Miss World to get Unruly with Popcaan

Dancehall has a new queen.

Days after her crowning glory at the Miss World beauty pageant in London, 23-year-old Toni-Ann Singh is scheduled to attend Unruly Fest, one of the most anticipated dancehall shows for the Yuletide season.

And when she makes her regal appearance on Saturday at Goodyear Oval in St Thomas, the organisers say that there will be a special treat in store for her.

“It was not difficult to get Toni-Ann to agree to come to Unruly Fest because like Popcaan, she is passionate about St Thomas and is always looking for ways to connect with the residents and interact with everyone,” Unruly Fest spokesperson Carleene Samuels told The Gleaner.

“Toni-Ann has made Popcaan, her home parish, and the entire Jamaica proud, and we intend to tell her thank you and celebrate her,” Samuels added, without revealing details.

Shortly after Singh’s win last Saturday, André Sutherland, better known as Popcaan, praised her on social media and posted a video clip of the coronation.

“There’s a total different light shining on St Thomas parish right now, and it makes me very happy to see someone else from the parish flourishing and making us all proud. Go, Toni-Ann. You have me and my whole team support #MISSWORLD2019.”

Prior to travelling to St Thomas on Saturday night, Singh will perform at a cultural concert at Emancipation Park in New Kingston at 7.

Special arrangements were made for the newly crowned Miss World 2019 to return home this Friday for a brief visit, and several events have been planned by the Jamaican Government. She will be accompanied by Julia Morley, chairman and chief executive officer of the Miss World international organisation; Stephen Morley, event director of Miss World; and Toni-Ann’s father, Bradshaw Singh.

Making the announcement at Wednesday morning’s post-Cabinet media briefing, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange labelled Singh’s win a Cinderella story.

Singh will be met at the airport by Grange, Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, Kingston Mayor Delroy Williams, along with other municipal officials and Miss Jamaica co-franchise holders Weston Haughton and Dahlia Harris.

Miss World 2019 will meet with Prime Minister Andrew Holness at Jamaica House on Sunday and pay a courtesy call on Holness, Governor General Sir Patrick Allen, and Opposition Leader Peter Phillips on Monday, when she will depart.

Singh, who has received formal musical training, impressed judges at the 69th edition of the Miss World pageant, held at the ExCeL London, after singing Whitney Houston’s I Have Nothing and confidently answering a variety of questions.

When asked by judge Piers Morgan if she would consider a singing career, she said: “If the door is open, I’ll walk through it.”

She is the fourth Jamaican to win the Miss World title when she beat 111 other contestants representing various countries around the globe.