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Roll out the red carpet, the stars are coming... the stars are coming!! It was celebrity night here at Queen's Hall as Trinidad & Tobago hosted the 3rd Annual Soca Awards. Let's get some music going... Augusta's 2006 release Sunshine.

Well the Jungle Juice Team was present and in action as usual. Formal attire was the dress code at hand, so we were dressed in our Sunday best for this event. We buss out de dapper threads and ting! You all know de drill. Oh yeah, back to the story.... where were we... right, Red Carpet. The gathering of the stars was scheduled to begin at 5pm, with the walking of the Red Carpet but things were a little delayed and started at about quarter to six.

From looking at the picture gallery, you'll see the order the stars crossed the Red Carpet. A welcoming party of fans gathered at the start of the Red Carpet and excitedly cheered on the stars and guests as they began their walk. Somewhere about the middle of the Red Carpet the stars and guests were stopped for interviews. Synergy TV got the first opportunity and then Radio 105.1 FM. Afterwards, it was time to say "cheese” as stars and guests posed off, allowing photographers from left, right and center a minute or so to capture the moment.

Now besides the whole Red Carpet gathering, several other activities were also taking place. Performances from some of the Soca artistes took place before they took to the Red Carpet. Artists such as Michelle Sylvester and Jamesy P performed their much loved hits before they made their stroll across the carpet. Some Poison masqueraders were also there displaying the band’s 2K6 costumes and adding a special Carnival touch to the festivities. After crossing the Red Carpet both guests and stars alike were escorted into the reception area of Queen's Hall, where they socialized and had a couple of drinks.

Well for some strange reason, like the bar closed off early. We are in belief that the organizers wanted people to be upstairs on time, and closed off refreshments in order to allow people to finish up their drinks and be ready for the start of the actual awards ceremony. Around eight o'clock, everyone was invited to head upstairs and be seated. Denyse Plummer formally started the award ceremony with the singing of the National Anthem. People then took to their seats once more and the show commenced. Now judging from the amount of available seats, the attendance of the 3rd Annual Soca Awards did not seem too overwhelming. During the ceremony we also noticed that quite a few artistes were not present to accept their awards. Some of these artistes were Shurwayne Winchester, 3 Canal, Maximus Dan, Rupee, Bunji Garlin and Faye Ann Lyons.

Besides the presentation of awards, there were more performances that took place from artistes such as Denise Belfon, H2o Phlo, Hitman, Machel Montano and Xtatik and last but not least, KES the band. The award presentation ran for a little more than two hours and had several glitches in it, which may have been a result of either poor organization or lack of help from relevant parties involved. Who knows??!!

Trini Jungle Juice would like to thank the Soca Awards Organization (SAO) for allowing us to share in the celebration. We would especially like to commend Colin Jackman (CJ) for his tremendous efforts in pursuing his dream of one day putting Soca music on the international stage so that the art form can reach its full potential. Everyone is always quick to talk about the negatives, but how many of us are actually promoting and showing appreciation for some of the hardest working folks in the music industry. Keep up the good work SAO. After all, Rome was not built in one day!

Overall results from the show: