BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - AS part of its bid to attract more tourists to the Federation for the 2017 Music Festival, the Ministry of Tourism and the Music Festival Committee have outlined several changes to the event, along with the early announcement of several top performers for the 21st edition.
At a simple launch ceremony held at the Ocean Terrace Inn this morning (Feb. 1), Chairman of the Artistes Selection Committee Ambassador Jonel Powell, broke the news that regional acts Jah Cure, Movado and Shabba Ranks, as well as American rock band the Goo Goo Dolls would be performing at the event.
These are four of the early releases he noted, pointing out that they are currently in the process of finalizing the international acts and the full lineup is expected to be released by the end of the month.
This is the earliest that the Committee has released artistes who have confirmed their participation.
Additionally, the Music Festival Committee, in a bid to support private parties and clubs during the event, has taken the decision that on each night of the event, the curtains would close at 1:00 a.m.
Powell explained that for several reasons, the Committee made this decision, including the fact that in the past, headliners did not hit the stage until 2:00 a.m. or 3:00 a.m., at which point many of the fans have already left the grounds.
Additionally, he said this would give those headliners more time to perform since they receive the lion share of monies paid to the artistes.
“It also affects the artistes’ performance when they come out and only see half the crowd there. The other thing is, we want to encourage other activities which encompass the wide array of the St. Kitts Music Festival. This year the government is spending in excess of $7 million in the redevelopment of the Strip in Frigate Bay and we want to let persons have the time to leave the Festival and enjoy after parties,” Powell explained.
Meanwhile, the Committee is looking at changing the format of the Thursday night of the event, with consideration being given to having international DJ’s perform, a foam pit and a band clash.
The 2017 Music Festival would run from the 22- 24th Jun at the Warner Park Football Stadium.
