BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (Dec/14/2017) – THE organizers of the St. Kitts Music Festival will be releasing the names of the first wave of confirmed artistes for the 2018 event next week.
According to the organizers, the announcement will be made on December 21, as they have confirmed that the 2018 musical extravaganza will be held on June 27- July 1.
In an invited comment, Head of the Artistes Selection Committee, Jonel Powell explained to SKNVibes Entertainment that they are looking to capitalize on an early booking window for visitors to confirm their attendance.
“First of all, we are trying to take advantage of the six months booking window, which is really for our international fanbase. It is found that once persons have approximately six months to book, they are in a better position to get fares and get their business in order.”
He said that they tried releasing this year’s names early last year, which would have allowed for more organizing, but due to a number of challenges they were only able to do so this year.
“Last year we were trying to catch that six month window. We kind of did five or so and we tried to make it happen this year.”
Speaking to the artistes expected to grace the shores of St. Kitts, Powell explained that they are working to keep the lineup diverse, catering to both locals and visitors to the island.
The diversification comes as the committee held meetings and did research, and would now want to revive the off season with those people who are only drawn to the sun, sea and sand – and would only travel during the peak season and not necessarily for the Festival.
To this end, he reminded that the majority of the people entering the gates are locals, and as a result, the committee is trying its best to “synchronize the local appetite with what would attract foreign visitors”.
“And so the artistes are going to be a bit more urban. We are looking at what has developed in recent times as a whole demographic of Music Festival followers. We are looking at young professionals; we are looking at more regional marketing; the artistes are going to be a reflection of what our information tells us.”
This year saw a number of new and diverse performers on the lineup up, including the Goo Goo Dolls.
But for 2018, Minister of Tourism had pledged a number of changes due to the Committee owing service providers monies after the event was completed.
Powell was asked if that would have any impact on the artistes selected, to which he informed any budgetary changes would always have an impact on the event.
“The Music Festival budget has not changed that much, and so it is a learning curve and we try to, while getting the best bang for our buck we still have all the other factors to take into consideration.”
