BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A close source to the St. Kitts Music Festival Committee has give SKNVibes the inside scoop on a number of the acts that will be gracing the stage this year.
The first name revealed by the source is R/B crooner ‘Baby Face’, who is without a doubt a major act and he has been successful not only as an artiste but also as a music producer.
“The festival is close to signing Baby Face for the 14th annual event. So far the negotiations are going pretty well and if all goes according to plans Baby Face would be performing on the St. Kitts Music Festival,” the source said.
The committee is also looking at reggae legend Third World.
“Third World will be coming for the Friday night, which is traditionally Reggae Night. Again, the contracts have not been signed; however, negotiations have been going extremely well. By next week we would be able to formally announce that.”
Known for his countless hits including ‘Bump ‘n’ Grind’, ‘I Believe I Can Fly’, ‘Gotham City’, ‘Ignition (Remix)’, ‘If I Could Turn Back the Hands of Time’, ‘The World's Greatest’ and the hip-hopera ‘Trapped in the Closet’, R. Kelly is another strong possibility for the June 24-26 Festival.
“Another act we’re looking at is R. Kelly. We’re still talking to him. His people actually want him to come. They have shown a lot of interest in bringing him to St. Kitts,” said the source. R. Kelly will be a prospective “Saturday Night” act.
The third child of Joseph and Katherine Jackson and the older brother to the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, is another act they are about to finalise.
“Tito Jackson would come to do a Michael Jackson tribute. Again, everything has been going well, the documents have been drawn up and it looks like he will be here for the Music Fest,” said the source.
Jackson also did a similar performance in Jamaica for the Sumfest event last July, where he performed a number of his brother’s hit singles.
It may not be the Marley that most people are hoping for, but Kymani is definitely a strong possibility for this year’s event.
“Kymani Marley definitely looks strong for this year. The Marley brothers are talented and having a Marley brother performing on the Music Festival is great. In fact, we had one last year (Stephan Marley) and we’re having another this year.
They are performers, it’s in their blood and we’re expecting a great performance from Kymani,” he said. The source said Keri Hilson was another act they are looking at and that they may be able to ‘rope’ her in.
“It’s a bit early to say but from the looks of things, it looks like she would be one to perform,” he said. When SKNVibes asked him about a number of other artistes that were rumoured as possibilities on the festival including Capleton, Tony Rebel and Queen Ifrica, he said they are still under discussion.
“We’re looking at Jamie Fox and also Eddie Murphy, the latter who people don’t know started out his career singing. We’re in discussions with Usher but, out of all, Baby Face should be officially announced by next week,” he said.
A number of young talented local artistes are also being considered for this year’s festival. “In terms of local acts, we’re looking at signing up Rollensha, C-Money, SMI…they have been showing great performances. For sure, Grand Masters, who have been wining Road March back to back will be there…one of the best band’s the island has produced.”
When asked about the National Calypso King performing on the festival, the source said they have not finalised all the local acts.
“This year, people would see quite a number of local acts on the festival. We have one already who made history by being the first act to be signed on the festival, and we’re looking at more local acts.
“We’re very excited that we’ve signed Infamus. He’s a local act that shows the most promise of breaking out,” the source said.
“This year we’re trying not to overload the lineup because we don’t want to go down to three and four in the morning.
We want to finish each night by 2:00 a.m., so others can have a chance at making money, whether by after parties at clubs etc. So, this year we’re making an effort to try not to prolong the festival so people can experience other activities on the island.”
