From comedy to dancehall, renowned comedian Dwight Samuels was the minute spark in a day of dull performances at the Magnum Kings and Queens of Dancehall auditions at The Wexford Hotel in Montego Bay recently.

The comedian-turned musician gave judges Miss Kitty, Scatta Burrell and Professor Nuts an enlightening, yet engaging lesson on mathematics when he performed a song titled Mathematics.

"I was originally in music before I entered into comedy. Music is my first love," said Samuels who is popularly known as Lieutenant Elmo. He noted that he felt confident about his performance and that he appreciated the judges' input and advice on how to ensure that he makes his craft better.

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The creation of the Magnum Kings and Queens of Dancehall was done to showcase talented male and female artistes, while exposing them to the business aspect of the music industry.

The duo Exposure performed creditably well and according to Professor Nuts, "the song Frass don't have any lyrics but the hook is very catchy".

For Miss Kitty, "it was a very fun song that you could probably bounce to in the club, and while there were no substantive lyrics, it's a fun song".

Last year's contestant Elliot, who made it to the live performance in Kingston, failed to impress the judges at this year's auditions in Montego Bay.

Miss Kitty said: "Elliot that performance no mek it, you haffi try out at a different audition because this was a disappointment."

A moment of comic relief, however, came for the judges and producer when it appeared that some persons were trying out for Heineken Startime as some contestants well into their 50s made an attempt to recapture their youth through roots rock reggae at the predominately dancehall competition.

The overall performances, according to the judges, fell short of what the Second City is accustomed to producing.

"This year, MoBay weak, performances and pool of talent who came out to audition were a huge disappointment. This was the worst batch that I have so far auditioned," Scatta noted.

Exposure did fairly well during their audition in Montego Bay. - Sheena Gayle photos