At the end of a long Thursday night of singing that stretched well past midnight, Cerdric Vandyke “Spade” Brookes walked away with the crown at this year’s Calypso Monarch competition.
The annual event is never easy on the territory’s politicians, but this year the calypsonians were especially harsh, drawing from a year’s worth of scandals to craft their lyrical barbs.
Karen “Lady Mac” McIntosh kicked off the competition with a lively number that took aim at Sen. Alicia Hansen and her 2012 reelection campaign.
Wearing a business suit and mimicking Hansen’s hairstyle, McIntosh entered from the back of the Island Center Amphitheatre and shook hands with audience members along the aisles, stopping occasionally to solicit a campaign donation.
“Push number 32,” she’d tell them, referring to Hansen’s position on the November ballot.
She then took the stage and performed a song about how any scandal can be overcome with enough campaigning.
“From the bottom up, push! Forget about V.I. Action Group. Push! Forget about Crucian in Focus. Push! Forget about all of the thieving. Push! Forget about all of the haters,” she sang. “Push! Push! Push! Push! Push! Get Chucky back in again!”
Hansen was by no mean the only politician to become the butt of a joke Thursday evening. Outgoing Senate President Ronald Russell was a popular target, with no fewer than four calypsonians taking a shot at him in their lyrics. Celestino White and Election Supervisor John Abramson also got their share of abuse.
Some of the calypsonians dressed up their jokes in clever word play, while others were less subtle with their criticism.
Morris “King Generic” Benjamin’s song about the Senate entitled “Toilet Paper” left little room for confusion about his opinion of the 29th Legislature.
“Ewwww, what’s the smell?” he asked as he took the stage wearing a suit made of toilet paper.
Benjamin then went on to describe in great detail how he believed the bills passed by the Senate could be better put to use.
“Like they don’t give one heck, while we’re standing in caca up to our neck,” he sang, adding later that the Virgin Islands had become “number one in the number two business.”
While the crowd appreciated the humor, the judges rewarded two calypsonians who took a more positive approach during their second performances.
Brookes and first runner up Samuel “Mighty Pat” Ferdinand both sang similar songs about not giving up on the territory despite it’s many problems.
In his song, “De Virgin Islands Nice,” Ferdinand poked fun at people who fled the island when times get tough, advocating for people to stay put and ride things out.
“We have roots deep in this country,” he sang. “It’s right here they going to bury we.”
Brookes’ song, “Don Leh Dat Keep U Dung,” called on people to be resilient when their power gets turned off or they lose their job.
“Right now things are not as good as you would like in the Virgin Islands,” he said after the show, explaining why he decided to submit a positive song to the competition. “You have to give people words of encouragement, because there’s a lot of shootings and things going on. Let’s not dwell on that.”
Brookes, who’s been active in the Virgin Islands calypso scene for decades, said he had not won the competition on St. Croix since the 90s and it felt great to wear the crown again.
He said he hopes young calypsonians learn from his style and he stressed to them the importance of writing their own material, because it let’s you speak from the heart.
“I’m saying what I want to say, what I want people to hear, what I want people to enjoy,” he said.
Darren “Bogle” Stevens and Tommy Joseph served as MCs for the evening, and accompaniment for all performers was provided by the Xpress band.
The full list of winners is as follows:
First place: Cerdric Vandyke “Spade” Brookes
First Runner Up: Samuel “Mighty Pat” Ferdinand
Second Runner Up: Karen “Lady Mac” McIntosh and Nikki Brookes (tie)
Social Commentary: Nikki Brookes
Political Commentary: Karen “Lady Mac” McIntosh
Most Humorous: Campbell “King Kan” Barnes