Staff writer Eunice Nisbett
The 16th St Kitts Music Festival got off to a great start on 28 June 2012. This year’s roundup sees artistes from Grammy winning awardees to well known Caribbean and local artists. From all reports the first night was a success and expectations are running high for the following nights.
As the Festival goes into the second night, St Kitts welcomes, for the first time, Popcaan, Lovindeer, and I-Octane; and returning artistes Courtney Pine, Morgan Heritage, Damian Marley, and Eric Donaldson.
At a Press Conference this morning the Artistes stated that they enjoyed coming to St Kitts to share their music with the people of the Federation and because of its tranquility. Artistes promised Kittitians a fantastic show bringing together music from across generations, with high energy performances that would educate, entertain and inform fans.
Courtney Pine said that although he had become a regular visitor to St Kitts he had never imagined that one day he would be behind the table representing Jazz. Making the connection between Jazz and Reggae music he noted that many of the earliest reggae artistes had received their inspiration from Jazz music. Courtney says that “there is something special about St Kitts,” which kept him coming back, and to show his dedication and love for St Kitts he would be renaming his latest track with reference to St Kitts and Nevis.
Other artistes at the Press Conference included Morgan Heritage, who thanked the people for their support. He quoted Beres Hammond who had once said “never produce music for awards and what you can achieve; rather sing it for the people.”
The St Kitts Music Festival was first hosted by the Government of St Kitts and Nevis in 1996 in response to the need to create an activity that would enhance the tourism product particularly during the off season (May-October). The Festival is now internationally acclaimed and this year’s event is reaching higher heights.
CaribDirect.com is proud to be one of the official media partners of the St Kitts Music Festival helping to bring the ‘happenings’ to Kittisians and Nevisians around the world.
