By Adrian Frater, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
21-YEAR-OLD Michelle McKoy, of Duhaney Park in Kingston, captured the coveted 'International Dancehall Queen' title at the Pier One Complex in Montego Bay, St. James on Saturday night, when she got the stamp of approval from the eight judges who had the difficult task of selecting
a winner from the 26
contestants.
"I am really happy that I was the one who was chosen," said a clearly elated McKoy, who walked away with $70,000 in cash and the Slam Condoms Trophy for her winning efforts. "I will be using this money to get a few things for myself as well as to help out a few of the needy children in my community."
Crowd favourite 18-year-old Lavern Samuels of Montego Bay, who qualified for the contest at the recently-held Reggae Sumfest 'Dance Class', took the $40,000 second-place prize money and trophy by exciting with her crisp dance moves. The diminutive Samuels was earlier adjudged the 'Best Dressed Contestant.' by the partisan crowd, which rooted for her all night long. Maronie Delva, one of three 'New Yorkers' in the contest, picked up the third-place trophy and $30,000. She also won the sectional trophy for the 'Best Choreographed Dance Routine'.
TROPHIES
Despite falling short in 'bubbling and gyrating' department, Kadisha Lewis and Tamicka Walters took home trophies for finishing fourth and fifth respectively. "We are rather pleased that despite the heavy rains earlier in the day, we were still able to stage the contest, albeit that we had a late start," said Brian Martin, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Big Head Clothing and Pure Playazz, the promoters of the 11-year-old event. "Dancehall Queen is getting bigger and bigger each year and are now well known internationally."
Despite the venue being jam-packed from as early as 11:00 p.m., the show did not start until about 12:40 a.m. However, when it did, it did so with a bang, as the popular Guns & Roses Girls, led by former Dancehall Queen Keisha Campbell, took the stage by storm with a dazzling dance routine. Clad in gangster-style black leather outfits and dark glasses, the Guns & Rose girls ended up making both a fashion statement as well as giving a dance class. It was all appreciative screams from the crowd as they unleashed flashy dance moves to songs such as Beenie Man's Dude and Baby Cham's Vitamin S. With the crowd still in a frenzy, the Guns & Roses girls made way for the 26
contestants, who danced their way to centre stage, looking quite elegant in their mixture of gold and blue skimpy outfits. There was one moment of
genuine humour when one of the contestants, in introducing herself, declared that, "I am 23 years of ages."
In between the various stages of eliminations, which ranged from the top 10 the top five, patrons were treated to series of novelty contests, which included give-aways and an enticing dancehall/fashion revue, courtesy of the Hardcopy Cover Girls, the Mahogany Dancers and the Guns & Roses Girls.
The crowd was later lifted to the peak of excitement by the fire-dancer, 'Mr. Bombastic', who drew loud applause as he did the 'Pon the River' and 'Signal the Plane'. His fire routine failed to spark since he had difficulty lighting his cotton balls. When the big moment came close to 5:00 a.m., last year's Dancehall Queen, the Japanese Junko Bashment, ended her reign with an electrifying dance, which evoked memories of last year. She later assisted in crowning the new queen, placing a dazzling silver crown on her head as the local and international media closed in for interviews.
