KINGSTON, Jamaica — The 2020 Jamaica Festival Song Album titled ‘Jamaica Festival 2020 Song Competition’ is now listed at number 13 on the Apple Music Reggae Album Chart.

“This is great news for our country and for the finalists,” said Minister Grange as she reacted to the news.

The 2020 Jamaica Festival Song album entered the chart at number 15 and has climbed two places to 13. It means that ‘Jamaica Festival 2020 Song Competition’ is among the most popular Reggae albums downloaded on Apple Music (formerly iTunes).

“This is a great achievement. It is historic. It is the first time that we have had songs in the entry stage making it to an international chart. This says a lot about the renewed interest being showed in the Jamaica Festival Song Competition. The fact that we have so many established performers participating has been a tremendous fillip and this should encourage others in the future to see the competition for what it is; one of the oldest professional singing contests in the world,” Grange said.

Jamaica Festival 2020 Song Competition features the top 10 finalists this year.

Minister Grange further appealed to the public, particularly members of the Jamaican Diaspora to download and stream the Jamaica Festival Song album and add it to their playlists as it will “send the album further up the charts”.

In addition to the Apple Music platform, the 2020 Jamaica Festival Song album is also available for download and streaming on Spotify, Deezer, Amazon Music and Tidal.

The Jamaica Festival Song Competition is being staged as a virtual event this year due to COVID-19. The live performance show of the competition was broadcast worldwide on Sunday, July 19, and attracted thousands of viewers, the entertainment and culture ministry said.

The winner, to be decided by public vote, will be announced this Sunday, July 26, during a live broadcast on TVJ and online to viewers across the world.

Voting lines remain open for the public to choose this year’s winner. The list of entries and associated voting line follows:

Buju Banton ‘I am a Jamaican’ (876)-444-7701

Xtra Bigg ‘Jamaica a Paradise’ (876)-444-7702

Papa Michigan ‘Jamaica Dance’ (876)-444-7703

Nazzle Man ‘Jamaica Nice’ (876)-444-7704

Shuga ‘One People’ (876)-444-7705

Toots & the Maytals ‘Rise up Jamaicans’ (876)-444-7706

Radix OD ‘The Place to Be’ (876)-444-7707

Freddie McGregor ‘Tun up di Sound’ (876)-444-7708

L.U.S.T. ‘Wave Di Flag’ (876)-444-7709

Sakina ‘We are Jamaica’ (876)-444-7710