SANDRA L BLOOD
Multiple Junior Calypso Monarch and reigning ECU Monarch Zachary “Zach” Ransome, 10, has been no stranger to the stage since age four, but his music career is nonetheless kept in balance by his mom, Morisha Ransome.
School and church always come first amidst his hectic entertainment schedule and successful journey thus far, Morisha said. Despite continued growth of his social media followers (over 10 thousand currently), Zach is said to attend to his pages only after his school assignments are completed, which saw on December 1 at 3pm after his end-of-term test, he released his soca tune, one of his Carnival 2024 contributions titled, "Rankatang", on YouTube.
Written by Jason “Shaft” Bishop and produced by Millbeatz Entertainment, "Rankatang" is a nation-building and tourist-attraction song in which Zach sings about several of the beautiful attractions of T&T.
Zach said of T&T, “Let this be the destination; once you touch down, Zach and sweet T&T will make you Rankatang.”
Rankatang can also be heard on Distrokid, Spotify, Foxfuse. The cover was designed by Kick Back Creative Designs.
For the Christmas season, Zach released his second parang soca song, Sing Zachy Sing, in November, which was composed by calypsonian Prince Unique, and respecting diversity, he’s set to release his second Chutney Soca song, Zachary’s Roti.
Notwithstanding the excitement of the Christmas season, Zach’s quite focused on defending his ECU title and competing in the TUCO Junior Calypso Competition with his fifth calypso, soon to be released.
Manager Morisha said the sky’s the limit for Zach and the journey requires every bit of exposure to any type of empowering education.
Thus, in October, Zach attended the JTB Education Services Soca Workshop at UWI, Trinidad, where he also performed after the session, and with his interest in seeing children do well, he attended eight-year-old, Coryn Anaya Clarke’s Chronicles of Coryn: Children’s Book Festival, at SoundForge.
For the launch of Carnival 2024, Zach was referred to as a baby that opened the show where he honored one of his many icons, Shadow, by performing Bassman.
Apart from his mom who is also an active calypsonian, and dad, songwriter Larry Yearwood, Zach said he’s specially inspired by some soca, calypso, chutney and parang greats both young and old: Sugar Aloes and Baron – also mentors, Shadow, Aaron Duncan, Voice, Ricky Jai, Maria Bhola-Paul, Alicia Jagessar, Tova Lin Sandy and Terri Lyons.
He said he works hard to play hard later, with his friends in tow. In playing hard for worthy causes, Zach placed on his list, those who died as a result of cancer and children that are afflicted with the disease or are specially cared for.
Starting with his grandmom Leonora Ransome who died in 2019 as a result of brain cancer, in May of this year, part proceeds of Zachary and Friends’ (ZF) first annual Funday Fiesta was donated to the Just Because Foundation Cancer Care for Children programme.
Currently, he’s fine-tuning another type of first annual ZF event, this time in the form of a Christmas caravan on Boxing Day structured as a Gift-Giving Distribution and Mini Christmas Concert.
Guided by the motto: “Give A Gift and Make A Child Smile,” ZF plans on putting smiles on the faces of children of three Homes that are based in south Trinidad – El Shaddai Restorative Home for Children at Bonne Aventure Road, Gasparillo (9:30am); Mothers Union Children’s Home on Pouchet Street, San Fernando (11:30am); and Hope Centre, Pointe a Pierre Road, San Fernando (1:30pm). The caravan departs Gasparillo Car Park, Charles Street, Gasparillo at 9am.
Zach is flanked by two of his icons and favourite mentors Baron, left, and Sugar Aloes before performing at T&T's Independence Day concert 2023.
Zach breaks away during his performance of Rankatang for lunch patrons at Atherlys at the Park.
Flyer for Zachary and Friends first annual Christmas Caravan 2023
Mother and manager of Zach, Morisha Ransome.