BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (25th May, 2009): The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis was never in doubt that the 13th edition of the St. Kitts Music Festival would take place this June.

“At no time did this Government or the Committee consider not having the Music Festival.”

Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sports, Hon. Ricky Skerritt made this declaration at a recent press conference organized by the Executive Committee of the Music Festival.

He added that, “In fact, we were so sure that we were going to have the event that we launched the Music Festival extremely early in March in New York City.”

The tourism minister further said the St. Kitts Music Festival is a world renowned event that showcases artistic excellence and promotes St. Kitts and Nevis as a major tourist destination.

Skerritt stressed that the socio-economic and cultural benefits, which redound to the country each year from the staging of the Music Festival, should not be ignored. 

At the press conference, Chairperson of the Executive Committee, Mr. Faron Lawrence said the Music Festival is now an “institutional” event in the Caribbean that continually attracts high caliber superstars with diverse repertoires.

“Funding has been a challenge, but despite the cash flow problems, we have been steadily working on staging a very vibrant Music Festival this year,” said Lawrence.

The 13th Annual St. Kitts Music Festival will take place in Warner Park from Thursday, June 25th to Saturday, June 27th. 

This year’s line-up includes Beres Hammond, Iwer George, Mavado, T-Pain, Ziggy Marley, among others.

Log on to www.stkittsmusicfestival.com to learn more.