After a one-year hiatus, 3x International Soca Monarch Bunji Garlin returns to the competition in 2008 to challenge defending champion, Iwer George.
The International Power Soca Monarch, Groovy Soca Monarch and Schools Soca Monarch will be held at the Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, where
the main event, the Power and Groovy Soca Monarch competitions, will be staged on Carnival Friday.
Garlin, who shared the title with Iwer in 2002 and won it outright
in 2004 and 2005, last competed in 2006, when he placed second to Shurwayne Winchester with "The Bomb Song". He announced at that final that he would no longer compete and stayed away in 2007.
Garlin's
manager, Ian Pantin, told the Express that Garlin is looking forward to the competition, which he has always enjoyed whether
as a competitor or a member of the audience looking at the show live or on television.
Bmobile is again serving as the title sponsor, with substantial support coming
from, among others, the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs, Carib and the National Lotteries Control
Board.
The prize structure, however, has not yet been revealed for any of the three
competitions. The semi-final round of the Power and Groovy Soca Monarch competitions clash with the National Panorama semi-finals
on January 20, and a venue for this has not yet been given.
As for the Schools Soca Monarch, the semi-final takes place at the Port of Spain
City Hall on January 12, while the final comes off at the Jean Pierre Complex on January 25.
The preliminary round for the Power and Groovy Soca Monarch competitions are
scheduled to take place on January 5 at the Cascadia Hotel, St Ann's. This is the 16th edition of the International Soca Monarch,
the first of which was won by SuperBlue, who is expected to compete next year.
Courtesy: TrinidadExpress.com
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