Nelson Mandela

NEW YORK (CMC) – A Caribbean publication here has named several Caribbean personalities, including calypso legend the Mighty Sparrow, pop-singing super star Rihanna, winner of The Voice reality show, Tessane Chin and the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt, among its ‘Caribbean People of the Year’.

The Brooklyn-based weekly newspaper, ‘Caribbean People’, owned by Trinidadian businessman Howard Hughes, also named late South African President Nelson Mandela, US civil rights activist the Rev Al Sharpton, Trinidadian soca artist Bunji Garlin, sociologist David Muhammad, businessman Conrad Ifill and Howard University acting president Dr Wayne Fredrick among the top 10 “Caribbean People of the Year”.

The Mighty Sparrow

In its January 3-9 edition, the paper said Sparrow, whose real name is Slinger Francisco, is “one of the greatest entertainers of all times.

“Known as the ‘Calypso King of the World’, he is one of the best known and most successful calypsonians,” it said of Sparrow, who is convalescing in a rehabilitation centre in Queens, New York, after two weeks in a coma in a New York hospital.

RiHanna

‘Caribbean People’ said the Grammy Award-winning Rihanna, whose full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, is “known for consistently reinventing her style and image, most notably since her third album, ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’.

“Rihanna continues to be the most dynamic and leading influential female entertainer throughout 2013,” it said.

The Voice, Tessanne Chin, holds aloft the winner’s trophy during a press conference at the Norman Manley International Airport following her return home. 

The publication noted that Chin is a “reggae fusion recording artist, best known for winning Season 5 of the American singing competition, The Voice.   In recognising Usain Bolt, the paper said his achievements in sprinting have “earned him the media nickname, Lightning Bolt.”

Usain Bolt