LAST week the TEENage Expression Tour travelled to central Jamaica, for the second time in three weeks, to experience the many talents of Jamaican TEENs.

The students of Clarendon College quickly filled the school’s auditorium and waited, many impatiently, for the activities began.

The show kicked off with host Jamaica Observer Ltd’s marketing officer Kesi Asher, who thanked the staff for accommodating the TEENage Expression Tour, and the students for the creative pieces the line-up included.

The first performer to the stage was Lamar Lilly, whose skilled solo drum performance was a real hit. He showed versatility with his melodies, giving the crowd some older tunes then stepping it up with more modern material, one of which was his version of Major Laser’s Pon Di Floor rhythm.

The Certified Girls showed off their acting and dancing skills to inspire the crowd through their skit about a woman trying her best to succeed despite the many challenges life puts in her way.

Next to the stage were the Ghetto Stars, who showed off their dance and acrobatic skills in a high-energy performance. Following them was Calvin Wright’s solo steel drum piece and although not as active, he kept the crowd bouncing, as he set the stage for Kashima Thomas. Kashima sang with a powerful and amazing voice that was well-received.

Up next was the Clarendon College drama group which gave a very realistic performance, and went as far as to having of the actors ‘peeing himself’ onstage to give the audience the full effect of the beating he was told to ‘position’ for! That, of course, brought many startled comments from students, teachers and, of course ,the TEENage team.

The Dreamers were next to entertain, and that they definitely did. Their cover of Boys II Men’s hit song End of the Road had the young ladies screaming at every note. Taking it down a notch, Trishana Sinclair performed a modified version of Gyptian’s hit song Serious Times.

Oswayne Thomas pumped up the tempo with his drum solo. The beats definitely had the crowd rocking from side to side as he, too, gave his own version of the popular Pon di Floor rhythm.

The energy moved from Oswayne to the girls’ group Chicas Calientes who combined drama and song in their performance which expressed some of the pitfalls of being in a relationship.

Probably the most high energy act of the day was the Khaos Dancers who performed a dance routine that truly electrified the crowd. The boys flipped, spun and glided their way across the stage, sometimes performing moves that seemed to defy gravity!

Black Venom was next up and the group a great performance as they moved in sync with each other and the music.

Although the guest artiste usually performs last on the programme, a slight change was made and local artiste Konshens took the stage and had students screaming and singing along as he performed a slew of his hit songs, including the ever popular Go With The Flow. He even made a student’s day by giving her his jacket.

As usual, Mixing Lab had the student clammering for more of his beatboxing.

The deejay duos were not forgotten. Globis and Viper and Scanky and T-Mac entertained the audience with their lyrics and talented deejaying skills.

After being wowed by Konshens, Mixing Lab and Stretch, Shenee Balgrove took the stage and excited the crowd with her amazing Michael Jackson routine.

After a number of great performances the judges tallied their scores and ended with a dance crew winning at each level. The tie for third was shared between the Clarendon College drama club and the Ghetto Stars. In second place was the acrobatic Black Venom dance crew, but winning the Clarendon College leg of the TEENage Expression Tour with a chance to represent their school at the showdown next July was Khaos Dancers.

TEENage wants to say special thanks to Kaniel Gordon, who was the sound technician for the day.

Last week’s event was certainly entertaining, with diverse talents being displayed, most of which were the participants’ own creations.