Preliminary judging to start this weekend in juniors’ competition

The National Cultural Foundation (NCF) is moving full steam ahead with its plans to host a three-format Junior Monarch competition, despite concerns about one of the formats focusing on “bashment”.

NCF Chief Executive Officer Carol Roberts-Reifer revealed that preliminary judging would start on Saturday following the closure of registration earlier this week.

“For the Junior Monarch, if you read the rules, you could enter in three categories. No one was forcing you to enter in either category,” said Roberts.

“You wanted to hear what the children had to say in their idiom, so the categories would have been Calypso, Soca and Bashment Soca and you would choose the one you want to compete in and registration closed earlier this week,” she added.

The inclusion of bashment soca in the junior competition has been heavily criticized on the airwaves due to the lewd lyrics often associated with the sub-genre. However, Roberts defended the decision arguing that it was undoubtedly a popular form of expression and ought to be harnessed in a positive way.

“If there is any entity supremely capable of getting our young people and harnessing their creativity in a positive way, it is the National Cultural Foundation,” the CEO said in a previous Barbados TODAY interview.

“I can’t think of any other entity that can manage this process well. So, I encourage everyone to give us a couple of weeks and let us see what these young people will throw up.”

With the preliminary judging to begin tomorrow, the NCF boss declared that the lineup of junior calypsonians was “exciting”. She added that they would be assisted through a mentorship programme.

“They then pair off with established calypsonians and producers and arrangers to help them get their songs up to the required standard. So they will be mentored, not only in the artform, but they will also be mentored in general social skills and some financial planning and that kind of thing,” Roberts explained. (TD)