It was the much anticipated calypso bacchanal between the top 8 calypsonians for this year’s Culturama, but when it was all over, it was Keith Scarborough, known in the calypso world as King Dis N Dat, who captured 581 points to separate him from the rest of the pack.
It was obvious from the first round that Did N Dat was regarded as one of the favourites after he delivered a powerful performance. He returned in the second appearance to finish off his opponents.
It was a decision that most in the audience embraced, showing their appreciation in a chorus of applause that sent a clear message that the judges, on this occasion, got it right.
Running close behind him however was the youngest person ever to have won the Senior Calypso crown in Nevis, (in 2008), De Inspirer, who also created much excitement with his first round presentation. He eventually managed to secure the First Runner-up position, with 569 points.
Though he promised in his lyrics that he was back to regain his crown and that despite his youthful age he was equal to the talents of the older competitors, Inspirer had to make do with his slot just below the crown.
The big surprise of the night however was also the one that resulted in the greatest crowd satisfaction. That was the announcement of the long running contender, Pupa Wheeler, as the holder of the Second Runner position. Pupa Wheeler, who has been entertaining audiences for Culturama for so many years, finally got a chance to flavour the glory of the top three rankings by scoring 550 points. The crowd appeared to have loved the fact that he had made it that far. He has always been a huge crowd favourite, with his witty compositions.
Generally it was an overall decision that seemed to have been widely accepted by those in attendance.
Though the 2009 monarch, I-Soursop, emerged from the semi finals as the favourite and leading scorer, he was unable to maintain that status on the night that really mattered. There are those calypso pundits who believe that his 4th verse attack on the judges was not helpful to his cause, in a year when there was already so much ‘anti-St. Kitts calypsonians sentiment’.
The judges were also unable to find reason to warrant a place in the top 3 to the defending king, Hollywood, who joined the long list of former monarchs, who, in the entire history of the festival, have never successfully defended their title.
The other three finalists were Nutsy, (who was the first calypsonian on stage in the contest), Enforcer, (a newcomer) and another former king, Astro.
The show had to be postponed from Friday 3rd August, due to the passage of tropical storm Ernesto that produced heavy rainfall and high winds, making it difficult to host the event under those conditions. The tropical storm however passed south of Nevis and had much greater impact in the Windward Islands.
Other major events for the rest of Culturama 2012 include, the Miss Culture pageant on Sunday 5th, the Miss Caribbean Culture Queen Pageant on Monday 6th and J’ouvert, also on Monday, to be followed on Tuesday 7th August with the parade of troupes and bands and Last Lap.