New York readies for Groovin’
It’s all systems go for Sunday’s staging of Groovin’ in the Park set for the Roy Wilkins Park in Queens, New York, on Sunday.
A stellar line-up featuring reggae, dancehall and R&B acts is slated to take to the stage — Damian “Junior Gong” Marley, Romain Virgo, Capleton, Busy Signal, and R&B superstar Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds. The organisers have also added a trio of female acts — J C Lodge, Pam Hall and Marcia Aitken — to bring diversity to the stage.
Chief executive officer and founder of the event, Chris Roberts, is pleased with the plans in place for this year’s event, which he predicts will be the biggest ever, noting that the line-up is always a reflection of patrons’ requests.
“Over the past seven years we have presented an array of R&B and pop luminaries. We presented Babyface the first year, when the festival was Reggae Rhythms & Blues. Fans had a blast and expressed that they would love to see him return to the Groovin’ stage for an encore performance. When we made the announcement of his return a few weeks ago, fans were overjoyed.”
Roberts is quick to note that despite the excitement surrounding the R&B act, reggae superstar Damian “Junior Gong” Marley will close Sunday’s show.
“This year we have put the focus solidly on reggae. Every artiste on the roster is a star. The core support for Groovin’ In The Park comes from the Caribbean/Jamaican Diaspora, so reggae is extremely important to them. In our informal survey that we conduct each year, fans tell us more and more of the reggae superstars they would love to see perform. For the first time in the history of the festival, Junior Gong will bring the curtains down on the festival. We also have a written commitment from the New York Park’s department that the show will go until 9:30 pm, which is 90 minutes longer that our traditional 8:00 pm cut-off time,” said Roberts.
“Groovin’ 2017 was a bumper year in terms of attendance. Fans came from not just the Tri-State area, but from Canada, Atlanta, Florida, California, Texas, and even Jamaica. We give thanks and appreciate the support we get each year. This is never taken for granted. Based on the signs since putting out a save-the-date flyer and announcing the full slate of performers, we are expecting 2018 will be our biggest year ever,” he added.
