Ryan Hoppie, Bibi Halima Khan are GT&T Jingle and Song Competition winners

Jul 06, 2013 News

-judges’ scores coincide with national votes

Guyana has voted, and West Bank Demerara’s Bibi Halima Khan and Georgetown’s Ryan Hoppie have been named this year’s Guyana Stars.
And it seems rightly so, because Guyana’s votes coincided with what the judges had on their scoring sheets. This was according to Sean Bhola of the English segment, and the Bollywood’s Aditya Persaud.
The winners, Khan and Hoppie, each won a Toyota Raum motor car, a BlackBerry Z10 phone, and $1M.
Khan was followed in the Bollywood segment by Essequibo’s Andy Rambharack who earned for himself a BlackBerry Z10 cellular phone, and $750,000.

Ecstatic winners: Ryan Hoppie and Bibi Halima Khan

Likewise, this year’s youngest finalist, Michael Small, copped second position in the English segment, outshining his more mature rivals. He is now the rightful owner of the latest BlackBerry cellular phone, a Z10, and $750,000.
Guyana had about a month to vote, and the much anticipated results were announced yesterday during a simple ceremony at the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T)’s BlackBerry Office on Brickdam in Georgetown.
Like Brandon Harding and Gail Ann Singh, Bibi Khan and Ryan Hoppie have suddenly become household names, with already established fan bases.
Hoppie is a 25-year-old former Saint Joseph’s High School student who grew up in Lodge, Georgetown. He has a passion for Gospel singing and has been doing so from an early age.
On a mission to help Guyana’s young people live better lives, Hoppie founded the ‘Come Alive Network’, a non-profitable organization for youths.
He is also a mentor for the Youth Ambassador Programme undertaken by the United States Embassy.
Upon being named the winner, an overly ecstatic Hoppie said that he is very pleased that Guyana chose him as the winner of the English segment, but added that his rivals are as equally talented.
“I knew that I was a strong contender, but I also knew that the others were equally talented, so while I was hoping for the best, I didn’t know what (yesterday) would bring,” Hoppie said
During the Jingle and Song finale, Hoppie copped the hearts of his audiences when he reinvented Chris Brown’s ‘Crawl’. His smooth performance had the packed National Culture Centre going wild, and received much praises from the judging panel.
Meanwhile, Bibi Khan, the vocal power house as described by the judges, is a mother of two who resides at Vriesland, West Bank Demerara. She is 28, and her eldest child is 11.
Khan grew up singing in Masjids and in Qaseeda Competitions. She then emerged to be the Melody Queen of Region Three.
The cash prize, she said, would help her to further secure the future of her children, while the car that she already had, would be replaced with her brand new Toyota Raum. Her older vehicle would be placed into a taxi service for the purpose of generating additional income. The woman is currently employed with the DAX New Generation Band as a singer.
She was a contestant of the GT&T’s Jingle and Song Competition before, but did not get very far. Nonetheless, Khan believed in dusting oneself off and moving forward, so she did just that. And today, she is looking back to give herself a tap on the shoulder for getting back on the horse and auditioning once again.
Heading into the competition, Khan said that she wanted to mostly make a name for herself, and gaining as much experience as she could.
“I used to always look at the billboards around and say to myself that I want to be on one of those someday. My aim was to make a name for myself. I wanted people to know who Bibi Halima Khan is,” a smiling Bibi Khan told Kaieteur News.
Her last performance was a treat to the NCC audience, and saw the panel of judges lauding her with a standing ovation. She showed off her vocal range by doing short pieces of two filmi songs, as well as a chutney piece that had the audience on its feet.
Following that performance, the vocal powerhouse was also deemed the next Guyana Star and the judges were not wrong.
Both winners, overwhelmed and ecstatic, plan to make good use of the one year contract offered to them by GT&T. Khan and Hoppie described their major support as being their respective families and communities.
The other finalists in the Bollywood segment included Yeataindra Singh Denishwar Bisessar, Eric Sukrah, Reshma Persaud, Devchandra Ramrattan, Bunty Singh, and Haresh Singh.
The English finalists were Lerone Souvenir, Natasha Yhap, Diana Chapman, Lemuel Chester, Dorian Obermuller, T’Shanna Cort, Edward Perez, and Darren Benjamin. The finalists all received BlackBerry Z10 cell phones.
They are all very thankful to the telephone giant for once again promoting young talents, and moving them one step closer towards fulfilling their dreams of making their own music.
So thumbs up to GT&T for pulling off yet another successful year of the Jingle and Song Competition.