BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - RUCAS has laid down the gauntlet in the Groovy Monarch segment of the 2016/2016 Carnival Soca Monarch Competition last evening (Nov. 24) at Carnival Village.
With competitors divided into two groups to perform in the two-night elimination round, Rucas, bedecked in a partly African outfit, entertained patrons with his imposing stage presence singing his catchy ‘Sway’ lyrics.
Backed by the Bacchanalist Band, Rucas had those in attendance swaying with him as he belted out his new lyrics with an African touch.
Several of those in the small crowd were heard saying that “his song is entertaining and should be in the Finals”.
Speaking with SKNVibes after his performance, Rucas, whose name is Casim Pemberton, explained that he was looking to perform at his best so that he could make the December’s Semi-finals round.
“It is Sugar Mas 45 and this is what it is all about. It was an amazing performance, I enjoyed myself and I just went out there and give it my all. When I reached the stage, I felt so at ease and I just did my thing.”
Shannakay Raymond with her ‘International Girl’, Jazzbo and Tobap singing ‘Carry On’ and Pinocchio with ‘Soca Teacher’ also had credible performances that should see them qualifying for the next round.
But the standout acts of the evening that left the crowd in frenzy were those of Jesse Astaphan with his ‘Pokemon’ lyrics and Junior Newton belting out his piece called ‘Traffic Warden’.
With all artistes given 10 minutes to perform their entry, Astaphan struggled in his bid to make the best use of his time, as he was completely off key, out of rhythm and some members of the small crowd sneeringly demonstrated those shortcomings in their dance moves.
While Newton was dishing out his ‘Traffic Warden’ lyrics, one patron shouted that he “warranted a traffic ticket” for his performance which was over six minutes and filled with repetitions.
In the Power segment, LAX and KT gave an explosive performance that was well received by those in attendance.
The duo brought a high-level performance that was noticeably lacking in those of many other competitors, including Shannakay Raymond with ‘Warrior’.
Last evening’s competition saw 16 Groovy and nine Power competitors battling to make the next round. Tonight will see the final list of performers taking to the stage, at the end of which the names of the artistes who made it to the Semi-finals will be announced.
