Lionel Richie Brings Down the Curtains on the Three-Night Event
Basseterre, St. Kitts – Kicking off on Thursday, June 27 with a series of energetic performances, the 17th Annual St. Kitts Music Festival delighted fans through the morning hours on all three nights of the event, concluding with a spectacular act by multiple award winning singer/songwriter and popular American musician Lionel Richie.
“As in previous years, the St. Kitts Music Festival featured a blend of renowned local, regional and international acts in a festive, block-party type of atmosphere,” said Senator Ricky Skerritt, Minister of Tourism & International Transport, Trade, Industry, Commerce & Consumer Affairs. “However, this year’s artists ‘truly’ put their all into their performances, from the local artists, who did an excellent job of getting the crowd warmed up each night, to Lionel Richie, who closed the Festival by belting out hit after hit with the crowd enthusiastically singing along with him.”
The first night’s line-up on Thursday brought stellar performances from local groups Small Axe Band, Nu Vybes International, the Grand Masters Band and, from Nevis, the Kore Band. However, the most talked-about artists of the night were none other than the husband and wife team of Bunji Garlin and Fay-Ann Lyons, who stepped off stage the for the performance of Fay-Ann’s father, SuperBlue, before returning to finish their act.
While performing, Bunji Garlin took photos of the crowd, encouraging audience members to do so as well and share the images on social media.
Night two on Friday brought an explosion of reggae and dancehall music to the stage, with a memorable moment created for all attendees when Jamaican reggae icon Beres Hammond invited Shaggy to join him on stage to perform “Fight This Feeling,” a new song co-written by both artists, during his performance to close the evening’s festivities.
Earlier that night, Shaggy performed many of his hits from “Strength of a Woman” to “Angel” in signature Mr. Boombastic form with his deep voice, much to the thrill of his adoring female fans, who welcomed him back to the Music Festival stage following performances in 2003 and 2006.
While DeJour and Dagah put on incredible shows to kick off the evening, Konshens’ performance had the crowd calling for more. Many attendees found dancehall artist Christopher Martin to be a stand-out, particularly once he removed his shirt part of the way through his act and continued to entertain the audience bare-chested.
Saturday, the final night of the Festival, was kicked off by the Cayon Pantastics, a young local group whose steel pan players range in age from 14 to 18. Following them, American steel pan musician Andy Narrell featuring well-known Calypsonian Etienne Charles and musician Relator gave a performance that lasted well over an hour and brought a unique sound to the stage. Yet it was the final performer of the night, none other than Lionel Richie, who was the hit of the Festival, getting the crowd singing along to his hit songs and pleasing the crowd with his newly found love of St. Kitts.
Soon after the start of his act, Lionel Richie stopped to call out “Sugar City!” to the screaming fans. He then continued on to say, “I don’t know why it has taken me so long to get here, but I am now here to stay, right here! I’ve been all around this place – I’ve been to Nevis, I’ve been there, I’ve been here and now I get here and I see you and now I understand what Shaggy was saying, ‘You’re gonna come here and you’re not gonna want to leave, brother! You’re not gonna want to leave!’”
Lionel Richie
During his approximately two-hour-long performance, he thrilled fans with his songs, including “Stuck On You,” “Easy Like Sunday Morning,” “Penny Lover,” “Three Times a Lady,” and “Ballerina Girl.” Near the end of his energetic act, he sang two of his most famous and enduring hits, “Hello,” and the Caribbean-style “All Night Long.” Ending on a high note around 1:00am, singing alternate lyrics to the popular Psy song, “Gangnam Style,” and dancing his own “Lionel Richie Style” dance to thunderous applause and appreciation from the audience.
2014 will be the 18th year of the St. Kitts Music Festival, which attracts both locals and visitors alike to the annual event. It features a wide range of musical styles on the popular market, including R&B, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Reggae, Soca, Calypso, Gospel and Contemporary music. Past artists have included such prominent acts as John Legend, T-Pain, Michael Bolton, K.C. and the Sunshine Band, UB40’s Ali Campbell, Wyclef Jean, Ne-Yo, Air Supply, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Toni Braxton, The Commodores, Dionne Warwick, Billy Ocean, Sean Paul, Boyz II Men, King Konris, Stephen Marley, Regina Belle, Maxi Priest, Roberta Flack, Biggie Irie, Bunny Wailer and Lord Nelson.
