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TEDxPortofSpain 2019 Speaker: Elizabeth Montano

Elizabeth Montano

After graduating with Distinction from Mausica Teachers College in 1971, Elizabeth Montano (Lady) started her career as an educator and teacher. In 1977 she made the University’s honourable performance list when she received her Certificate in Education with Distinction. By 1979 she was awarded her Degree in Education; also with Distinction. That was quickly followed by her appointment as a Guidance Officer, a position in which she served for nine years before taking early retirement in 1989. Her career has juxtaposed Academia and supporting the meteoric rise of her son’s career. Under her guidance, Machel became one of the most successful Soca/Calypso artists in the world. As if she wasn’t busy enough, Lady found time in 2006 to dive back into academia at the University of the West Indies and graduated with a Diploma in ACEM (Entertainment Management with Distinction).

2014 was a significant year as it marked her retirement as Machel’s manager and the start of another deep dive into academia. In 2018 she was awarded an MPhil in Cultural Studies. Lady took pride in shining an academic lens on the career she helped build. Her research thesis entitled ‘The Making of Monk Monte: Creativity and Commodification in Trinidad and Tobago popular culture’ discusses her experiences and maps out a road to success that did not exist before she charted the course. As a “retiree” she co-lead Machel Montano Foundation for Greatness; headed the family’s Chocolate Company – Montanos’ Chocolate Co. Ltd.

Additionally, she straddles the roles of Author and Director of several companies in the Montano empire. “Liz Montano” – “Lady” – “Elizabeth Montano” whichever you chose is synonymous with success in the soca world because of the pivotal role she played in nurturing the career of Machel Montano. Her accomplishments are no less impressive. Her fans can anticipate the publication of Memoirs because that’s the next goal on “Lady’s agenda.”