He first captured our hearts when he entered the soca circuit with his R&B/soca hit-Get Out My Dreams. With his strong vocal ability, signature style and on-stage presence, he was welcomed with open arms to the arena. Who can forget the awesome "sing-alongs"-Front, Wine Down, Baby Love and Take Your Time? Bringing to the table a new style in soca, Shurwayne Winchester has since been a force to be reckoned with.
Reaching the "big name" status in little time and quite effortlessly at that, he has also captured Carnival's most prestigious title not once, but twice, when he won Road March back-to-back in 2004 and 2005 with his compositions, The Band Coming and Dead Or Alive. He struck gold again in 2006 when he made a clean sweep at the International Soca Monarch competition, taking first place in both the Power and Groovy categories. Winchester, obviously walking in greatness, is also this year's Groovy Soca Monarch defending champion.
The Tobago son, however, says this year, for him, it will not be about defending his title but rather showcasing the talent of T&T to the world. "It's not about defending my title!" he said. "That night is bigger than Shurwayne Winchester or any of the contestants...It is about showcasing a product called T&T. "We all talk about love for country, and God sometimes affords us the opportunity to prove that. "All eyes will be on us globally...there won't be another chance like that. "So I have decided to put country before song."
The competition which will be held on March 4 (Fantastic Friday) at the Hasely Crawford Stadium will stream live over the Internet, courtesy Guardian Media Ltd-official media sponsor for the competition. Adding that the world would be amazed by what they saw on that night, Winchester said: "On that night, I will go out to remind one and all how blessed we are. "What I am going to showcase to the population is totally a different show," he said.
Not worried about competition
Maintaining that competition was not his focus, Winchester revealed that from the moment he entered the soca arena more than a decade ago, he understood the nature of the industry and so he was never worried about the stress of any competition. "In making the decision to enter a competition, I would have already made up my mind that I must prepare myself to give only my best and then some," he said. "Which is why Shurwayne Winchester will put on a performance that will make Trinbagonians feel proud of who they are on March 4."
