BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - WITH the 2016 staging of the annual St. Kitts Music Festival marking 20 years of existence, Minister of Tourism the Hon. Lindsay Grant has reflected on the earlier days.
Launched last evening (Apr. 8) in a glitzy atmosphere at Palm Court Gardens, Minister Grant explained that the Festival which started as a simple idea has blossomed into an unmatched event over the last 19 years.
He noted that over the years the event has stayed true to its decor and the committee’s vision of creating a different type of festival.
“To what was the prevailing trend towards Jazz and Blues throughout the Caribbean, we wanted a unique advantage and created a more diverse formula for a festival in a period where Jazz and Blues were very much king.”
The Minister, who was with the Festival during the early stages, said that during those years he could attest to the strength of the Kittitian spirit.
To this end, he pointed out that the when the event started the committee believed that the people were capable of undertaking such a festival, noting that citizens and residents “must be empowered to rise to the occasion in the interest of the nation”.
“Now some 20 years later, the St. Kitts Music Festival is an annual premier event on the worldwide calendar. And so on Wednesday the 26th of June 1996 the St. Kitts Music Festival, affectionately known at the time as the Shak Shak Music Festival, burst onto the festival scene. The grounds of Carnival Village were a melting pot of thousands of people indulging in the commencement of the first annual St. Kitts Music Festival. The massive crowd was visibly bursting with eager anticipation over the St. Kitts Music Festival.”
Noting from the tourism perspective, Grant stated that the inflow of tourists is critical to the nation’s economy and, as such, the Ministry of Tourism makes a special effort to create economic opportunities throughout the year.
He also noted that his Ministry is looking at ways of creating opportunities in the sector through the slow summer period, and the hosting of such festivals is one way of bringing economic activity to the industry.
“And yes this year-round activity gives the visitor a reason to come to St. Kitts during the off-season. But perhaps we are creating opportunities for our own people to enjoy the tourism product and the best that St. Kitts and Nevis has to offer. And all of you private citizens, companies alike, organizations, have over the last 20 years risen to the challenge in creating all sort of festivals, fetes and activities.”
An excited Chairman of the Music Festival Committee, Faron Lawrence told the attendees that the three-night extravaganza has a very good track record despite the fact that they chose not to limit the event.
Against that backdrop, he noted that this winning formula has made the Festival a red letter event on the region’s calendar.
Over the last 19 years, a large number of popular regional and international Grammy Award winners including Brian McKnight, Ashanti, Shaggy and DMX, have graced the stage at the renowned Festival.
