Teenage Expressions
Kiwayne Jacobs, Observer TEENage writer UWI
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
The TEENage Expressions Tour rolled out yet again and ventured out East as we invaded the Yallahs High School. Yallahs High is our third stop and this is our best tour yet.
Yallahs High School, formerly known as Yallahs Secondary School, is situated in the parish of St Thomas, and is the first school in Jamaica to offer surfing as an extra-curricular option for students.
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| Featured artiste for Yallahs High was Leftside, who was kidnapped by the screaming girls. |
Known for their strong cultural heritage, the school's band kicked off the day with the singing of the National Anthem.
The band then went into a medley of hits that transcended musical genres. Carry Go Bring Come, First Cut Is The Deepest, Dancehall Queen and Hold Him Joe were among the renditions that got the student up and live.
The talent competition went underway at about 1:30 pm Monique Reid performed her dub poem Children, which was well received by the students. Yanique Buchanan performed a song and was applauded for her effort, but it was Jamal Howe and Company, who had the school moving. Their dance routine created a storm and got thunderous roars from the students.
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| Monique Reid does her entry, a dub poem entitled Children. |
The prize giveaways followed the dance routine and the students were bolting to the stage to win a prize. Some guessed, some wondered and the ultimate winners knew the answers.
The Sign Language Club performed R Kelly's The World's Greatest and was duly applauded. Chantell Lamont, the band's lead singer, collaborated with Kerrado Johnson for I Love You. The students went into immediate frenzy to the fantastic performance, which got a well-deserved encore.
Ravil Gohagan's dub poem fell on deaf ears and it was up to Candiese and Company to build back a vibe. Their song Education Is What We Need was enough to re-energise the students.
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| Yanique Buchanan during her performance. |
The SNM Dancers were on point with their dance moves and the students loved every minute of it. Camille's Women Are Taking Over was enough to get the girls dancing. Ironically, Kayon Walker's dub poem Stress was just the reliever everyone was looking for and this earned her an encore performance.
The prizes were going like hot bread and the students were hungry for more.
Prince and Company were next on stage and everyone wanted a piece of the dancing action. Tamika, the final contestant on the day, performed Jimmy Cliff's The Harder They Come and received raved reviews from the students.
In the end, only Jamal Howe and Company stood between Chantell and Kerrado winning the talent competition. The I love You duo came out on top and will move on to the National TEENage Expression Tour Talent Competition.
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| Prince and Company |
The day's guest artiste was none other than the talented Leftside, who struck all the right notes with the students.
His comical spin on Tuck Een Yuh Belly had the school wild with excitement. He went right into Cologne and all the girls wanted to know the brand. When he did She Want My Body, the students went into overdrive and a group of girls drew him off the stage. When order was restored, he performed Mr Evil and Fresh to the students' delight.
Countless autographs were signed and pictures taken of students who were sincerely appreciative of the gesture that showed them how much they really matter.
