Regional cellular phone giant Digicel hosted a cocktail event on Wednesday night to introduce its local sponsor assets for the year.
Sponsor assets refer to the cultural ambassadors selected by the company to represent its brand with their individual essence of excellence in achievements hence boosting the company’s association with providing the best of quality in every sphere of its operation. Richard Gill Digicel’s Marketing Director said at the event his company has seen it fit to invest millions in these Guyanese over an initial 12-month period.
They include the designing pair of Michelle Cole and Trevor Rose who make up Facts ‘n’ Roses, soca artistes Malo, Jomo and Adrian Dutchin of X2, Kai dancers Melissa (Vanilla) Roberts and Ronda Dunbar, Parkside Steel Orchestra, Slingerz Family, radio personality Rocky Carew and race car ‘pilot’ Mark Vieira.
All of the company’s chosen cultural ambassadors are well known to Guyanese sporting fans having distinguished themselves in their areas of expertise.
Vieira has won several events at the South Dakota Circuit where he is the lap record holder competing in a second generation Mazda RX7. He is dubbed Sir Mark because of his prowess on the tarmac.
Carew has been in the music business for many years. He essentially made his name spinning discs in parties, night clubs and other events before adding radio to his list of top DJ assignments.
Slingerz Family was formed in 2001 by four young men and since that time has moved into the top tier of local sound systems. The group also promotes events and has been responsible for a number of large shows including Baby Cham in April 2005 and November 2006 as well as Stone Love Movement in December 2006. It also hosts two radio programmes on Monday and Thursday on local radio as well as ‘Slingerz Hits from the Streets’ every Saturday on CNS Channel Six.
The authentic musicians in the Parkside Steel Orchestra have indeed shown their mettle as cultural ambassadors having shone in the Caribbean seven-a-side competition in Barbados where only the Trinidadian team could better them. The steel band started as a pastime of past Bishops High School and Queens and Presidents Colleges students and has now taken the reigns from the former champs Roy Geddes Silvertones Steel Orchestra having won the national steel band competition five out of the last seven competitions held.
Taking their name from the spirit of old Kai the figure in the legend of Kaieteur Falls the group comprising of Melissa (Vanilla) Roberts and Ronda Dunbar are two exciting and energetic young ladies when they take the stage to dance. The ladies have travelled around the region dancing for St Lucian-born artiste Gillo among several other achievements. They both augmented their skills at the National School of Dance. Vanilla also made a name for herself this year when she captured the Road March title for her song ‘Queen of the Band’.
X2 hardly need introduction, bringing two times everything, having been one of the first groups in a long time that was able to achieve universal appeal locally. The duo for whom the sky is the limit have taken their combined talent to Barbados, St Lucia, Antigua, Canada, England, and the US. They have also garnered hits locally, in Suriname, St Lucia and Costa Rica.
Digicel’s other performing fire starter is Malo who has been performing since the age of 15. He was selected along with his then band Pinnacle to make a trip to Barbados that was seminal in the development of his career. Having lost his band in Barbados he was given the opportunity to open for many major acts including Rupee, Allison Hinds and Square One, and Krosfyah. Having noticed his career was stuck Malo returned to GT where he copped the Soca Monarch title this year. He has now entered his song “Rugged and Tough” in the International Soca Monarch competition.
Michelle Cole and Trevor Rose have made a name for themselves both individually and as a team epitomizing the phrase ‘game recognizes game’.
The two have walked away with this year’s most prestigious designing award for their work on Digicel’s Mashramani float hence it is no surprise they are among those cultural ambassadors selected by the cell phone giant.
