KINGSTON, Jamaica— The 2021 staging of the Jamaica Rum Festival Virtual Experience, scheduled for Saturday, March 27, promises to showcase the best that the island has to offer in the categories of rum, food and music. Now in its third year, the festival serves to educate patrons on Jamaican rums, the rum-making process, how the spirit can be enjoyed and the variety of the country’s rum offerings.

Appleton Estate will be presenting the Jamaica Rum Festival’s virtual concert, which will be featured during the festival’s run of show on Saturday, March 27, from 3: 00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Starting off the concert is dancehall princess Shenseea. Her magnetic delivery on the JRF stage is sure to attract thousands of viewers to show, given her recent recognition by BET as “Amplified Artist of the Month”.

Sizzla is expected to deliver an electrifying performance, with hits across the ages to appeal to a wide cross-section of viewers.

The show’s headliner, Shaggy will rouse viewers with his signature smooth sound. His versatility will be showcased through his performance of several chart-topping hits over the years.

Speaking to the virtual format of the Jamaica Rum Festival, Valón Thorpe, festival director noted: “Though the working team will miss the rush of a six-day set-up featuring a world-class stage spanning over three acres, this year’s festival will still elicit the same immersive experience via mobile and traditional devices.”

He continued: “We have put in a lot of work behind the scenes to ensure that we meet the requisite checkpoints to ensure that each aspect of our rum culture, represented in previous stagings are translated in a meaningful way to consumers. The team is confident that the tweaks we have made and the extensive time we have put into producing a virtual show will match its physical counterparts and be well-received by consumers, both by supporters and those new to the Jamaica Rum Festival.”

The day’s run of show is free for viewing via the festival’s website, www.jarumfestival.com and the brand’s Facebook and Instagram pages, @jarumfestival and @appletonestateja.

The Jamaica Rum Festival is presented by Appleton Estate in partnership with the Jamaica Tourist Board and the Tourism Enhancement Fund. It is sponsored by Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum, Kingston 62, The Joy Spence Appleton Estate Rum Experience, JWN Academy, Worthy Park Estate, Rum-Bar, Hampden Estate, Rum Fire, Monymusk Plantation Rums, RJR Gleaner Group, Mystique Integrated, M-One Productions, Main Event Entertainment Group, Digicel Jamaica, Scotiabank, R Hotel, Holiday Snacks, Zoetry Resorts Montego Bay, Kaboom Nation and Grace Foods.

Brian Bonitto