What could have been a disaster of a show for promoters turned into a delightful evening of entertainment at the inaugural Love Jamaica Music and Food Festival.

Held at UWI Bowl in Mona, St Andrew, an hour delay in the show’s announced start time had audience members growing iincreasingly impatient to experience the action-packed night promised.

However, the annoyance plastered across their faces quickly transformed into smiles accompanied by screams of pleasure as soon as the opening act graced the stage.

From the very first note delivered by the 2024 Digicel Rising Stars winner, Akeen Fennel, it became evident that the show was about to serve up a thrilling musical experience.

Fennel’s welcome may not have been the warmest. However, by the time the singer was through with his set the crowd gave him his due respect, as he masterfully handled a brief sound cut with some powerful vocals. He even got the audience to sing along a capella as organisers feverishly worked behind the scenes to restore the audio.

Picking up exactly where the music let off, Fennel continued to woo the crowd as he serenaded the ladies with a soulful medley of hits, which included Shaggy’s Mr Boombastic, Daddy Screw’s Model Pan Yuh One Time Man, and Dexa Daps’ Breaking News and See Mi Bed.

He then made way for L.U.S.T, who then took the show to new musical heights. Despite being a man down, with a member of the quartet being snowed-in in America, the group did not miss a beat. Delivering an hour-long set, the trio of Lukie D, Tony Curtis and Singing Melody showed exactly why they remain one of the most-sought-after ensembles in local music history.

Coming to the aid of their musical brother, Tony Curtis and Singing Melody had the audience laughing as they helped Lukie D remove his close-fitting jacket. Lukie D had his ‘clapback’ moment when he assured Singing Melody that he was allowed to jump about the stage and shouldn’t worry too much about the rhinestones on his pants. Laughter aside, L.U.S.T’s performance had something for everyone’s enjoyment. Songs like You’re the Inspiration, Shower Me With Your Love, Centre of Attraction, and Garnett Silk’s Splashing Dashing and, of course, Just As I Am.

Following L.U.S.T. was R&B singing sensation Joe. One half of the international line-up for the evening, the entertainer entered the stage donning a bright yellow suit paired with a leopard print undershirt. With vocals as pleasing to the ear as his attire was to the eyes, Joe had the audience — particularly the ladies — mesmerised.

Joe loved on his local fanbase by delivering some of their favourites including All The Things, The Love Scene, Ride Wit You, What If A Woman, and crowd-favourite
I Wanna Know.

But the singer didn’t just rely on his popular hits to connect with the crowd. Serving up a pleasant surprise, Joe triggered screams when he delved into a rendition of the late Gregory Isaacs’ Night Nurse. Going even further to display his love for Jamaican music, he also described Dawn Penn’s widely popular hit single, No No No, as one of the “sexiest” songs ever recorded.

He said Jamaicans had been “rocking with me for over 30 years, I appreciate you”.

The seemingly satisfied crowd by this had shrugged off the disappointment of the start and was pleased with promoters holding to the promise of performances of the highest calibre.

A timeless talent, Sanchez, took to the stage and proved just why he is one of Jamaica’s most beloved entertainers. The singer served up a masterclass in music and had the crowd savouring every note as he drew on a bevy of classics from his extensive catalogue, including Pretty Girl, Loneliness Leave Me Alone, Let Me Love You Down, Are You Still In Love With Me, Brown Eye Girl, Fall In Love, and Frenzy.

But if his arsenal of songs catering to the ladies weren’t enough to keep the crowd captivated, Sanchez took the audience ‘to church’ as he delivered a prayerful rendition of Amazing Grace. He then carried on with Praise Him and Never Dis Di Man.

Closing acts, The Manhattans, ended the show on a high, as the trio also ran through several crowd-favourites. With more than five decades of history in the entertainment industry, they thrilled with timeless music and sharp choreography. They drew on
No Me Without You, Never Find Another Like You, My Shining Star, and
I Wanta Thank You. Thanking their Jamaican fan base for their unwavering support since the 1970s, the group fittingly ended their set with their 1976 global hit single, L
et’s Just Kiss And Say Goodbye.

Highlighting that there is an obvious gap in live shows that cater to mature audiences, the festival’s promoter, Richard “Richie D” Martin told the Jamaica Observer that he just wanted to bring quality entertainment to an audience that’s not catered to as much.

“I’m a deejay and a lover of music and I know for a fact that there is a void for a certain age group in entertainment so my concept was to bring together three generations on one night. There are so many young things going on, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but this is timeless music and people want to hear more of it,” he said. “I feel good about the show’s infusion of RnB and Reggae… I am happy with the outcome despite the challenges we experienced, and now it’s time to go back to the drawing board and see what we can improve on for next year.”