Capleton’s ‘St Mary’ returns home
Annual charity show A St Mary Mi Come From will return to its original home for the 2019 staging.
Capleton and his team, who have staged the event since 1998, with proceeds going to various charities in the parish located on Jamaica’s north-eastern coast, have decided to return to the Gray’s Inn Sports Complex in Annotto Bay this year after trying their hand at a Corporate Area staging last year.
Capleton’s manager Claudette Kemp told the Jamaica Observer that the deejay remains passionate about the event and the areas of health and education which benefit each year.
“We really never left St Mary. The parish was always at the forefront of our thoughts even last year when we took the drive-out and brought it to town. It was really our hope that the people of St Mary would have seen it as a drive-out and made the trip with us. Right now they are working on the Junction Road, so by the time the show comes around that road will be finished so the people from Kingston can come over and join us in St Mary. So we have decided to return and the event will be held on Saturday, November 9.”
Last year, the event was staged at the National Arena in Kingston. Torrential showers had in previous years threatened the show and, therefore, the decision to bring the show to the Corporate Area and find an indoor venue which would not be affected by the vagaries of the weather. However, the event did not bring in the expected numbers and the police moved in to close down the event in keeping with the stipulations of the Noise Abatement Act.
“St Mary Mi Come From is really an outdoor type of reggae festival. Bringing it indoors cuts down on the full enjoyment of the event and, therefore, we must take it back to where it can be staged in an authentic setting. It was never our intention to leave St Mary. This show belongs to the parish in every sense and we are definitely returning to our roots,” Kemp further explained.
Come March 5, Capleton and A St Mary Mi Come From will be recognised by the Jamaica Reggae Industry Association’s (JaRIA) at its annual honour awards for its extraordinary impact on the reggae industry.
