3 generations of soca dynasty grace Fete Royal stage

THE Queen's Royal College (QRC) Old Boys Association (OBA) has thanked Machel Montano for his generous donation of $250,000, after the soca star presented OBA president Kenrick Harrinauth and principal David Simon with a cheque.

The presentation was made during Montano's performance at Fete Royal, held at the school in St Clair on February 15.

Montano and QRC seem to have a close relationship, as the soca star will host an event called Class at QRC at the college grounds on Carnival Friday (February 28).

On Facebook, Simon said, "Thank you MM. Your vision and support means the world to us. To all who supported us, thank you from the college."

Speaking to Newsday on February 17, Harrinauth said, "The contribution was greatly appreciated...the focus of the Fete Royal event is to finish off our existing labs and bring them up to a standard that will encourage better educational learning and opportunities for the students."

Harrinauth said funds raised from the event would also help renovate the lecture room in the science block. The aim is to complete the renovations before the end of 2025.

He thanked Montano for "coming on board with us."

Montano was in fine form during the fete after struggling with his voice the previous weekend, saying, "I'm back."

Three generations of soca grace the stage

Sixteen years after sharing the stage together at the 2009 Soca Monarch, three generations of the Lyons family joined each other on the Fete Royal stage.

Fay Ann Lyons, her father Austin "SuperBlue" Lyons and her daughter Syri, 15, were onstage together.

Fay Ann won both the 2009 Soca Monarch power and groovy titles, the last time she was on stage with her father and daughter. Meet Superblue was the song that gave her the power crown, and Heavy T Bumper handed her the groovy title.

The performance of Meet Superblue was one of the most memorable performances in the history of the Soca Monarch contest, as Lyons was far along with her pregnancy during the performance.

Fast-forward to Fete Royal 2025 and the trio, along with Fay Ann's husband Bunji Garlin, performed together.

"I know you are nervous, but these people are nice. We perform here all the time," Fay Ann told Syri.

SuperBlue's appearance was a surprise to his daughter.

The night was filled with performances. GBM Nutron and Farmer Nappy, backed by the band Dil-E-Nadan, were the first acts on stage. Kes the Band, Mical Teja, Full Blown and Yung Bredda also entertained patrons.

Food and drinks were plentiful. Options such as rack of lamb, sushi, bake and shark, pasta alfredo, wild meat, curry crab and dumplings, salmon and Indian delicacies were among them. The lines for the food were lengthy at times.

A tribute to Minshall, old boys

At the fete, patrons were reminded of the people QRC has produced. At the entrance, faces of prominent old boys were shown on digital screens, including former West Indies wicketkeeper Deryck Murray, former TT track and field athlete Deon Lendore, historian and writer CLR James, painter and dancer Boscoe Holder, rapso artiste Brother Resistance and legendary masman Peter Minshall, among others.

Those who attended the fete were reminded of Minshall's contribution to TT culture when the Carnival characters Tan Tan and Saga Boy that he created starred at the event. During Montano's set they danced through the crowd leaving people in awe.

Harrinauth said over the years the OBA has tried to lift the standard of the event after the covid19 pandemic, which prevented Fete Royal from being held in 2021 and 2022.

"The 2023 event received mixed reviews in the main. Based on the reviews, a decision was taken to do a review of the fete and how we can continue to host this event in a very competitive environment. That review was done and based on the findings and recommendations coming out of it, I realised that there was the need to shift from just hosting an event, but to host an event that can create pride and loyalty to the brand QRC."

On Facebook, Montano said, "What a Pardy (the name of his 2025 hit song) inside Fete Royal!!! Tan Tan and Saga Boy were turning up along with the old boys crew. Can't wait to be back there Carnival Friday for Class alongside Davido, Etienne Charles and all your favourite soca stars."