Mr World Jamaica Tarique Barrett is his own best asset
Published:Friday | November 22, 2024 | 12:09 AMOmar Tomlinson/Contributor
With his eyes fixed on the prize, Mr World Jamaica Tarique Barrett believes that staying true to himself will give him the best chance of taking home the international men’s pageant crown.
“My overall plan of action is to be me, and tell the world my story of an inner-city youth. Just to be the authentic me,” an assured Barrett revealed from Vietnam, the host country for this year’s contest.
The 24-year-old – enrolled in his third year of a marketing and accounts double-major at The University of the West Indies, Mona – is also betting on shoring up valuable points in advance competitions ahead of the big day slated for this Saturday on the Asian continent where he will vie for the top spot with 60 other competitors.
“I was rooting [wagering] on some of the fast-track events like the fitness challenge to see if I could score big in that area. There is also the charity aspect, and I know my financial literacy project, Future Entrepreneurs, where I target inner-city youth in schools, speaks volumes. It’s about making an impact, and I know the world would want to hear about and see such an initiative,” said Jamaica’s representative to the pageant, established in 1996 by the late Miss World founder Eric Morley.
Over the past two weeks, Barrett has immersed himself in Southeast Asian culture and was an active participant in the costume, swimsuit photo, sport, modelling and oratory challenges. He has emerged as a finalist in the costume, ‘Beauty With A Purpose’ (charity) and talent categories.
All this, while fraternising with his 20- and 30-something peers from across the globe, who he divulged took a shine to him. They were very eager to learn Jamaican phrases after seeing him dance to reggae star Shaggy’s 1995 hit Mr Boombastic in the talent competition. “Ever since then, they have always been singing that song. I have been teaching them Jamaican slangs, as they love the accent and reggae music.”
As to his first impressions of Vietnam, Barrett said the most eye-opening has been the biking public. “I was shocked by the amount of motorcycles here. Everywhere you go, you can find a motorcycle. At least 20 are parked in one place [at any given time], and everyone here can ride: grandma, mother, and daughter. In Jamaica, that’s a totally different reality. I am a rider, so I was intrigued by this,” he explained during an interview 12 hours ahead at the Imperial Hotel Vung Tau, where he is checked in until this Sunday.
Guadeloupean Melvin Bartan is Barrett’s assigned roommate for the run of the competition, and the two became fast chums. “Because of our Caribbean cultures, we share a lot of similarities, and this has helped us to form a strong bond,” Barrett divulged of his roommate. “He speaks French though, which I don’t, so we have a glitch sometimes in terms of communication, but he is teaching me a few words, and I am teaching him as well.”
Proudly watching on from the other side of the planet in Kingston, Mr World Jamaica co-franchise holder Dahlia Harris makes no bones about being a cheerleader: “We’ve always been very confident that he would make a great representative. It’s a very strong field of competitors, but he has heart, and he’s been giving it 100 per cent since he’s been there, so we are optimistic that he will do extremely well on the final night,” she forecast.
Furthermore, Harris recalled that on the Jamaican coronation night back in September, the competition was intense. “We had a very strong top five, but I think what gave Tarique the edge was he was strong in most areas, and in those that needed work, he was committed to doing whatever was necessary to improve.”
Already looking to next year’s staging, Harris said about the 2025 pageant, “We hope to attract even more participants from across the island and secure meaningful corporate partners who are invested in the development of our young men and communities.”
She said the rationale to reboot the local leg of the men’s pageant, which had been in dormancy for an extended period, was deemed necessary given the successes of female entrants in the long-running Miss World Jamaica competition.
“We have seen the difference that that pageant makes in the lives of the young women who experience the process. We felt it was important to provide a similar opportunity for young men to develop their confidence and become more involved in social change.”
Transformation so happens to be the linchpin in Barrett’s life story, and he embraces it.
“I am from the Mountain View community of Back Bush, right across from Excelsior High School,” the university student and local pageant winner declared. “Since I won the national competition, I was shocked by the love and the support I was getting from the community. They have me as a champion for the community, this person who is setting an example for the youth to know an inner-city man can represent Jamaica on a platform like this. I can see it from their reactions walking through the community. That fills me up with confidence and a sense of belonging, knowing that I am doing something positive.”
The Mr World finals takes place on November 23 at NovaWorld in the province of Bình Thuận. The reigning winner is Jack Heslewood from England.