THE CROWN: A CARIBBEAN DYNASTY

It feels like quite a shocking thing to admit sometimes, but I’m not much of a sports fan.  Sure, if there’s a big competition such as the 6 Nations which is on now, then I will sometimes get swept up by the excitement, but I can’t tell you which team is at the top of what table or who their star players are.  I can however, tell you who the current reigning International Soca Monarchs are (Iwer George and College Boy Jesse as it happens) and for me, there is no match that I would rather watch than the finals of that very same contest, which means a pretty late night for me and a select group of close friends tonight as “The Monarch” - the competition’s COVID friendly online revamp, kicks off around midnight GMT.  

So what is it and why do I love it so much?  I feel as if, to answer that question, I need to take you back to the very beginning, somewhere around the turn of the 20th Century in Trinidad & Tobago, when Calypso laid the foundations for where we are today.  Soca was born in the 70s as a fusion of Calypso with “Chutney” music from the island’s East Indian diaspora (along with elements of Funk and Soul), and Calypso in particular has long had a competitive element to it in the picong style of Extempo, otherwise known as Calypso War. Calypsonians would engage in this playful lyrical banter,  there would be battles in the street, where Lord Executor (also the first Calypsonian credited as singing in English) was the reigning champ from the start of the century before someone came up with the idea of an organised competition around 1914 (although a song competition based around a local topic first happened in 1911) and eventually the Calypso King competition was launched in 1939, where the onus was less on personal attacks and more on the wit, humour, topical relevance, rhythm and melody of the songs.  

Early Calypso Kings carried grand monikers such as Growling Tiger (who won the very first title with his song ‘Trade Union’), Roaring Lion, Atilla The Hun, Lord Melody, Lord Pretender, Lord Kitchener, Mighty Duke, Mighty Destroyer and The Mighty Sparrow, who won the most titles until Chalkdust came along in the late 70s.  Then in 1978 Calypso Rose won the competition, forcing them to change the title to Calypso Monarch

Now there are Calypso Monarch contests all over the world, here in the UK we crowned our first Calypso King (Mighty Terror who had come over from Trinidad on the Windrush) in 1957 and now the London Calypso Tent holds an annual contest on the Thursday before Notting Hill Carnival.  There were also intermittent Calypso contests held as part of Leeds West Indian Carnival between 1967 and 2015, before they updated to the Soca Monarch contest to reflect the changing tastes (there is a Soca Monarch contest as part of Notting Hill as well).

Back in Trinidad & Tobago, the Soca Monarch contest was first launched as a separate event in 1993 with Superblue claiming the first title with ‘Bacchanal Time’ and dominating the contest up until 2000.  The fast paced and hyper energetic Jump & Wave style of Soca which he pioneered also proved to be the most popular sound even on the years he didn’t win, although in 2005 the competition split into two categories, one for the slower and more soulful Groovy Soca, which was essentially the original sound dating back to the 70s (won that year by Michelle Sylvester), and the faster more aggressive style being put into its own category, now branded as Power Soca (won by Bunji Garlin who already had two wins under his belt by then and took the first Power title with ‘Blaze The Fire’)  .  Both titles were won by Shurwayne Winchester the next year, a feat which would be followed by Fay-Ann Lyons in 2009.  She also took one of the Carnival’s other major titles, the ‘Road March’ which I will tell you more about in tomorrow’s post (incidentally, Fay-Ann is the daughter of Superblue and the partner of Bunji Garlin but despite their legendary standing, she’s never been one to let either one of them overshadow her own impressive career).

Fay-Ann would return to International Soca Monarch in a very different capacity in 2019, as the competition’s chairman to take on dwindling ticket sales and a growing apathy.  She reinstated the Groovy and Power categories which had been fused back together for three years prior to that (with Voice winning each of them) and presided over an epic contest, the first one to fully pull me on board as an avid follower after I managed to go over and see it in person.  

The energy in the arena was immense, even hidden away in the VIP section where a steady stream of free puncheon rum helped to fuel the excitement. Each artist performed one track (which remains the same throughout the previous rounds), using a live band and in many cases  an extra entourage of dancers, flag wavers and general hype merchants. The crowd can be fairly brutal in their judgements and won’t move a muscle unless you excite them enough, so often there are big flames, costumes and various other props and pyrotechnics. Mr Killa won the Power category that year and he rolled on stage dressed like a medieval emperor going to war, with a full battalion behind him.   Given that his track ‘Run Wid It’ had already been causing chaos across the Caribbean, the other contestants didn’t stand a chance really but that didn’t stop most of them putting on impressive performances of their own.  

Mr Killa is from the island of Grenada and the first non Trinbagonian to win the Power category (Biggie Irie from Barbados won the Groovy title in 2007), but Grenada also have their very own highly competitive and immensely enjoyable Soca Monarch contest, as do Barbados, St Lucia, Guyana, Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, St Thomas, St Croix, St Kitts & Nevis, Aruba and USA. Most can be watched live on the internet and we try to cover most of them on the Super Soca Show but the most recognised and respected is definitely in Trinidad & Tobago so I would urge anyone who might be the least bit interested to stay up late tonight (it is Friday after all) and find a live stream for The Monarch. I shall be posting a link on my Facebook later I’m sure. If you want to pick a favourite contender and treat it like a proper sporting session, then my money is probably on Farmer Nappy, a seasoned performer who has the biggest tune on the island currently, although there are many other top quality entrants including: Olatunji who some of you might recognize from our own equivalent, X Factor; Blaxx who has just recovered from a life saving operation but isn’t about to let that stop him; Aaron Duncan, just 17 years old but already making major waves in the industry; and Melly Rose, the only woman in the running but also one of my favourite artists right now. 

As much as Carnival is about celebrating unity and togetherness, friendly competition is at the very heart, from the Panorama steel drum contest to the costumed ‘bands’ in the parade. For me, growing up as huge Reggae and Hip-hop fanatic, it’s a continuation of the enjoyment I used to feel from sound clashes, Jamaica’s annual Sting competition or rap battles but any sports fan would be able to admire the energy, the dedication and the sheer skill that each artist brings to their performance, oh and let’s not forget that the music is always incredible too.  There might not be a carnival this year, but I’m already excited for this weekend!  See you back here on the blog tomorrow where I will discuss some of this year’s ‘Virtual Road March’ contenders, you can also tune into the Super Soca Show tomorrow (Saturday) lunchtime from 12 til 2pm on Ujima 98FM where we will reveal the winner of tonight’s competition for anyone who misses it. 

Edit: I called it correctly: Farmer Nappy took the title with a solid performance; Olatunji came second but to my mind put on the best show; Melly Rose really shone and gave a powerful entry; whilst Blaxx had the most uplifting and heart warming vibe of the night all round. The other stand out for me was Trinidad Ghost, but although I wouldn’t say anyone went above and beyond this year, at the same time nobody was really disappointing either. It was a shame that they couldn’t have anyone from the other islands this year, I shall be checking back for the other Soca Monarch contests as they happen through the year, feel free to follow us on the Super Soca Show Twitter for updates on that, but also we go out live every Saturday between Midday and 2pm (GMT) on Ujima 98FM.