GI Beharry in family battle for Chutney Soca Monarch title

A mother and two of her sons, as well as, two brothers are among 14 artistes who have moved on to the final round of the Chutney/Soca Monarch competition.

In the mix of the finalists, announced by Southex promoter of the show, CEO George Singh on February 10, are Ramrajie Prabhu and her two sons, Neeshan “Hitman” Prabhu and Navin “D Prince” Prabhu.

Incidentally, the reigning monarch, GI Beharry, will square off with his brother, Master Saleem, for the 2022 CSM title on February 26 at SAPA.

Singh told the Newsday these are firsts for the competition which will also see five new contestants to the CSM stage – Raquel John, Ricky Khando, Nel Ramdass, Shazzie Ramsumir and Captain Kendal.

Up for grabs, will be the Queen of Chutney Soca title which will be won by the top performing female artiste at the grand finale.

Defending champion Nisha Ramsook is among the five women in the competition who will seek to retain her crown.

The 14 finalists were selected from among 32 artistes who competed in the January 27 semi-final round.

Singh said these 32 videos were released across social media – YouTube, Facebook and Tik Tok. There was also a text voting platform for people to vote for their favourite artistes.

“Over the last seven days, we have been able to reach 1.1 million people, gathering almost 600K views across more than 50 countries. More than 11,000 votes were counted for the semi-final.”

He said the biggest viewership– 50 per cent – came from Trinidad and Tobago.

The USA, which has one secured place in the finals, through Ranjeev Ramdeen from New York, accounted for 19 per cent of viewership, Canada, 9.3 per cent and Guyana, 5.9 per cent.

Singh said the grand finale will feature a special opening performance by chutney soca artiste Ravi B and his full band Karma featuring Nisha B and Abbyshi.

Hosting the event is Southex’s very own Nah news anchor and comedian Kenneth Supersad and Big Rich D Pungalunks.

All artistes will be backed up by Kishore “Wizzy” Ramdath and Avatar the Band.

Apart from excellent music and comedy, Singh said patrons will also have an opportunity to win fantastic prizes.

There will be an all-inclusive weekend giveaway for one lucky viewer by Tropikist Beach Hotel and Resort, hampers and a special door prize from Dansteel Ltd.

Limited tickets are available for the finals which will place at SAPA, which is a safe zone. As a result all public health protocols will be observed, and patrons must show proof of vaccination.

Singh also expressed condolences to the media and family of the late Express features editor Wayne Bowman. He said Bowman always supported his shows.

“He supported culture in a big way. This is indeed sad news. His death is a big loss for culture.”

The 14 finalists that will go up against GI Beharry are: Ranjeev Ramdeen from New York, Raquel John, Master Saleem, Neeshan "Hitman" Prabhu, Ramrajie Prabhu, Veejai Ramkissoon, Ricky Khando, Navin "D Prince" Prabhu, Nel Ramdass, Daddy Chinee, Shazzie Ramsumir, Nisha Ramsook Kenneth Salick, Captain Kendal.