Saving the best for last
THE Behind the Scenes series held at Usain Bolt’s Tracks & Records on Constant Spring Road came to a thunderous end with a ‘surgical’ performance from the ‘doctor’ Beenie Man on Tuesday night.
The seasoned veteran closed his nearly two-hour set by sharing the stage with current friend and long-time rival Bounty Killer, bringing the house down, as both rallied through the hits that made their careers.
“I’ve been in this business over 22 years now. From dem a sell 45 right up to MP3s. These songs will never die,” Beenie Man said to the happy audience.
His fans poured into Tracks & Records from 10:00 pm, with only eyes for him. This made it difficult for the opening acts to gain any traction. Not even 2014 Magnum Queen Candy K could break the ice as the audience showed their indifference. It took a quick set from Future Fambo to put any visible signs of life into the venue.
Two hours of waiting, at the stroke of midnight, all was forgiven as Beenie Man took to the stage to overwhelming applause. A quick medley of his popular hits had the crowd singing along in delight. Beenie Man’s extensive back catalogue meant there was more than enough ammunition to keep the spotlight on himself, but he reached deep into the versatility his fans adore him for.
Mid-show, he provided his own retrospective on his back-and-forth with Bounty Killer, not only singing unforgettables like Memories, but doing Bounty Killer impersona-tions. This was only a hint of things to come. His singular energy was stopped for two only brief moments when he brought Chi Ching Ching for their collaboration Way Up Stay Up and Future Fambo to do I’m Drinking.
In the closing moments, the tease was over and Bounty Killer joined on Beenie Man on stage for Legendary. Claiming he wasn’t going to do just one song, both men thrilled the fans to the last minute, providing a chronological rendition of the songs in a rivalry that defined a generation of dancehall.