Machel takes Soca Monarch crown

After delivering what many fans consider to be his best performance of the season Machel Montano claimed the two million dollar grand prize in the Power Soca category at the 2011 International Soca Monarch Competition at the Hasley Crawford Stadium last night.

A capacity crowd turned out to see the crème de la crème of soca artistes perform but in the end, Montano’s popular song “Advantage”, was chosen by the judges and the crowd for the Power Soca title.

Full Article : guardian.co.tt

Machel, Kes triumph in Soca Monarch

Machel Montano Celebrates Victory with Kernel Roberts

Kes Performs at Girl Power Fete

Machel Montano was crowned 2011 Power Soca Monarch champion at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, in Port of Spain, this morning. Montano topped the field with his Road March contender “Advantage”, the Soca star winning two million dollars. Iwer George, Bunji Garlin and Fay Ann Lyons-Alvarez were second, third and fourth, respectively. The Groovy Soca Monarch title and $500,000 first prize went to Kes Dieffenthaller, who sang “Wotless”. Benjai was second, Destra third and Blaxx fourth.

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Busy Carnival for PM

By Sean Douglas
Saturday, March 5 2011

After attending last night’s International Soca Monarch finals, Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bissessar will join spectators for the Junior Parade of the Bands on the streets of Port-of-Spain and at the Queen’s Park Savannah today.

She will also return to the savannah later tonight for the Panorama finals, of which she is a patron.

She was also the patron of the Soca Monarch competition which took place at Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port-of-Spain. Ahead of the announcement of the winner, Persad-Bissessar told reporters yesterday she had a favourite artiste but would not say who…

Full Article : newsday.co.tt

March 06, 2011

MACHEL’S TRIUMPHANT $2M RETURN… ADVANTAGE!
Soca superstar Machel Montano made a triumphant return to the Soca Monarch arena on Fantastic Friday, advantaging his other competitors on his way to his first bmobile Power Soca Monarch title and the $2 million first prize at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.

Machel Is Monarch
Kees takes Groovy title
Hundreds of patrons booed upon the announcement that Machel Montano had won the 2011 International Power Soca Monarch competition, making off with the $2 million first prize.

Machel, Kees take the big prize

‘Wotless’ Kees takes $500,000 Groovy Soca crown

Sizzling Soca competition

‘The show was successful’
There were several calls for people to go to the stands since people were being pickpocketed and trampled upon. The house announcer said the show would not go on unless they moved to safer points…

Shurwayne takes Groovy Monarch

Pay but no view for int’l viewers of Soca Monarch
Foreign Internet users tuning in to the International Soca Monarch finals at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain on Friday night received a rude awakening after realising they were unable to view the much-anticipated competition.

The killing of Carnival?
Our Steelbands, Calypso, Soca and Chutney, and the whole magnificent spectacle of Mas, have all been relegated, in terms of development, support and facilities, to a status well below Mr Manning’s personal choices of 1940’s American “Big Bands” and European Symphony Orchestras.

Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez

By Seeta Persad
Monday, March 23 2009
newsday.co.tt

Five soca artistes, including Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez, her husband Ian ‘Bunji Garlin’ Alvarez, Lalchan Babwah (Hunter), Shurwayne Winchester and Nadia Batson are now discussing legal action against the Caribbean Prestige Foundation (CPF) for demanding five percent of their winnings at the 2009 International Soca Monarch competitions.

Fay-Ann, who won the Power Soca Monarch, Groovy Soca Monarch and People’s Choice prizes on Carnival Friday, last month, was presented at last Friday’s prize distribution ceremony, Cascadia Hotel, St Ann’s, with a letter stating she could not receive her money because she did not sign a contract agreeing to pay the five percent.

Her earnings this year are: Power Soca, $1,000,000 and a car; Groovy Soca, $150,000; People’s Choice, $50,000. Fay-Ann, Bunji Garlin, and Batson told Sunday Newsday yesterday they would not be signing any contract.

Fay-Ann’s manager Ian Pantin yesterday insisted soca artistes were not told about the contract when CPF began the preliminary round of the competition.

‘I believe that the papers should be signed way before the artistes mount the stage. I believe CPF should not allow the artistes to perform without signing the agreement. This way there can be no problem in the final analysis,’ he said.

Pantin said it was ‘ridiculous’ that winners were being asked to give back five percent of their prizes, especially since CPF boasted of profitable gate receipts every year.

Bunji Garlin again said he was baffled that CPF has been running the soca competition for 17 years and began asking artistes for a cut of their winnings for the past three years. ‘The prize moneys come directly from the Ministry of Culture, therefore it should not be subjected to any kinds of cuts,’ Bunji Garlin said.

Artistes, he said, spend more than $100,000 in preparation for the competition and felt CPF should have sought their views before the start of the competition.

‘It is unfair to the artiste who continues to produce good music through the years to be faced with this kind of situation,’ he said. He noted he received five percent less than his earnings in 2008 and he did nothing about it then, but he was not prepared to do so this year.

CPF executive president Gregory Fernandez again expressed surprise at the attitude of the soca artistes.

‘We have lobbied for the contestants to get a bigger prize package this year and we were hoping that they will agree with the contracts since it will draw a perfect balance for the smooth running of the show,’ Fernandez said. He said this year’s prize money amounted to $3.1 million and the CPF received $2 million from the ministry, and added that all artistes were invited to a meeting last August to voice their concerns. ‘The only concern was on the input of the foreign acts participating in the competition,’ he said. Fernandez pointed out artistes paid the five percent last year and he did not anticipate any objection this year, and pointed out that Iwer George paid his and got his cheque. George had told Sunday Newsday yesterday artistes should be grateful for the opportunities they got through CPF.

Minister in the Ministry of Culture, Junia Regrello, yesterday said his ministry writes the cheques according to the list given by CPF. He also said it is the right of the performer to seek legal advice on the prize arrangement.

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,97151.html