KINGSTON, Jamaica — American singer, actress and television presenter Dionne Warwick says she enjoys the reception that she gets whenever she performs for her Jamaican audience.

The veteran multi-Grammy winning multi-platinum selling vocalist whose career started in the 1960s, made the statement in an interview with Observer Online last week.

Warwick headlines the Coveside Concerts series Timeless, which gets underway on March 29 at Plantation Cove in St Ann.

“The reception amongst the audience in Jamaica is phenomenal. People have shown up to my concerts over the years and have been very supportive,” said Warwick, who last performed in Jamaica at the 2013 staging of the Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival which was held at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium.

She is known for a stellar string of hit songs which have dented the Billboard, UK and international charts over the decades, including fan favourites such as Do You Know the Way to San Jose, I Say a Little Prayer (she recorded the original version which rose to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967), Don’t Make Me Over, Walk on By, Then Came You with The Spinners (her first #1 song on the Hot 100 in 1974), I’ll Never Love This Way Again, Déjà vu, No Night So Long, Heartbreaker, All the Love in the World, How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye with Luther Vandross and the song that raised millions for charities, That’s What Friends Are For.

Asked if she knew how popular she was in Jamaica, Warwick said “I don’t think any artist can truly gauge their popularity with their audience. I do appreciate the support received throughout the years.”

In 2013, she recorded a reggae version of the BJ Thomas 1969 classic Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head, which was produced by her son Damon Elliott. Enigmatic Jamaican musicians Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare worked on the track.

Warwick recalled meeting the late reggae king, Bob Marley.
“Yes, it was a wonderful meeting. Bob was truly a gentleman who introduced me to his family all those years ago. A great man,” Miss Warwick recalled.
Although she is approaching her mid-80s, Warwick is very active on social media platforms including X (formerly known as Twitter) and she interacts with her fans on a regular basis.
She gets a thrill seeing young fans at her shows and those who have discovered her music in recent years.

“Yes, they are listening and discovering me as well as my music,” she said adding “I sure do (get a thrill seeing) the young folks who are being exposed to great music.”

Pressed on what fans can expect at her upcoming performance in Jamaica, Warwick said “Me! Sharing the music with fans. I’m enjoying doing what I love the most.”

Warwick, who hosted the television music show Solid Gold in the 1980s (which aired on JBC-TV), is the second most charting female vocalist during the rock era from 1955-1999.

She ranks #74 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

In 2019, she received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Timeless will also feature performances by Jamaica’s first lady of Jazz Myrna Hague, together with Queen of Reggae Marcia Griffiths, and Duane Stephenson.
– Kevin Jackson