Tuesday, January 29 2013

The winner of the Junior Calypso Monarch final will pocket $25,000.

The contestant who places second walks away with $20,000, while $15,000 and $10,000 goes to those who place third and fourth respectively.

All other competitors will each receive $5,000.

Chairman of the Junior Calypso Monarch committee, Thora Best, yesterday gave Newsday the breakdown of the prizes for the young calypsonians who hit the stage at the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain for the final next Monday, February 4.

First Citizen’s Bank is the main sponsor.

Best said she was very pleased with the high standard and quality of calypsos sung by the junior calypsonians.

“Every year we have new persons coming to compete, so we realise that young people are really embracing calypso,” Best said.

She further noted that Junior Calypso Monarch was a starting ground for future calypsonians, pointing out that last year’s National Calypso Monarch, Duane O’Connor, took part in the junior monarch competitions at the start of his career. This year, 15 finalists will attempt to dethrone reigning Junior Calypso Monarch Aaron Duncan.

After Carnival, Trinbago Unified Calypsonians Organisation (TUCO) plans to host free workshops during the July/August vacation to teach students how to write calypsos, Best said.