CHUTNEY-SOCA TAKES A TURN

AFTER years of exalting fast and loose behaviour, the annual Chutney-Soca Monarch competition has taken a progressive turn.

At least, with respect to the show’s winners.

The pre-Carnival event named a song on national unity, “We are One,” by veteran Daddy Chinee, as the overall winner of a competition in which 80 contenders entered the preliminaries.

Newcomer Katelin Sultan was selected as Chutney-Soca Queen and placed fifth place in the overall competition with “Tell Dem Ah Ready,” an energetic number with generous samplings of previous offerings.

The rest of the show was essentially babble on parties, abandoned lifestyle, and cheap attempts at double entendre with trite lyrics and stale melodies.

Back-to-back winner GI had to settle for third place, with “10 Wheeler,” a dance-laden number that was probably inspired by Kenneth Salick’s 2022 runaway hit, “She Want a 4X4 Van.”

This year, Salick returned to chutney-soca’s default mode, rendering “By De Bar.”

Kenneth Salick tossed a rare serving of politics, in heralding politician Dr. Roodal Moonilal.

While the theme of Daddy Chinee’s number was as hackneyed as the melody, it was still refreshing in an art form that has hardly risen above nursery rhyme presentations of carnal subjects and tedious music.

Katelin, who turned nine years old on the competition’s weekend, was the revelation of the chutney-soca season, for her confidence, rendition, and overall presentation.

She held her own during pre-show media interviews.

The emerging artiste offers hope that chutney-soca would take turn a positive corner even while keeping to its mandate of happy Caribbean music.

As for Chinee, he has proven that genre could successfully steer away from rum and immorality.

The results indicate that chutney-soca is dancing to a new beat, even if a bit reluctantly.