Twenty-four-year-old John “Mighty John” Williams upset reigning monarch Campbell "King Kan Fuc Plentae" Barnes to become the St. Croix Calypso Monarch 2009-10 in a hotly contested musical variety extravaTwenty-four-year-old John “Mighty John” Williams upset reigning monarch Campbell "King Kan Fuc Plentae" Barnes to become the St. Croix Calypso Monarch 2009-10 in a hotly contested musical variety extravaganza at Island Center Wednesday.
Williams swept the exposition categories, too, winning "Most Humorous" and "Best Social Commentary."
"I could never have done this without the help of King Derby (Camille "King Derby" Macedon) and King Kan (Campbell Barnes)," Williams said. Derby has been helping him write, work on melody, music and showmanship since he was five, Williams said. King Kan has helped him write songs for a long time, too, he said. He then gave a shout out to his parents, Andrenette Coffy and John Williams Sr..
With showmanship, soulful singing, fancy footwork and flashy outfits, the calypsonians took to the stage one after the other and waxed poetic on social topics ranging from the V.I. constitutional convention to food stamps to fatherhood. Between sets, Daren "MC Bogle" Stevens kept the audience in stitches with slightly off-color jokes and impromptu gags.
Williams came out strong with his first entry, “The Fence," an original bit of social commentary making light of controversy over work done on security fencing at Gov. John deJongh Jr.’s private residence. Sitting on the fence himself, it was never clear whether he was criticizing or defending the governor—or perhaps both. His second number, "Backstage," poked fun at the seriousness, intense competition and occasional backbiting that goes on backstage.
Working together to solve social ills was a popular topic, with James P.G. “Monarch” Wakefield’s “Set the Example,” asking V.I. adults to do just that for the territory’s young. Augustin “Liberator” St. Louis demanded "action with a sense of direction" with his tune “Action.”
With her first song, Toiya "Rudy" Isaac exhorted everyone to stand up to violence in the community with “Do Something.” For her second number, Isaac sang about a woman spending all her money on a gambling addiction, then raising money to gamble some more by selling really good roast pork, with "The Best Plate Ever."
Allan “King Herring” Clarke went with current political criticism with “Together We Can," a dig at deJongh’s campaign slogan. For his follow-up, he came out in boxing shorts and sang about Barack Obama taking down all comers in the 2008 election with "Obama."
With his song “Constitution," Joseph “Joey B” Brown suggested the powers-that-be don’t want real self-government in the territory, then followed up with "Old Talk," about idle complaining and political chatter in the bars and on the corner.
Returning to competition after a year’s absence was Karen “Lady Mac” McIntosh-Bruce with “First of the Month,” a humorous number about holding out for the first of the month to get food stamps and general assistance to pay the bills, contrasting government assistance with the struggles of labor leaders like D. Hamilton Jackson.
While she sang, her aunt, Margaret Joseph, paraded around in a "Baby" T-shirt (complete with a pillow stuffed under), waving bags of groceries; during the song’s finale, several people rolled shopping carts full of beer, liquor, sodas and junk food around. For her second song, "My Solution," she came out in a veil and sang about wanting to marry an Arab, Muslim man, because they pray, take care of their families and work hard as entrepreneurs—perhaps more so than some men.
Five-time Calypso Monarch Morris "King Generic" Benjamin’s first song, "They Need Us Now," exhorted fathers to be there for their children and adults to meet their responsibilities. His second entry bemoaned the lack of interest in traditional culture with “Culture Dead." With a helper wearing headphones and pretending to be a radio announcer, Benjamin sang about how there were too many talk shows and not enough local music on the radio.
"It should be Soca, Calypso and the Quelbe," Benjamin sang.
Lariel “The Teacher” Gerard talked about the fancy moves you need to make monarch with “Going for King.”
All the performers were backed by St. Croix’s own Xpress band, joined by several backup singers and a horn section calling itself International Horns.

The winners were:
— 1st Place: John “Mighty John” Williams
— 1st Runner Up: Campbell "King-Kan-Fuc-Plentae" Barnes
— 2nd Runner Up: Morris "King Generic" Benjamin
— Most Improved: Lariel “The Teacher” Gerard
— Most Humorous: John “Mighty John” Williams
— Best Social Commentary: John “Mighty John” Williamsganza at Island Center late Wednesday. Keep an eye on the Source for complete details to come.