Too late!

The first controversy of Crop-Over 2010 is here.The DAILY NATION can reveal today that a number of calypsonians who competed at last Friday’s semi-finals of the Banks/LIME Pic-O-De-Crop competition are up in arms over a decision by the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) to provide them with requests to change or remove lyrics at an extremely late stage.Reliable sources informed the DAILY NATION that on the same evening the 18 semi-finalists took the stage, ten were provided with letters from the NCF’s lawyers, requesting that they either change lyrics in their songs or remove them altogether, since those lyrics could get the event organisers in trouble regarding defamation.That forced a number of singers to grab pen and paper and make changes or even remove parts of verses before facing the judges at the National Stadium hours later.Manager of the De Big Show tent, Merle Niles, told the DAILY NATION all competitors knew their lyrics would be vetted, having provided them to the NCF last Saturday, hours after the semi-finalists were named.But she believes the time-line before the NCF returns them is too short. “What I believe would allow the NCF to better vet 36 songs is to have all calypsonians who register before judging, to present their lyrics to the NCF there and then.“That would allow the Foundation enough time to choose a panel of lawyers to look at all lyrics before the actual semi-finalists are decided. If that is done, by the time 18 semi-finalists are chosen after judging nights, they would all have time to make any adjustments or changes.”The DAILY NATION understands that former monarch John King, TC, Crystal Cummins-Beckles, Blood and Colin Spencer were all forced to make changes before competing last Friday night.All five still made this week’s finals scheduled for Kensington Oval.De Big Show had four representatives in the semi-finals, those being former kings the Mighty Gabby and King, as well as TC and Sheldon Hope.King is more concerned with what he called “pettiness” than the fact that he received notice a couple of hours before taking the stage.“I had to change both my songs, but in a way that gives me the opportunity to make my songs even stronger,” the outspoken King said yesterday.“What I am more worried about, is the pettiness of this whole thing. Barbadians in general seem to be way too sensitive about name calling, which is part and parcel of calypso, and always has been.”King said calypsonians remain aware of defamation and its consequences, but he was concerned the art form would be reduced to artistes singing “hymns” in the future, and not hard-hitting songs that delve into Barbadian society.“What people don’t realise is that calypsonians too have their names called, and we roll with the punches every year. There has to be some level of understanding and common sense when it comes to lyrics and how calypsos are composed and sung. Let’s be honest, people do know the truth is the truth, and that’s what it comes down to,” the former king concluded.The DAILY NATION also contacted TC, but she was in the middle of preparing for yesterday’s competition at Bushy Park, and unable to comment.Wayne Simmons, the NCF’s corporate communications specialist, said yesterday he was unaware of details surrounding exactly when the artistes received the legal requests, but that the matter would be investigated.