[TORONTO, Canada] – Denise Jones, founder of the JAMBANA One World Festival in Toronto, Canada, died December 3 in that city. She was 64 years-old.
Her brother, Gary Oates, said she had been ill for some time but did not disclose the cause of death.
Jones and her husband Allan were pillars of the West Indian community in Toronto. Since 1987, they operated Jones & Jones Productions which staged a number of musical events in the city including Reggae On Yah, Reggaebana and Air Jamaica Day.
Their biggest, however, was JAMBANA which attracted some of the biggest names in dancehall/reggae and soca. Last year marked its 11th staging with Koffee as headliner.
Denise Jones also worked closely with several artists including Leroy Gibbons, Joseph Hill of Culture and Exco Levi.
Born in Portland, eastern Jamaica, Jones started her career in the arts during the late 1970s. She appeared in plays and pantomimes before migrating to Canada in 1980, earning a degree in communications from the University of Windsor.
Claudia Denise Jones is survived by her mother, husband, two sons, brother and two sisters.
