclude his song. Choosing to attack Inspector, who he considered to be his main rival, in his final verse Tallpree was lost for words and eventually went mute to the disappointment of his fans. He walked off the stage abruptly, to the amusement of his critics.
Overall, the only element lacking in Grenada’s Soca Monarch is the presence of female artistes. It is said the competition has been elevated to a higher plane this year. Anyone missing Grenada’s Soca Monarch did miss a show of a lifetime.
If you didn’t get the chance to attend this year’s show give yourself the opportunity next year.