Miss Liberia Contestants: Who are They, Really?
Hello, my dear readers, I’m back with an update on the road to the coronation of her majesty, Miss Liberia. After 5 long years, the pageant is finally taking place tomorrow, July 23, 2022. Like many of you, I have followed our queens for some time now through their social media posts, interviews, and projects. With the available information, I still wonder if the Miss Liberia contestants have shared enough about their personalities with the public. Likewise, out of what they have shared, I also wonder if it is enough to enable us make a decision on them that goes beyond beauty or tribal politics.
As these thoughts roamed my mind, I decided to direct them at the source and speak with the queens to know them better. In that conversation, they provided diverse perspectives that, admittedly, left me quite impressed. However, if you know me by now, you should know that I’m a bit more analytical than what is presented at face value. As such, let me share with you the analysis at which I have arrived based on observations of our queens so far.
Miss Liberia Current Events
With the final showcase only few hours away, the entire week has been abuzz with conflicting debates. Among those debates was how strong the voices of the contestants were in comparison to their pretty faces. Although, from the perspective of this writer, the contestants are yet to showcase the personalities they intend to have represent the crown beyond Liberia. Let me tell you why.
Following their respective journeys, many of the contestants chose to focus on the beauty part of the pageant. Many of them routinely take to social media to share elaborately structured photo shoots featuring perfectly made up faces. With the photos came short captions that explained the voting process, but not necessarily why people should vote for them. While we were exposed to many photos of the various contestants, we rarely heard what the queens sounded like. This inability to connect with the public beyond photos left a disconnect as to the relatability of the contestants beyond tribal ties.
Organizers Role
Notwithstanding, the Miss Liberia organizers, XL Entertainment set very strict guidelines for the contestants. With those guidelines came trainings on how they should approach their public personas. In those perfectly crafted personas, they were advised to steer clear of anything that could be considered controversial. However, presenting perfection only made the contestants appear a bit unrelatable. Although, to add voices to their undeniably beautiful faces, the organizers also scheduled several interviews. However, many of the interviews fell flat because sharing their voices with the public did not seem to be a priority for the contestants. As such, many contestants only shared photos from those interviews to their social media profiles. Up until recently, social media was not privileged to the voices of these women, until an interview with Vlogger, Royda Urey, was shared. So, I ask, dear readers? Who are these contestants? Really?
Who are the Miss Liberia Contestants, Really?
When we joined the zoom call for our conversation, I was welcomed with bright smiles and inquisitive eyes from the potential queens. I smiled back, after all, I was in the presence of Liberian royalty. After introductions, I asked them a series of questions, each answering sincerely after the next. From those answers, I realized that our queens are just like us in many ways. They love to laugh, dance, have fun with friends, and make others feel good. They all want to live out their lives silencing the negative noise while bettering themselves. Additionally, Many of them want to be liked and respected by their peers. Likewise, they want the opportunity to follow their passions and make their country proud. Most importantly, though, they want to have their dreams come true.
As the conversation continued and I watched the contestants, I was stricken by the casual camaraderie between them. It was almost like a sports team, where every member secretly wants to be the superstar on the team. Although, with this team, that competitive spirit doesn’t stop them from fostering friendships and playing their part for their overall success. Ultimately, though, everyone knows there can be only 1 captain and MVP at the end of the season.
Previous Reign
Projecting perfectly crafted, unreal personas is part of the reason there are now conflicted opinions on the true personality of Miss Liberia, Wokie Dolo. Many opinions are in support of her reign as queen, while others do not believe she was a true embodiment of the crown. She showed one side of herself on the way to the crown, then showed another side as time went on. To be fair though, it must be difficult to keep up a charade for 5 long years. For this reason, it was refreshing to have a queen stand boldly in her truth, despite conflicting public opinion.
I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t want more newsworthy public interactions from the Miss Liberia contestants. It’s one thing to post a photo shoot if your focus is to be an influencer or model. Although, as a pageant queen, there has to be diversity in what is brought to the scene. There should be diversity in projects, interests, and content, among others. As we have seen so far, the queens who understand this most are the ones trending most. With just few hours to the main show, you can learn more about these contestants here.
Conclusion
Not until tomorrow will we get to meet these Miss Liberia contestants in all their glory. It is tomorrow, that we get a real glimpse into their personalities and whether or not they are confident enough to command an audience. However, even then, we won’t really know our next queen until the crown settles on her head. Although, my dear readers, I will be back immediately after the show, and will continue to be here reporting on our next queen as her reign continues. Hopefully, she’s able to mold for herself and the public a persona that is rave-worthy. Because let’s be frank. We will never truly know her, because we can never truly know anyone.
Unfortunately, I still do not have an answer for you about who our queens really are, except that they are just like you and me in many ways. So vote wisely, because whoever becomes our next queen, we will need to live with for the next… Well, who knows exactly how long? Haha. See you next week!
