MACHEL Montano brought all his soca theatrics to wow the crowd at the Calypso Monarch finals at the Dimanche Gras show at Queen's Park Savannah, Port of Spain, with his song, Soul of Calypso.
He later told Newsday that he had never imagined standing there as calypso monarch, but said his current studies in Carnival Arts had led him to an appreciation of the origins of the art form that had proven invaluable for him in penning his winning composition, Soul of Calypso.
He won a $350,000 Grand Vitara into which he seated his mother Elizabeth "Lady" Montano, plus $500,000 in prize money. It is his first calypso crown, having competed twice before as an 11 year old in 1986 and at 16 in 1991, when finalists sang two songs.
Calypso Monarch results:
1. Machel Montano
2. Karene Asche
3. Roderick "Chuck" Gordon
4. Mical Teja
5. Helon Francis
6. Stacey Sobers
7. Aaron Duncan
8. Kurt Allen
9. Duane Ta'Zyah O'Connor
10. Winston "Gypsy" Peters
11. Brian London
12. Dillon Thomas
