ATLANTA – Lee “Priest” Johnson won the fifth Jamaica International Independence Foreign Song Competition (JIIFSC) which took place July 26 in Snellville, Georgia.
Priest won with Jamaica ina mi Blood. He was awarded $8,000 and a trophy.
From Manchester parish in southern Jamaica, the singer resides in Conyers, Georgia. A recording artist since 2010, he said there was no difficulty writing a patriotic song.
“It was very easy to pen Jamaica Ina mi Blood, as it was just me expressing what I have lived and experienced being a Jamaican,” he told South Florida Caribbean News (SFLCN.com).
Finishing second were last year’s winners Ernel Earlington and Doxology, with If yuh Love Jamaica sey Yes. Boston-based Dion Knibb was third with My Sweet Jamaica. Earlington and Doxology received $4,000 and a trophy, with Knibb getting $1,000.
Dr. Garfield McCook, who started the JIIFSC in 2021, told SFLCN that the event continues to grow.
“We had a great turnout, with intense audience participation and kicked off our 63rd Jamaica Diaspora Independence Celebrations yardie style,” he said.
The other contestants in the 2025 JIIFSC were Chawlih Crux out of Washington DC with Jamaica Now, Lisa Blackford representing Virginia with My Jamaica Home Sweet Home, IJAHKNOWAH out of Georgia with Yardie, and Tania Lou from Canada with Jamaica Soul.
