More than 130 soca artistes registered for quarter-final round of competition

THE first quarter-final competition for the Soca Monarch competition was held yesterday in St. Patrick, followed by competitions in St. Mark today, St. John on Saturday and St. David on Sunday.

More than 130 soca artistes have registered for this year’s competition, which has attracted several veterans back into the soca arena. The cast vying for a spot in the semi-final round of competition represents a mix of newcomers and veterans, including Ajamu, Scholar, Squeezy, Inspector and Randy Isaacs.

A press release from the Spicemas Corporation said that approximately 30 artistes will be performing in each venue, offering a great opportunity for soca lovers to hear live most of the soca renditions for the season.

Fans have been preparing themselves for this round of competition as they anxiously wait on the judging nights, said the release.

The Spicemas Corporation (SMC), in preparation for the season last week Saturday, conducted a judges’ workshop in order to sharpen the skills of the judges going into competition.

Speaking about the workshop which was facilitated by Alvin Daniel, SMC’s Manager Amanda Smith said, “The workshop was well received by the participants, and also the artistes, who joined in as observers to get a better understanding of the adjudication process.”

The quarter-finals were originally scheduled to commence on July 2, but due to the staging of the Schools’ Soca Monarch on July 2, on the Tanteen Netball Courts, the quarter-final round of the Soca Monarch competition was changed to July 3.

The top 30 soca artistes will be selected to the semi-final round of the competition, while the top 15 of that 30 will make it to the final competition to challenge Jason “Boyzie” Olive, who is expected to defend his title in 2014.