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<p>Former International
Soca Monarch King, Dr. Machel Montano, brought the royal sounds of Soca to the
East Coast, as he attended the highly-anticipated Diamond Ball on Thursday
evening. </p>
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<p>The legendary Soca singer,
who received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from the University of Trinidad and
Tobago late last year for his various contributions to the musical landscape
for close to 4 decades, joined some of the best in the global music and
entertainment industries for the lavish affair in the heart of New York City. </p>
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<p>Diamond Ball is an
annually-held philanthropic event, hosted by Robyn “Rihanna” Fenty and her
Clara Lionel Foundation and has quickly become one of the must-attend soirées
on the US celebrity social calendar. Rihanna established the Clara Lionel
Foundation, named in memory of Rihanna’s maternal grandparents, Clara “Dolly”
and Lionel Braithwaite, to support and fund groundbreaking and effective
education, emergency response programs around the world, while also aiming to
improve the quality of life for young people everywhere.</p>
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<p>Montano paid tribute to
his “Bajan sister” in a touching post to his Instagram, which included a beaming
photo of him with the award-winning singer and CEO of Fenty Beauty, Savage
Fenty, and Fenty Paris. “Thank you @badgalriri for throwing an incredible event
last night with such positive initiatives, including emergency relief for The
Bahamas,” he captioned. </p>
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<p>He also commended the Roc Nation group for the opportunity to bring “the island vibes to the #DiamondBall.” Some notable Caribbean personalities in attendance included Jamaica’s legendary dancehall singer, Supercat, Martinican-born Chief Content and Creative Officer of Essence Magazine and Essence Fest, Moana Luu, and Honourable Mia Mottley Q.C, LL.B., the Prime Minister of Barbados. Several members of the Hip Hop community were also spotted on the red carpet, including Grammy-award winning rapper Cardi B and her husband Offset of Migos fame, Kehlani, ASAP Rocky, Normani, and 2 Chainz, among other superstar invitees.</p>
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<ul><li><a href="https://buzz-caribbean.com/article/fifth-annual-diamond-ball-a-huge-success-rihanna-grateful-for-huge-support/">Fifth annual Diamond Ball a huge success — Rihanna grateful for huge support</a></li></ul>
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<p> Much to the delight of specially-invited guests and scores of fans, Montano, also known by his latest sobriquet “Monk Montè”, also took to the Diamond Ball stage during the performance set of chart-topping entertainer, DJ Khaled. Dressed in a white and black polka dot matching set with pristine white sneakers, Montano quickly energized the crowd in true kingly fashion, as he was seen in now-viral video clips circulating online performing “Famalay”, which is his tune with Skinny Fabulous and Bunji Garlin that earned the trio the Trinidad Carnival 2019 Road March title. </p>
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<p>Megan Thee Stallion – who recently signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation management team – and singer, songwriter and super-producer Pharrell Williams were some of the other megastars that rounded off the night’s scintillating performances at the event, which went well into the wee hours of the morning.</p>
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<p> Machel hinted via his social media that new music is in the works, as he was sighted in studio with Senegalese-American singer, songwriter, and record producer Akon.</p>
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<p><strong><em>— Story written by Tenille Clarke</em></strong></p>
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