Registration for Junior Monarch ends today

For the first time ever, the National Cultural Foundation will crown a junior soca and bashment soca monarch along with the traditional calypso monarch. The three-tier show, which was previously categorised by age, will now be done according to genre: calypso, soca and bashment soca. Three separate competitions with three different genre monarchs.

The preliminaries will be conducted by video submission after which those selected will progress into a rehearsal and mentorship phase, which will conclude with a straight Final on Saturday, July 16th at the Garfield Sobers Complex.

Registration for the newly-formatted Junior Monarch Competition will close tomorrow, Thursday, June 9, 2022 at 4 p.m. Entrants in these three competitions should be ages 7 to 18 years old. For more information on Junior Monarch, visit www.ncf.bb or email kevin-moore@ncf.bb

The NCF is excited again this year about hosting the mentorships workshops which have proven to be informative and successful in the past. The Junior Monarch Competition is a marque event of the NCF’s Crop Over Calendar as it fosters and nurtures the talent of young and upcoming singers who gravitate towards the artform.

In 2019, the NCF staged three fiercely-battled competitions which saw a monarch being named in three age categories in the calypso contest. Quon [Dequon Alleyne], who won the 13 to 18 category in 2018, emerged victorious in 15 to 18 age group for his performance of Smart. The Mighty Bit Bit [Kenaz Walker] won in the 6 to 10 category singing De Style of Old Calypso, while Shontae [Shontae Alleyne-Clarkee] took top honours among the 11-14 performers with Stop De Violence.

Music Officer Kevin Moore encouraged juniors to take the bold step and showcase their talents in front of their family and peers.

“There are many exciting prizes on offer not just for the winner but for those who place and win in designated categories as well. We hope that teachers and parents who spot young talented singers would urge them to be a part of the national festival and compete in the Junior Monarch.”

The music officer explained that the NCF hopes the new format would see a more genre-diversed Finals with varying talents on stage.

“The Junior Monarch Competition has taken on some fascinating changes, as we at the National Cultural Foundation continue to develop our Barbadian artforms. These changes are geared towards widening the net and unearthing new talents with bright futures in calypso, soca and bashment soca.”

Moore added: “As such the focus of the categories of the competition is no longer age-based, but genre-based. For the first time in the competition’s history, there will be a calypso monarch, soca monarch and bashment soca monarch. The NCF is excited to stage such a competition first for the next generation of artistes.” (PR)