Sumfest promoters under fire from Muta and Cordel Green
THE promoters of Reggae Sumfest have come under fire from two prominent music insiders — spoken word performer Mutabaruka and Cordel Green, executive director of the Jamaica Boardcasting Commission — for not having Jamaican reggae artistes as the headliners for the week-long reggae festival.
With more than 40 Jamaican artistes appearing over the three major nights of Reggae Sumfest, the organisers Summerfest Productions were sharpely criticised for the exclusion of a reggae headliner for International Night One and Two headed by American R&B singer/songwriter R Kelly and Trinidad born/New York rapper, singer/songwriter Nicki Minaj respectively.
Both Mutabaruka and Cordel Green used the launch of the Conscious Reggae Party Series at the Bob Marley Museum on International Reggae Day (Friday) to express their disatisfaction with that aspect of Reggae Sumfest scheduled for July 17 – 23rd, at Catherine Hall, Montego Bay.
“A premiere reggae event and we have not seen a premiere reggae artiste. And I am not criticising promoters, I am just saying there is a need for introspection. It is not my fear alone,” Green said.
As is to be expected, Mutabaruka was more caustic in his remarks. “The biggest reggae festival in Jamaica… as we speak there is a festival that is taking place in Germany, weh we was suppose fi deh tonight but we deh yah soh. Is a big reggae festival. If you lose a artiste now and you can’t find him, more than likely him gone a Germany,” Muta stated.
“Jamaica is the land of reggae music. And them having a reggae festival that is suppose to be drawing people from all different parts of the world. So dem sey… Nicki Minaj is a hip hop sistah and a hope and I pray that dem know what dem doing because if yuh listen to that sistah tunes, if you think Vybz Kartel is something else, then yuh need to listen to she,” the controversal talk-show host opined.
He then reminded the large gathering, “The last time R Kelly come a Jamaica him draw off him pants… now the premiere reggae festival out of Jamaica is featuring as the headliners two artistes that don’t do no reggae.”
The Conscious Reggae Series is the hosting of positive, uplifting music through sounds systems, bands, artistes and poets on a weekly basis at different venues across the country.
