|
|
Chutney-Soca Monarch Semi Finals 2008
 Rajin 'Clockman' Dhanraj and a dancer
TriniSoca.com Reporters
Event Date: January 05, 2008
Posted: January 09, 2008
The 2008 NLCB Chutney Soca Monarch kicked-off in fine style last Saturday 5th January, with the semi-final round being held at Rienzi Complex in Couva. Twenty-nine artistes competed against reigning monarch Rooplal Girdharrie for a place in the finals where almost one million dollars in prices will be up for grabs. Whereas in previous years contestants were required to sing two songs, this year the format was changed to one song only.
The semi-finalists on the night, in order of their appearance were, Joey Ramoutar, Keron Tyron William, Nizam Mohammed, Rajin Dhanraj, Ravi Babooram, Robin Jagdip, Shakeeza Hazell, Tricia Hamilton, Asha Kamachee, Angela Ramoutar, Boya Shafiat Mohammed, Davindra Ramdath, Lal Bharat, Lynette Steele, Devika Ram, Rick Ramoutar, Neeshad Sultan, Ramrajie Prabhoo, Surendra Ramoutar, Kenneth Supersad, Artie Butkoon, Adesh Samaroo, Carlene Wells, Heeralal Rampartap, Soca Elvis (Michael Salloum), Rooplal Girdharie, Neeshan Prabhoo, Rikki Jai, Punisher and Edward Ramdass.
 Shiv Skakti dancers
The show kicked off around 9:30 p.m. with a typically energetic and dramatic Shiv Skakti Dance Company who thrilled a crowd that was obviously smaller than previous years. Young Joey Ramoutar was the first contestant on stage as he rendered a Chutney Soca with an inspirational theme about determining his own destiny.
Keron "Wackerman" Williams warmed up the crowd, dressed in boots and overalls and carrying a big brushcutter, as he sang his song about how well he can work cutting down bush. Continuing the double entendre style, newcomer Rajin 'Clockman' Dhanraj got a hearty crowd response with his song about how much his wife likes his big clock. Wearing a 'Flavor Flav' inspired big red clock around his neck, and with the help of a dancer, he further related how his neighbour's wife happened to see the clock and fell in love with it too.
 | | Shakeeza Hazell
| |
Fourteen year old Shakeeza Hazell showed her talent with an exciting rendition of her song "Carnival Time" which impressed the judges enough to earn her a semi-final spot. Also impressing the judges and receiving a hearty crowd response was visually-impaired singer Asha Kamachee who rendered her song "Arranged Marriage" which expressed her desire and admiration for arranged marriages.
Another crowd pleaser was Tobagonian singer Devika Ram who charmed the audience with her song "Na Tuta", which was in a vein of a traditional Hindi Chutney song. While many of the offerings spoke of the Dulahin given that there were more male contestants, Artie Butkoon flipped the script as she gave a female perspective as she sung about her Dulaha in her song "Mehendi".
Many of the more experienced singers of the Chutney Soca industry performed in the second half of the show and they did not fail to impress the audience. Adesh Samaroo got a rousing reception from the audience as he came on stage to perform "Tanda Pany". Carlene Wells was also well-received by the audience. However she failed to impress the judges with her song about a friend who betrayed her by taking her husband.
 Heeralal Rampartap and a dancer on stage
Heeralal Rampartap, known as the 'Hero from Rio', gave a lively performance in which he urged patrons to forget about 'this side' and 'that side' and dance away, perhaps a line in reference to his recent experience as a candidate in the 2007 General Elections. As he performed on stage, a patron shouted "Ramesh (Lawrence Maharaj) looking for you", in reference to the winner of the Tabaquite seat he contested.
Soca Elvis (Michael Salloum) came to the stage and gave a spirited performance of his song 'Monika' as the antics of the accompanying dancers from the Durga Shakti Dance Company and the acrobatic male dance group Hellbreakers warmed up the crowd.
 Rooplal Girdharrie and dancers on stage
The 2007 Chutney Soca Monarch, Rooplal Girdharrie, got an ecstatic reception from the crowd as he sought to claim a place in the finals to defend his crown. He, like Rikki Jai, chose to do a more traditional Hindi-styled song, which earned them both a place in the finals. The last performer of the night was Edward Ramdass who sung "She Burn It", a song about a child whose dark skin and curly hair led the straight-haired father to angrily conclude that his straight-haired wife burned the baby.
After the last contestant, the crowd was entertained by the popular band JMC 3 Veni. St. John United Tassa Group, the winner of the 2007 Tassa Taal, also made a guest appearance and thrilled the crowd with a scintillating display of Tassa drumming. The Chutney Soca Monarch Finals is scheduled to take place on January 19th at Skinner Park, San Fernando. This years show will also include a Groovy Chutney category.
 Soca Elvis (Michael Salloum) and dancers on stage
Finalists for the 2008 Chutney Soca Monarch:
Soca Elvis (Michael Salloum)
Rikki Jai
Rooplal Girdharrie
Neeshan Prabhoo
Heeralal Rampartap
Neeshad Sultan
Arti Butkoon
Kenneth Supersad
Edward Ramdass
Adesh Samaroo
Asha Kamachee
Rajin Dhanraj
Rick Ramoutar
Surendra Ramoutar
Shakeeza Hazell
Groovy Chutney participants:
Adesh Samaroo
Angela Ramoutar
Arnold Jordan
Devika Ram
Heeralal Rampartap
Lalchan Babwah
Neeshad Sultan
Rick Ramoutar
Rikki Jai
Rooplal Girdharrie
Chutney Soca Monarch Semi-Finals 2008 in pictures:
www.trinisoca.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=82959
|
|
