Ian “Bunji Garlin” Alvarez, who won the Road March, described his winning soca song, “Hard Fete,” as a people’s song ” with a people’s story from a particular era.”
He stated after the Trinbago Unified Calypsonians Organization (TUCO) revealed the official results on Ash Wednesday, with Bunji winning the Visit Trinidad Road March title after his song was played a total of 135 times at different judging locations, and Nailah Blackman’s Come Home placing second after being played 106 times. Like Yuhself by Machel Montano came in third place after being played 50 times.
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TUCO released a statement claiming that each contender (Blackman and Montano) registered their song by completing the proper TUCO Road March registration forms, despite the fact that Come Home and Like Yuhself were collaborations with Gamal “Skinny Fantastic” Doyle and Patrice Roberts, respectively.
The organization was required to reveal the performers’ identities because of this, it was further said.
The songs were subsequently described as being Hard Fete, registered by Ian “Bunji Garlin” Alvarez and his wife Fay-Ann; Come Home, by Blackman; and Like Yuhself, by Montano through his agent and mother, Elizabeth Montano. TUCO urged individuals to be “so guided.”
While this is Bunji’s first solo Road March victory, he shared the 2019 championship with Famalay, Skinny Fantastic, and Montano.
Bunji said on his Instagram page that his heart was in his hands.
As “these things are promised to no one being,” he began by giving thanks to God. He noted that it selects via the populace, ” It chooses through the people.” His wife was then acknowledged.
“Second thanks to my fellow artiste, wife, soul mate and best friend Fay Ann Lyons-Alvarez on writing with me on this beast of a song and sharing views to get the right execution and delivery off the ground,” Lyons-Alvarez said. The song’s credit lists Fay-Ann as a co-writer.
Gregory “DJ Avalanche” Hodge, the producer, was subsequently complimented for “letting us get to grit on this beat and make some magic.” He expressed gratitude to every “Carnival soul” who helped the song reach its goal.
He continued, “To every single person in every sector of life who stood with this song right to the last I cannot thank you enough. Thank you, thank you, thank thank you, thank you all. We ain’t come for no stand up.”
Bunji received $250,000.
Austin “Super Blue” Lyons, the husband of the winner’s mother-in-law, expressed gratitude for the victory as well, stating, “For all the times I (and someone in the family) won Road March, in every decade it has been (a year) with the number three at the end. I will show you the years that my family and I won Road March.”
He continued by listing the victories, including his songs Rebecca from 1983, Bacchanal Time from 1993, Fay Ann’s Display from 2003, Fabulous Friday from 2013, and now Bunji’s Hard Fete from 2023.
Blackman expressed her admiration for Bunji as an artist in an Instagram post, adding that since the start of the Road March race, “day one in the Road March race it has been nothing but love,” She also offered her congratulations.
“I wanna say thank you to the patrons and fans who have shown Come Home so much love and allows us to make a forever stamp in soca, Carnival, and the culture. Come Home is a love song to Carnival and love is all I’ll ever have to offer,” Blackman noted.
The outcomes were broken down per location by TUCO. It was evident that Olatunji Yearwood’s Engine Room and Blackman’s Come Home were both played 32 and 7 times respectively at the Queen’s Park Savannah, while Bunji’s Hard Fete performed 39 times.
Come Home was played 21 times, Like Yuhself six times, and Hard Fete 39 times in Independence Plaza in Port of Spain.
Hard Fete, Come Home, and Engine Room all had 20 performances at Piccadilly Greens in Port of Spain.
Hard Fete, Come Home, and Engine Room were all played several times at Victoria Plaza in Port of Spain.
Hard Fete was played 12 times in Arima, Come Home 5 times, and Like Yuhself 4 times.
Hard Fete performed three times, Come Home six times, and Engine Room four times in San Fernando.
Like Yuhself got played 40 times, Come Home 13 times, and Montano’s The Spirit 14 times in Tobago.
