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Anthony B arrives for Mash Explosion show

Anthony B and Promoter NigelJamaican artistes Anthony B has arrived for the Mash Explosion concert that features himself and Baby Cham tomorrow (saturday) night at the National Park.
Last evening he was featured as a guest at the Plaisance line top Guinness bar where he entertained briefly. Baby Cham arrives tonight.

Anthony B and Fans

The show is being promoted by Vision sounds and Seven Stars promotions. Pix show  the artiste in Guyana upon arrival with Promoter Nigel Harding and with Guyanese fans at the plaisance line top.

By Mondale Smith

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Vanilla Road March Queen Again

Its official, for the second year in a row Melissa ‘Vanilla’ Roberts age 27 has copped the Road March queen title.  The official result coming out of the Mash Secretariat is that her song High was the most played on the mash route and as such she has been adjudged the 2010 Road March queen.

Her song high came up against fifteen others including Jumo’s ‘in de air’ and Bones-man’s ‘Mashramani time is we own’. When contacted with the news Vanilla’s reaction was “ok I trust your information but I done’t really react in anyway out of the ordinary when I win.”

She said the song written by her manager Burchmore Simon is about the colourful festival of Mash and encourages all to get involved in building the spirit of Mashramani as we festival taking it to the next level.

Simon also wrote ‘Wrap It Up’ and ‘Mama I done’t Want To Be Born’ and both were adjudged as winners of the 2010 junior calypso competition and the HIV/Aids song competition. Simon also co-wrote the winning Soca monarch song donee by Bonesman titled “Is We Own”.

Of her win for a second year Vanilla said she is elated and hopes that this trend will continue. She let up that this time around because the quality of soca music around “I wasn’t sure if I was going to win this year but last year I was certain when I won with Rude.”

This is her 4th year in the competition. In 2008 she missed the crown by one point when Big Red won with ‘on the road again.’

Vanilla  also placed  second in the soca monarch competition as she had done last year with rude and said that she will certainly be going up for the title of soca monarch next year as well as going for a three-pete.

Burchmore Simon her manager said “it was a great season and Vanilla’s win is an additional incentive to continue to work hard and dedicate ourselves to further developing the music industry”. Two weeks from now Vanilla who hails from Berbice but resides in Georgetown said her fans can look forward to yet another scorching video from her. She will be releasing a video for her single titled “Pressure”. She expressed gratitude to all her supporters and said “I could not have donee it with out you the fans.”

By Mondale Smith

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Region one rules at Children’s road parade 2010

Hinterland Scholarship StudentsAfter a day of sparkly, colourful, topical, relevant and cute displays at the nations 2010 Children’s road parade that featured tots, teens and young adults from the eleven education districts the results are in.

Region one through its theme of ‘Embracing our Diversity, Celebrating our Heritage ruled the competition beating region three into the second spot with ‘Celebration time’ and region settled for third as they depicted ‘Preserve our Heritage and Save the Earth’.

In the nursery category the Happy Hearts Nursery’s depiction of ‘Miss Republic – 40 Years of Achievements’ copped the top spot while Sherman’s Nursery placed second with ‘legend of gold’ and Turkeyen Nursery with ‘celebrating our Culture through Music’ settled for third.

Rama Krishna Primary’s presentation of ‘Learning in Unity through Culture’ got the judges nod for first place while Winfer Gardens Primary placed second with ‘The Beautiful Angels fulfilling an Academic Dream for a Brighter tomorrow’ and Community Academy Primary with ‘A Tribute to our First People’.

The Alien Red Dragon as depicted in the fantasy theme won Dolphin Secondary the winners spot in the secondary school bands category while Ascension Secondary’s display of ‘Celebrating with our Folk Legends’ placed second.  Cummings Lodge Secondary through the bands showcase of ‘Moulding our Nation’s Children to support our Diverse Heritage’ placed third.

The other children’s organisation category was ruled by the Hinterland Scholarship students who gleefully displayed ‘Reducing Emission and Proudly Sustaining our Livelihood.’

Their runners up were West End Youth Cultural Centre and the national School of dance who placed second and third respectively for their displays such as ‘Golden Sparkles in a Beautiful Forest’ and ‘Dance – The Gateway to our Cultural Heritage’.

In the individual category Mwanza Glen copped the top spot with ‘the faceless void of culture’ while Jamel Brooms with his display of ‘A Royal Explosion – A Prince in his Glory’ placed second.

On Saturday the Ministry of Education’s Unit of Allied Arts Children’s Mashramani competition was a showcase of pageantry and fun filled gyrations, prancing and dancings as they addressed issues of climate change, the Low Carbon Development Strategy from the youth perspective and preserving marine life.

Being true to their youthful minds the tots and teens also paraded in Mythical characters, legends and folklores as well as fantasy and fairy tales galore. There was also an abundance of other serious issues regarding Guyana’s Rain forest preservation and education.

National children’s road parade 2010 in retrospect

From about 9:00hrs on Saturday thousands lined the parade route to get a glimpse of the many contingents of youths on parade in mostly full costumes. Some cheered their favourites on while others zeroed in on those who were a brazen and bold in their gyrations. Among those watching the jollification from the road side were some youngsters who were not going to be left out of the spot light.  Some aged as young as three literally ran into the many groups of frenzied revellers and show them just how they should dance and do their thing.

In the nursery band from a line up of nine contingents the beauty of El Dorado was among the more attractive of showcases as was the legend of Gold but the energetic Miss Republic was also one to beat.  For the most part the youths were very much in time with the music but few opted out as sleep seemed to have a greater pull on them.

In the primary band section more than eleven contingents were on the road and from the energy exuded it was obvious that the youths’ were out to have a grand time as reflected in their prancing and costumes.  Ketley primary ‘s Back to basics was among the more  energetic and colourful as was North Georgetown’s band that  focused on living our Heritage in a diverse community. Commendation is also in order for Community Academy Primary for their ‘tribute to our first people.’

In the secondary school bands category the energy was at an all time high from the parade ground to the National Park as the more senior students seemed bent ton out doing each other with coordinated dance steps and gyrations. Theirs was a colourfull array of glitters that had a few at their energetic peek. But there were a few who simply walked the course unmindful of the many promptings.  All the  entries in this category were commendable but  some openly opined that  Cummings Lodge  and Dolphin  secondary were the ones to bet with their themes of “Moulding  our nation’s children  to support  our diverse heritage” and  the fantasy  filled “the Alien Red dragon and the Dragon Fly” costumes.

The regional presentations were among the more colourful and topical as the costumes offered much room for conversation on topical issues.  These included region 2 ’embracing our heritage through preservation of our natural resources.’ And West Demerara/ Essequibo Islands message was clear that it is ‘Celebration Time’ while region four aimed to ‘preserve our heritage and save the earth’ and region seven offered the message of ‘Celebrating our Diversity through education’.

Over all there were more than 40 contingents who also had their sections and there were also several Non-governmental children’s organizations.
But none could out perform the choreographed showcase of the National Dance School as that group showcased   the various levels of dance offered splashed with much of the many cultures that make Guyana a unique cultural melting pot

By Mondale Smith

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It’s Mash Day: Guyana’s 40th Republic anniversary party

The children had their chance on Saturday and it was a mostly colourful, topical showcase of energised revelling.

Today, after months of preparation and millions of dollars in investment it is the day for Guyana’s ultimate Republic party. More than 30 bands are expected to hit the parade route in full and semi costumes. There will be additional contingents of T-shirt bands.

Guyanese from every corner, as well as international tourists, are expected to flock in their tens of thousands to the traditional Mashramani route from the assembly line at Camp and Church Streets.

They will follow the float parade that will be moving along Church Street, into Irving Street and along Thomas lands to observe and in some cases join in the revellery.

Officials of the National Mash committee are optimistic that it will be a good day full of sunshine and high energy. For some, from talk in the streets yesterday, it will be all out partying while for others it’s a perfect family time. They will find various spots on the Merriman Mall to place their picnic baskets filled with goodies.

Friends will reconnect and new acquaintances will be made but above all, the spectacle today will feature Guyana’s own carnival that promises to be mostly a full costumes affair of colours.

Now it’s the adults’ turn to compete for top prizes and designers for the coveted Designer of the Year title. Corporate Guyana numbering more than ten will be aiming for the top prizes for their costumes–the Individual Male and Female, and King and Queen crowns.

But the regions and other organisations will not be left out and neither will the religious bodies as this publication has confirmed that several political parties such as the PPP and the PNC as well as the AFC will be on the road in addition to the churches and the Hindu community.

The air of expectancy will be high also as thousands flock to the National Park stands as revellers participate in the annual Mashramani celebrations. At the location the competitive nature will be at an all time high too as the revellers seek to out do each other with co-ordinated and choreographed dance techniques before the final round of Judges.

After being out of the main competition last year, the creativity of the Facts ‘N Roses camp will be hot contenders through the more than 700 revellers in the GPL, and Banks DIH bands.

GPL will today be making its first appearance into the event with more than 200 revellers all focussed on promoting the use of the energy saver bulbs and the need for persons to stop using illegal connections and get back on the power grid in several individual costumes.

Designer Olympia Sonoram’s creativity will be paraded by the more than 400 revellers, individual males, and Females, Kings and Queens Floats of the Digicel and Carib bands.

The Carib band is focussed on promoting Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy and ecotourism with the message that the Caribbean Sun offers hope on the horizon through Guyana’s forest.

After four years of being out of the costume parade, Banks DIH is back in the road parade today with its 500 strong contingent that will offer a sea of red and gold costumes under that encourage all to toast to Guyana’s 40th republic anniversary and the theme is Our Country, our Life our Beer.

The Ministry of Culture, as the lead Ministry in today’s celebrations, focuses on ‘Saving the Forest’ and will share the message that Guyana is the lungs of the world through its rain forest.

The Public Service Ministry will present a contingent of 50 showcasing Minister Jennifer Westford’s vision of “securing Guyana’s present and future” in the small bands category.

The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs will focus its message on ensuring that “the forest must stay” while Region ten’s Brian Munroe’s creations and costumes will be focussed on ways to “save the planet”.

On the education front, the National Library has gone all out and will be presenting “Education to embrace our Cultural Diversity” where the Library will be presented as the Tree of Knowledge. It will also showcase the idea that knowledge is the doorway to career opportunities and the information resources offered by the national library.

The Education Ministry showcase will be one that borders on the theme of “education for all – a nation stands tall” through the integral partnership of the home, school and the community.

While the Ministry of Health’s participation remains a secret on the health front, the region three RDC will be out in their glory of shimmering colours with a message of “let’s help to prevent the pandemic rage.”
These are among the more elaborate of costumes that will be taking to the streets today.

By Mondale Smith

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Bones Man is Soca Monarch 2010

While Shelly G’s no show to defend her title proved a disappointment to some none can complain about the 2010 choice for Soca monarch. Before a celebratory crowd Orlando ‘Bones man’ Johashen age 24 a Berbician of Tempe Village and a worker at Forestry was adjudged the 2010 soca monarch.

The artistes who copped the crown from a line up nine was true to  his Guyanese roots   and proudly sang  with support from eth crowd ” I don’t care what no body say Mashramani time is we own… woi see we jumping…” From the time he began his performance to his conclusion the crowd was on fire for him and he did not disappoint with lyrical delivery like   that of Trinidad soca sensation Bunji Garlin, the father of one was a burst of energy an hype that left the crowd shouting Bones man…we want bones man long after he exited the stage.

One woman who is an obvious soca crazy fan at the show’s end was heard telling other “I’m disappointed that Shelly G did not show up but Bones Man deserved it.”

Appearing as the penultimate artiste the artiste who won the best new comer prize   three years ago on Saturday night offered a performance that included fireworks and the crowd is with him. The crowd liked him and his energy was great.  Unique in his delivery he wore a straw skirt instead of pants under a large white coat.  Amidst performing he shouted “ya’ll want to see the real bones man’. As the crowd shouted in the positive he stripped himself of the coat the crowd s went into a frenzy declaring him the clear winner. He used the X-factor dancers who added to his energy and they were supported off stage by several mocha jumbies (stilts walkers).

Tomeka Thomas the pregnant lady was first up singing about her balloon. She appeared as a queen and her backup dancers were a bunch of fully pregnant (imitations) women dressed in leotards prancing around the stage showcasing their balloons proudly. It was her second shot at the crown and this year she was inspired by last year’s Trinidad soca monarch Fay-Ann Lyons. Though being eight months pregnant she took some serious risks to prove that she was fit. However it must have been an error on the part of the emcee to have not announced that she once resided in the islands and this possibly worked against her as her accent was obviously not Guyanese.  But both her and her baby proved entertaining as she imitated her soca inspiration in attitude and singing.teh crowd was moved to laughter as she announced that comedian chow pow was her baby father.  The audience was unsure of how to react when she executed a split to conclude her presentation.

B52 the fire man was up next with ‘wecarrying on’ and his was a performance that featured fire works flying and the flames throwers on and off stage as well as on the stage roof. He donned a white suit lined with trimmings of the flag and was backed by dancers dressed in red and yellow outfits. Something about the microphone sound was not as clear and caused him to literally strain his vocals in delivery. Hs like at least three others including the winner included the predictable s ‘somebody missing’ chant but the crowd did show him some love. His presentation included the crowd chanting carry back the people thing.

Lady B’ (Barbra) was introduced next and she appeared wearing a Guyana flag mo hawk. Her’s was delivery that stated that she ‘want a man who could lift me up’. That song sounded very familiar. Her backups included dancers who were good but they needed better costumes. Some dubbed her a good filler but were saying when she exited eth stage that “she should go home now”.

Back wine time was probably the energy saver to the first half of the competitors as Beverly using dance fanatics for back up delivered a scorching performance that proved that age ain’t anything but a number. She sounded really nice and professionally so too while using the stage well. The crowd certainly enjoyed her serving of back wine time that made many exclaim that “granny could entertain and wine.” That was the performance to beat in the first half of the show.

Guyana born  Jamaica based artistes Piere  Da Silva was next up and he came with much energy for his ‘mad, mad, mad’ song.  With sponsorship from Bill express he and his dancers’ donned doctors’ jackets and were full of energy but he somehow did not connect with the audience as he could have. It was obvious that the crowd couldn’t decide if they should support him or not as for the most part his delivery was so full of words that it was hard to understand what he was singing but the musical accompaniment was high energy. His locks were full of sparkles and he too delivered the over played somebody missing chant which evoked the usual crowd response as he paraded all over the stage.

Material things done by De Cruz who resides in Trinidad was a fairly delivered groovy soca with dancers who appeared on a mini SUV imitating lady Gaga. But the song also bordered on dance hall. Then a Brazilian lady whom he described as European came and offered some supposed exotic dancing before he ordered her off the stage because she offered him a large chain. Then came is dispersal of monopoly money in crowd followed by  him relieving himself of his shirt  to reveal a Guyana flag on a some what chiseled body and while some enjoyed his delivery many did not find him impressive enough. However he got the judges’ nod for the best new comer prize.  His performance included a local stele pan player being invited to eth stage to play parts of his song before he got back into the singing grove.

Former reporter turn singer Jackie Handover was a great act that presented “festival time” with a good voice while some said they saw a whole lot of Charmaine Blackman in her delivery. She’s wore a two piece red short pants suit. But while she was energetic she failed when she tried to interact with the audience by stating that Trinidad has crop over and Barbados has Carnival. She has a few jitters and sounds like Charmaine Blackman. With work some believe that she will be a force to be reckoned with in future competitions.

Vanilla offered an electric performance that encouraged patrons to get ‘High’. Her presentation included mocha jumbies and dancers as well as body builders. She’s was dressed in a red jacket and a gold short pants.  She was backed by dancers from the national dance school sporting colours of the flag. Amidst her performance there were several explosions of confetti and fire works and she tore off her jacket to reveal a body hugging black and gold body suit. And eth fire works exploded even more as dancers dressed in carnival costumes arrived off stage on forklifts. And before long she too was on a fork lift with support from a gyrating body builder. But try as she did she was again relegated to the second spot in the competition.

Some were loud in praises saying “big-up Bones Man, he work hard for it for real, now he just got to  keep up the hype  and energy that he got and big things could happen for he. But Vanilla was not my pick for second. I think that B52 had a far better song than hers, even Beverly and plenty other people including the groovy soca song Material Things. But the judges’ decision is final. ”

By Mondale Smith and Gary Eleazer

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Children’s Road parade offers colourful, topical spectacle

Mashing Down De RoadSparkly, colourful, topical, relevant and cute were among the words used to describe the unfolding yesterday when the nation’s tots, teens and young adults from the eleven education districts took to the streets of Georgetown for the 2010 children’s Mashramani Road parade.

The conclusion of the Ministry of Education’s Unit of Allied Arts Children’s Mashramani competition was a showcase of pageantry and fun filled gyrations, prancing and dancing as they addressed issues of climate change, the Low Carbon Development Strategy from the youth perspective and preserving marine life.

But above all the youth parade would not have been completed without, Mythical characters, legends and folklore as well as fantasy and fairy tales galore and there was an abundance of those too while  others  were  serious  about Rain forest preservation and education.

From about 9:00hrs thousands lined the parade route to get a glimpse of the many contingents of youths on parade in mostly full costumes. Some cheered their favourites on while others zeroed in on those who were a brazen and bold in their gyrations. Among those watching the jollification from the road side were some youngsters who were not going to be left out of the spot light.  Some aged as young as three literally ran into the many groups of frenzied revellers and show them just how they should dance and do their thing.

In the nursery band from a line up of nine contingents the beauty of El Dorado was among the more attractive of showcases as was the legend of Gold but the energetic Miss Republic was also one to beat.  For the most part the youths were very much in time with the music but few opted out as sleep seemed to have a greater pull on them.

In the primary band section more than eleven contingents were on the road and from the energy exuded it was obvious that the youths’ were out to have a grand time as reflected in their prancing and costumes.  Ketley primary ‘s Back to basics was among the more  energetic and colourful as was North Georgetown’s band that  focused on living our Heritage in a diverse community. Commendation is also in order for Community Academy Primary for their ‘tribute to our first people.’

In the secondary school bands category the energy was at an all time high from the parade ground to the National Park as the more senior students seemed bent ton out doing each other with coordinated dance steps and gyrations. Theirs was a colourful array of glitters that had a few at their energetic peek. But there were a few who simply walked the course unmindful of the many promptings.  All the  entries in this category were commendable but  some openly opined that  Cummings Lodge  and Dolphin  secondary were the ones to bet with their themes of “Moulding  our nation’s children  to support  our diverse heritage” and  the fantasy  filled “the Alien Red dragon and the  Dragon Fly” costumes.

The regional presentations were among the more colourful and topical as the costumes offered much room for conversation on topical issues.  These included region 2 ’embracing our heritage through preservation of our natural resources.’ And West Demerara/ Essequibo Islands message was clear that it is ‘Celebration Time’ while region four aimed to ‘preserve our heritage and save the earth’ and region seven offered the message of ‘Celebrating our Diversity through education’.

Over all there were more than 40 contingents who also had their sections and there were also several Non governmental children’s organizations.

But none could out perform the choreographed showcase of the National Dance School as that group showcased   the various levels of dance offered splashed with much of the many cultures that make Guyana a unique cultural melting pot. There were also some independent costumes showcased   that were created by designers including Jermaine Broomes.

In one of the youthful bands prince charming brought a way too big shoe that did not match Cinderella’s dress and she simply left the two step sisters to fight over  it while she showed the judges that she  is not that typical fairy tale character much to the amusement of  some  patrons.

Another memorable showcase was that of the Masacoura Man who from the bowels of the sea partied with one pirate who was not going to be out done while pulling her boat that shared the origins of our people.

The results of the group costume competitions will announced shortly.

By Mondale Smith

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Hits and Jams presents Mash Glow Party style

Machel arrives Saturday

As part of the Hits and Jams 2010 Mashramani offerings to Guyana, the group has staged   a Mash launch and two successful parties at the GMR&SC and is currently gearing for the staging of its Glow Party.  Yesterday the group announced that on Monday all roads will lead to the Pulse Night Club, Pier Street Kitty where an ‘All White Edition’ party dubbed ‘Acceleration’ would be staged.

Group Director Kerwin Bollers said “We began our Mash parties with the Crank up on January 30 that featured Charlie Black and Mad Dog, then we had the Soca Jeans party on February 6 and that was followed by the Outrageous in colour party now its Glow fet time.”

These events are all the lead up to the most explosive mash day international concert in recent times. “On Monday we will experience the glow effect that will set stage for our ‘Machel for Mash concert’ on Mash day at the Georgetown Cricket Club” Bollers said.

Machel and the HD band are scheduled to arrive in Guyana tomorrow fresh out of the mega Beyonce Concert in Trinidad.

Yesterday Bollers and Hits and jams team winged out of Guyana to attend the Beyonce concert and assures that they will be returning on Saturday with Montano and his band. “Once they get here is mad hype as they will attend an autographing session and will make appearances on several radio and television shows. They will also be featured at a press conference on Saturday and Machel and his band members will also make appearances at several night clubs but Bollers noted that patrons will win free Tickets spontaneously at the ‘All white party’.

On Mash Night all the stops will be pulled out for soca fans to experience a most memorable soca fete where in addition to Machel; artiest such as Zan, Patrice Roberts, Farmer Nappy, Guyana’s soca sensation Jumo, Jory, Vanilla, B52 and Spiderman will perform. Addition the concert band is the Heat Wave which promises to live up to the name with some new front line artistes including Malo soca Monarch 2006.

Machel is coming to Guyana fresh out of the Beyonce: ‘I am’ show titled ‘boy meets girl in the Savannah’.

“This is we Mash Carnival so come out prepared to enjoy yourselves,” Bollers said.

By Mondale Smith

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Its Chutney soca weekend

In keeping with the spirit of Chutney Soca during this festive Mash season; Wonder Boy Production in collaboration with Rohan Sarjoo is hosting two international shows to start off the Mash Weekend.

‘Chutney in The Village’ goes down today at the Diamond Community Centre Ground and tomorrow at the Starlite Drive-In, Montrose East Coast Demerara.

The star-studded cast of International artiste billed to perform include Guyana Baboo’  Terry Gajraj, Princess Anisa who is popular for the hit ‘Tek Sunita Singer’ along with  The Chutney Ambassador fresh from Trinidad and Tobago Carnival  Neeshan D’Hitman, and Chutney Raja, Rakesh Yankarran will also be launching his new album in Guyana at the two shows.

The entertainment will be supported by Avi and the Supertones Band dubbed New York’s number one party band with its full cast of US-based Guyanese singers.

That list includes King Raj, Pally Dass, Kulie Boy Omesh and Anand Hansraj.

The show will also feature some of Guyana’s top local dancers as well as the Shakti Strings Band, Up-setters Sounds and DJ Steve.

Event’s manager WR Reaz said, “This show is the most affordable Chutney/Soca show for 2010 so far with admission advance tickets at only $500.”

He said that the two shows are family-oriented with lots of entertainment, food, drinks and he assured that security will be at its peak from the Police Force and Private Protection at both venues.

Come start the Mash weekend with chutney in the village today at the Diamond Community Centre Ground and tomorrow at the Starlite Drive-In Montrose East Coast Demerara. Showtime is 20:00hrs.

The show is sponsored by AN Electronics, Guyana Palace.com, Clear Water and Payless Variety Store.

By Mondale Smith

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Slingshot launches Mash costume band

Slingshot Mash Band 2010Until he is called to the grave U.S based Guyanese entertainer John Drepaul Slingshot says he will keep tradition alive by producing a mash band for the February 23 celebrations and this year will be no different from in previous years. Yesterday on a much smaller scale and with a heavy heart the artiest in the company of his wife Ingrid and a few  diehard friends Slingshot launched his 300 strong costume band at the Pegasus.

Unlike in previous years the costumes are not as extravagant but non-the-less are focused on a serious issue that is a world talking point: Climate change and the low Carbon development strategy. His designer this year Paul Burnette said the theme is Guyana: An Oasis of Hope and will  focus on showcasing the nations ecotourism possibilities while focused on the  flora and fauna that make Guyana a unique tourist destination while being the lungs of the world.

All told the band will feature 100 in full costumes in several sections while there will also be a Tee shirt section that will depict tourists. He does not have sponsors for the band thus far but he will be offering costumes free of charge to all who seek to be part of his band on mash day. Slingshot also used the opportunity to say thanks to GT&T for their support thus far and is encouraging other corporate citizens to come on board.  “My band is a Guyanese band void of race issues, political issues and any other issue that will seek to cause division.”

He also said that “Anyone, regardless of your political, religious, and matrimonial persuasion; be you rich, poor, tourist, or just plain old curious, can be assured of a costume, snacks along the way, water, and a nutritious meal at the end of our National Park rounds.”

Slingshot says he’s expecting about 300 strong to join his band and that “we will be assembling, as usual, at the corner of Waterloo and Church Streets from 9:00hrs on Mash Day.”

In addition he said “wear comfortable footwear, and light clothing as costumes will be provided and use suntan lotion, leave home all jewelry and keep your cell phones with you.”

He reiterated that the Slingshot band is dependent entirely on sponsorship and support from corporate Guyana and individuals and as such he is appealing to anyone who wants to be part of the band to lend support in any way possible.

Slingshot’s active interest in Mashramani was fueled after he was greatly disappointed that while Mash is a Guyanese Republic celebration only ethnic group was taking to the road. “As a bystander it appeared to be a lopsided ethnic participation on the road and I still see that to some degree; but I’m hoping that that will change soon” he said.

His active participating in the Mash Celebrations began with Floats, Costumes and a Road March Song in 2004 and these consistently won in categories entered and while he fell off his dray cart transportation on Mash Day 2007, badly injuring himself he said, “I am in no way deterred.”

Slingshot prides himself in saying that his is the only Mash Camp that plans the theme and Road March songs in harmony with Float and Costumes.

Given his team’s talent for composing good music, he sees the transition as meaningful, and at the same time, setting a good example for those future Mashers to emulate.

His theme “Guyana: An Oasis of Hope” and was planned since 2008 and he said yesterday that “We usually plan for our Mash participation two years in a row and already our Mash theme for 2011 is “Tek ah Taste of Guyana”.

He slammed all ideas of Guyana being presented as a bad country and said that “A country is never bad. It is the human inhabitants of that country that creates the negatives”.

Further explaining his theme he said his band reinforces President Jagdeo’s discussion at the Copenhagen Conference in December concerning Rainforest, Low Carbon, Indigenous inhabitants, and possible medicinal cures from the various fauna found here.

With the present global economic meltdown, Slingshot noted that corporate Guyana has not been spared the deep bite from the many issues affecting the planet.

When asked what form of involvement the Slingshot costume band will be taking he said that the float will consist of the Kaieteur Falls atop the float-truck, with appropriate flora and fauna representative of Guyana’s interior. The male revelers will depict the fauna representation that is native to Guyana while the females will portray the flora and there will be some very colorful, patriotic and eye-catching displays, Slingshot assured.
Persons desirous of supporting the Slingshot band tangibly may contact Donna Stanford: (592) 682-3745

By Mondale Smith

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Malo back after third cruise line stint

The name Marlon Webster, aka Malo, is forever etched in the annals of Guyana’s music history as the 2007 Soca monarch who copped the title with “Give me it”. If all goes well more titles may be added in time to come.

His is one of the many popular names missing from the 2010 competition by choice but he says that he has not ruled out eventually re-entering the competition.

The 24-year-old bachelor, who hails from Sophia, returned home after his third tour of duty as a lead singer with the Caribbean Princess Cruise line “The Elements Band” and is already in the thick of Guyana’s entertainment happenings.

On February 27 and February 28 he will maintain the Mash hype in the Wild Fire Camp when they stage Konshens in Koncert in Berbice and Linden. Back in Guyana just about a week now Malo has already hit the Brutal tracks studios and with the ace producer/ arranger, Darrel Pugsley, and has recorded two singles.

On Tuesday last Malo released a Soca single titled “A feel like’ and as soon as the Soca season is over he will be releasing an RNB pop that tells the ladies ‘You are mine’.

“The Soca song basically encourages all to have a good time while the RNB is dedicated to the ladies from a man’s point of view,” he said. A video will also be released with the latter.

Three fulfilling Stints on the cruise line

The youth who struggled to make ends meet as a singer locally never imagined that he would have been on a leisure ship; let alone; singing for people, including celebrities, drawn from almost every corner of the earth. But he has and is grateful that he got the opportunity.

By April this year he might be back on ship entertaining across the Caribbean seas, in the USA and Canada as he has done during his previous three stints on board the Caribbean Princess. “The last three experiences were fulfilling.”

Talking about ship life, he said, “While I’m known in Guyana for Soca I’m versatile in my delivery on ship because I have to sing music from every genre, including country. And the patrons are very appreciative”.

As the lead singer in the band he says the job can be tedious having to entertain on an average of four shows daily from Sunday to Sunday but he gets satisfaction from seeing the leisure seekers enjoying themselves.

The soft spoken, humble singer said that as result of singing he has had many proposals from passengers for marriage et al but does not mix business with pleasure.

On a more serious note he has received job proposals and is weighing options to sing in Las Vegas and or on Broadway.

His prior stint that lasted for six months took him to places as far as Australia and he recalled that this was made possible through linkages with Guyanese Guitarist, Colwyn Michael, who plays guitar on another of the Caribbean Princess cruise line ships.

But even with the many opportunities he is enjoying, Malo categorically said, “I’m not done with recording in or representing for Guyana.”

Malo has released 22 songs to date in Guyana and is popular for hits such as ‘You girl’, ‘Jukie Jam’, ‘Wine Baby wine’ and ‘One big family.’
Of his career thus far, Malo said, “I never thought of getting a job on a cruise ship   but I’ve learnt that if you want something bad enough and you develop yourself while delivering at your best always, and you remain committed to your dreams the sky is the limit”.

By Mondale Smith