Monnaie Money 2015
This year’s Black History Month ended with a big bang at the 5th annual Monnaie Money talent show presented by Le Carrefour jeunesse- emploi de Cote- des- Neiges. The state of the art Oscar Peterson concert hall was filled to near capacity with an electric audience of all ages and races. Hosts Former Musique Plus VJ Malik Shaheed along with newcomer Tiffany T navigated through the festivities effortlessly entertaining the crowd.
As advertised the event began at 7pm sharp, I arrived around 7:15pm just in time to hear female vocalist Oneka’s rendition of the John Legends hit , All of Me. From that moment I was looking forward to the rest to come. Act after act brought great energy to the stage giving the spectators their moneys worth. The last act before intermission was a dance duo by the name of PDG that performed to video game theme music. The audience went wild witnessing this creative routine. I witnessed several standing ovations throughout out the room. The bar had been officially set.
During the break patrons were offered gifts from the many sponsors , like TD bank , Tangerine and other financial institutions. The goal of the event is to promote financial literacy. This is so crucial to every community’s survival and success. The vibe was right and the who’s who of the community were there. Great time to meet , greet and network. Some of the familiar faces on hand were Judy’s Ushering services , Taste of the Caribbean Gemma Raye Burns , iconic Dj Mike Tuff Williams just to name a few. Kris Bennet photography captured the moments.
First half of the night ended on a high note and long time promoter Garry T assured me the second half would take things to a higher level. Act two began with Community Contact Editor in Chief Egbert Gaye giving a motivating and uplifting speech. Malik Shaheed also provided some inspirational words for the audience. All in all in was an event driven by positive energy.
My post-intermission standouts were RnB singer Chelsea who put a spell on the people , Urban Chaos dancers for an entertaining performance and 13-yr-old Maia for the most technical routine of the night. While the votes were being tabulated special guest David Lion performed some mind-reading magic that kept the crowd in awe.
The air was heavy with anticipation as we heard words of wisdom from Ivyline Flemming and an announcement from Brian Smith, that he will soon be accepting a positing with an Ontario based not for profit financial group from Ontario setting up shop in Quebec . The top ten were announced with little disapproval from the audience, then down to five and the final three were Urban Chaos , Chelsea and the 2015 Monnaie Money winner was the dancing duo PDG.
All in all, this was great time had by all and I can only see it growing bigger with every year. Visit www.monnaiemoney.com courtesy of Le Carrefour jeunesse- emploi de Cote- des- Neiges.
