By Jasmaine Payne
LESTER “De Professor” Charles proved that he deserved the 2016 Calypso monarchy after bringing the crowd to its feet with his catchy and provocative tune “We nah put you back deh” at the Banks DIH Thirst Park on Saturday.

This is Charles’s fifth win of the title over the years he has been performing and he has since become well known for his raunchy lyrics and high-energy performances. This year, his performance was no less than engaging, and created a joyful ruckus among the crowd which had seen only a few other lively performances for the night prior to his own.
Appearing on stage decked in a green and yellow comical romper and flop hat, he identified himself as a visitor from Honolulu, Hawaii to admonish a certain character.
His message was pretty clear, and was equally hilarious to a crowd that was beside itself with laughter at Charles’s lyrics, which hinted that the Opposition Leader is bent on getting back into power with the prospect of oil being discovered in Guyana. And though Charles’s subject matter was no different from the majority of contestants, it was his fearless handling of the touchy subject matter of Bharrat Jagdeo, the PPP and the perceived damage it caused to Guyana during its years in power, that earned him 425 points and the title of Calypso Monarch 2016.
Coming in at second place was Kenroy “Mighty Believer” Fraser with “De Coalition,” a song of praise for the carefully calculated moves that the current government has made in order to bring the country back to its former glory. Calypso Veteran Lady Tempest (Camille Goliah) came in third with “Raise your voice against abuse,” a charge to stop violence against women, while Young Bill Rogers (Roger Hinds) came in fourth with “This is what I dream”- another song of praise for the APNU+AFC government.
The show itself was relatively entertaining, with a lineup of 11 finalists, but the lack in variety as regards subject matter imposed a feeling of slight monotony at certain intervals. Unsurprisingly, the topics that dominated were those surrounding the achievements of the coalition government and the shortcomings of the PPP when they were in power. Popular targets of ridicule and satire included Bharrat Jagdeo (the star of the night’s proceedings), Donald Ramotar and Clement Rohee. President Granger was also praised on several occasions with many of the contestants taking every opportunity to utilise the colours of green and yellow in their performances. At certain points, one may have mistaken the huge gathering for a rally, rather than a calypso competition, with the APNU+AFC flag even being paraded during some performances.
Apart from unanimously agreeing that the crown should go to De Professor, the crowd still seemed surprised at the results, as there were other acts that they felt were more captivating than some of those that ultimately came out on top. John “Ras Marcus” Marcus’ performance of his song “They looking fuh cup” was a hit with the audience, and with good reason. Marcus employed biblical allegory to refer to President David Granger and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo as the saviours of the nation. His clever pun in the title of his song to refer to the PPP’s emblem as well as their shame-faced nature due to all their mistakes was also highly appreciated. His was perhaps the most lyrically creative song of the night, but Marcus fell short in his presentation which paled in comparison to his competitors. He had no props, no apparent costume and seemed out of breath for his entire performance, therefore taking away from his lyrically appealing tune.
Abigail James also made a memorable mark with her performance of “Guyana smiling again.” It was her performance that brought the “pep rally” feeling to an all-time high with confetti, stilt walkers, men swinging brooms, men waving large Guyana flags and hundreds of green and white balloons flying through the air. If nothing else, her showmanship and overall energy got the crowd completely involved in her rendition of how the new government has cleaned up the country and holds great prospects for Guyana’s future. The other performances, though entertaining, seemed to fall short in pertinent areas, despite soaring in some.
By the time De Professor came on stage, the crowd didn’t have much to play around with as regards a clear winner. But Charles made sure he rectified that difficulty.
Just the night before at the final rehearsal, it was hard to imagine that the seemingly unassuming man sitting alone awaiting his turn to practise, would in 24 hours be gyrating on stage and provoking the crowd to tears with his comedic representation of Bharrat Jagdeo. In his comments, however, one could hear nothing but confidence for what he was sure to bring to the table the following night.
He admitted that over the years the songs have indeed been getting better, which made him realise just how hard he would have to work to win the crown from the reigning King Perai.
“I really have tried my best to come with something good. The songs that I come with, I make them specifically for the competition, because I know what Guyanese people like,” he said, and it seemed as though he was right. Charles’s performance gained him the only standing ovation the crowd gave for the night. His was so entertaining, in fact, that King Perai and his song “Fight Down” spoken through the voice of Dr. Cheddi Jagan in a message given to the calypsonian in a dream, was dull in comparison, even though he was the defending champion.