Who said the city of Kingston could never host a major event like Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay or ATI & RTI in Negril. This is obviously not true after an electrifyingly fulfill weekend on the Port Royal Strip. The Sept 7^th – 9^th Musical Production dubbed the CVM TV Port Royal Music Festival was the place to be. Now in its second year the event was this year bigger and better with a few tweaks that ultimately enhanced the overall experience of the thousands of patrons who turned out. With many other Festivals coming ashore in recent times Tracey Hamilton and her associated team of organizers raised the bar a bit higher after this production.

Morgan’s Harbour Hotel & Marina played host to the first event of the festival which as was last year the Ultra All- Inclusive Celebrity Party. Under the theme Pirates & Wrenches the night was one to remember. With the already stylish harbour and lounge being decorated with hung red, white and blue fabric the 300 or so patrons who turned out also enjoy a red carpet treatment. The V.I.P had a first class bar which accommodated the who’s who of our local entertainment industry. The Musical selections of Renaissance Disco truly showed why they’re one of the best sound systems in Jamaica. They went deep in their catalog to bring some of the best 70’s, 80’s & 90’s music in the early segments. With a five star menu in hand many came on hungry stomachs to consumer as much delicacy as they could. Though the party officially started at about 9:00 PM the full swing of things got underway at about 2:00 AM when present day hip hop and dancehall track dominated the selections of DJ Richie D. With a huge dance floor the females took the lead letting loose and getting down wild.

After 2 hours of non stop up tempo tracks the night finally came to an end at minutes pass 4 AM giving persons enough time to rest up and make the journey on Saturday Sept 8^th to the Port Royal Entertainment Centre which was the venue for the highly anticipated Main Show that featured big name acts like Maxi Priest, Regina Belle, Tarrus Riley and the ladies man Brian McKnight. Saturday was the anchor of the festival and more than 3000 people flocked to have the experience of their lives. With parking always presenting a problem many vehicles lines the main road of Port Royal. At about 10:30 PM music could be hear pulsating from the entrance of the venue with the first big act Maxi Priest taking the stage at 11:00 PM. Maxi who has long been a hit with ladies gave a passionate well rehearsed performance. His energy level was at an all time high as he performed track like You Don’t Know, Just a Little Bit Longer, It’s a Wide World and Say Goodnight to Music. As ladies stage side and front screamed and the crowd cheered, Maxi then brought on his son Marvelous. Marvelous a singing replica of his father gave a better than ordinary performance which sat well with the younger ladies. Coming back to the mic Maxi gave 2 more from his catalog before making his departure.

After a fairly quick interlude the soulful Regina Belle was up next and she gave a splendid, mature performance. Jam packed with hits Ms. Belle took the high road and gave a powerful vocal presentation. Truly a legendary performer she interacted with her audience and had them singing along for most of her set. Ms. Belle who is now celebrating 20 years in the industry was supported by a strong backing band by the name Southern Comfort. A key part of her presentation was also solo saxophonist Kenneth Wailum who captivated the crowd with his sensational free style sessions that compliment Regina Bell’s iconic voice. After Ms. Belle’s 50 or so minutes set there was an extensive delay in performance due to some misunderstandings but this never affected the vibe of patrons who for that time enjoyed reggae tracks from the stage DJ. With major sponsors CVM TV, Mega Phone, Motor Sales and Air Jamaica all having structured sponsorship accommodations many patrons flocked the nearest spot with a seat and after an unexpected lapse in performance it was back to the stage.

Bright McKnight declared an irresistible sex symbol by women world wide was up next, and after experiencing technical difficulties with his microphone he dived right into his performance. Dress in full white McKnight turn up the heat and had the ladies in the venue going wild. He started his set with Do I Ever and after acknowledging the crowds own response gave one lady the best seat in the house which was right by him on stage. The lucky lady had McKnight singing praises to Jesus; she was in her mid 20’s with a cute face and voluptuous curves.

As McKnight’s performance proceeded the two became quite friendly on stage sharing a touch or two much to the crowd urging delight. McKnight continued on his steamy path as he delivered love song after love song. Like Maxi Priest McKnight introduced the audience to his two sons the younger of which is a 14 year who sported dreadlocks. The three then launch out into a soulful ballad that urged people of the coming of God. This performance was followed by a Musical rendition of T Pain’s Bartender of which his two sons took lead. Exiting stage for a brief rest period McKnight left the stage to his sons who gave solid performances of their own. Note worthy however was the amazing musical ability of the 14 year old who gave a jaw dropping solo electric guitar performance to the stunned crowd. McKnight soon after return to stage refreshed and started again to scintillate the mood for the ladies.

As his set came closer to its conclusion he pull out the smash singles Back at one and Breathe which left many mesmerized that they were witnessing such a classical track live in front their eyes. As McKnight finished his set many patrons were so content with what had happened that they began to file out the venue, this before Tarus Riley and Leroy Sibbles had performed. This left the venue with about 250 patrons who were determined to experience more musical niceness. After a rather slow band change it was Tarrus Riley that brought down the curtain on Sunday morning at around 4:20 AM. His naturally irie performance had the small intimate crowd singing along songs like She’s Royal, My Baby and Beware.

He also introduced a young backing vocalist in his set who sang with poise and passion. Tarrus dressed in a Jamaican coloured sweat suit, apologized for his absence earlier in the night and that brought the show to an abrupt end after the last few patrons exited the venue with Leroy Sibbles not getting a chance to perform. All in all Saturday was a pivotal day for the show organizers who was sure to have made a profit from such a successful well supported night. Sunday marked the conclusion of the Festival with the final Sept 9^th event dubbed Jazz on the Harbour which was again back at Morgan’s Harbour Hotel & Marina.       

          ARTICLE LAYOUT & DESIGN BY:Christopher “Icey Jace” Campbell

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