Reggae Sumfest was always on my list of desired experiences, and the desire was even stronger this year for its 25^th staging! Usually held in mid-July, the summer globally-acclaimed music festival attracts hundreds of visitors from near and far to the usually-quiet Catherine Hall venue along the Howard Cooke main road of Montego Bay.

My attendance came from yet another instance of deciding I wanted to go to an event, without working out the ‘how’ (theory explained, and proven, here). Luckily, 2 sets of tickets were obtained less than a week before the show, including VIP for the main night! Now, Montego Bay would host me for the first time in 2 years; the anticipation was high for what was to come during the weekend.
 

Reggae Sumfest: Things To Know

After 2 nights and dozens of performances, these are the key points picked up from my first Reggae Sumfest at Catherine Hall Entertainment Complex. If you plan to attend for the first time next year or after, hopefully these can help with your planning and expectations:

Venue: Catherine Hall, Monetgo Bay

1. Midnight is not the start timeIn Jamaica we’re accustomed to arriving to an event after midnight; that’s not the case here. If you arrive to Reggae Sumfest at midnight or after, you’ve likely missed a performance from a popular artiste. The stated time by the event was 8pm – 6:30am.
2. There’s a lot of trafficDriving along the Howard Cooke main road after the sun has set almost guarantees traffic. You’ll be among a 3-lane standstill going towards the venue for at least 30 minutes.
3. There isn’t enough designated parking for everyoneOn both nights, the parking lot was said to have been filled to capacity. Roadside curbs and nearby lots as far as one could see were also densely populated.
4. Nearby parking lots are expensiveIf you don’t feel comfortable parking on a curb, there was the option of a nearby parking lot. An over 100% interest ($500 JMD) on what I’d usually pay for a similar service was a deterrent.
    

   Reggae Sumfest LineUp Performances

5. Quality performancesWhen finally in the venue, you’re blessed with the great music of our country. Sadly I wasn’t able to see all performances on either night, but most of the ones seen were commendable.
6. Performances are 30 minutes on averageEach artiste got to perform a fair selection of songs, almost every song you wanted to hear.
7. A number of cameo performancesSome artistes invited others to share the stage with them, much to the pleasure of patrons. The ones I witnessed included Aidonia ↔ Deablo, Stephen Marley & Jo Mersa Marley (his son) ↔ Capleton, Queen Ifrica ↔ her son, Sean Paul ↔ Chi Ching Ching, Tory Lanez ↔ Popcaan, Jah Cure ↔ Fanton Mojah.
8. Mostly local artistesIn previous years, headliners for Reggae Sumfest would be international artistes. It was so refreshing to have a mostly local lineup, and the few international acts all had music influenced by ours.
9. Nights separated by Jamaican music genresReggae Sumfest was categorized into ‘Dancehall Night’ on Friday and ‘Reggae Night’ on Saturday, a change from previous years which had been dubbed ‘international nights 1 & 2’.
    

   The Reggae Sumfest Crowd

10. Dancehall night had a bigger crowdThe locals really came out for this one! I was surprised at the major difference in crowd size of both nights.
11. VIP is closer to the stageThe difference between general and VIP admission is a fence. Though you are in closer proximity to see the performances, unless you’re near the front (unlikely), it’s not that great of a difference to me.
12. Thick Crowd – Got the best view at backIronically, though I could actually see the performers while in VIP, I enjoyed my view from the back of the audience more. There was more space to move around, less view obstruction, and the high-definition display screens at the sides of the stage were sufficient.
13. Vuvuzelas are presentIf you can’t stand the blowing horn that gained popularity in World Cup 2010, you’ll be annoyed all night.
14. Cursing expectationAhead of the show, it was announced there’d be no tolerance for cursing. I honestly didn’t expect that would’ve been realistic for Dancehall night, but lyrics were mostly kept clean from what I saw until towards the end.
     

    Reggae Sumfest Intermittences

15. There is a lengthy band change between each performanceWhat was found most annoying was the time between performances. The vibe in the venue immediately plummeted after a performance as you had to wait 30 minutes on average for the next performer. This, of course, instigated sleep for many patrons, who could be seen finding comfort in their chairs, ‘reggae beds’ (cardboard), newspapers, and beds of grass.
16. Band changes sped up as it got laterIt seemed that the pending performances flowed more quickly as time went on (trimmed to roughly 10 – 15 mins).
17. Intermission is populated by jingle ads & presentationsAs patrons waited for upcoming performers, they were entertained by sponsor advertisements and presentations to directors of the show.
18. You could catch a vibe at boothsThere were a number of booths at the back and side of the venue equipped with a DJ to help keep the vibe going.
     

    Overall Reggae Sumfest Experience

19. Strategic performance scheduleThe organisers wanted you to be at the show as long as possible, understandably so. Reggae Sumfest didn’t do the usual method of placing smaller acts at the beginning and bigger acts towards the end. From beginning to end, there was a fair mix of medium and largely anticipated acts so you could enjoy the show no matter if you came early, left late, and vice versa.
20. Party ‘Til Sun UpSome of the most anticipated performances were expectedly toward the end of the show. Reggae Sumfest didn’t end before 7am on either night, so chances are you may have seen the sun rise if you stayed long enough to see all the artistes you wanted to.
21. You should walk with something to rest your legsWith the lengthy performances and band changes, legs will get tired of standing after a while.
22. There will be vendors, inside and outsideLeading to the venue, and inside, you could buy fold-out chairs, food, snacks, drink, apparel, and souvenirs. This was a good money-making opportunity for creative vendors, especially chair vendors, one of which was heard to be selling chairs “equipped with wi-fi and AC”.
23. Food & drinks are expensiveI was appalled, to say the least! I did expect the prices would be inflated for the event, but me never prepared! The few prices readily displayed on signs by food stalls shocked me, and with the numerous stations I didn’t have the energy to ask the others their prices based on what I had already seen. A small serving (equivalent to a foldout KFC server dish) of jerk chicken and 2 slices of breadfruit + a domestic beer = $1300.00 JMD! No sah, ah wha coulda cause dis?!
24. The bathrooms are on one side of the venueTo get to the bathrooms on the extreme left of the venue, one had to walk on the outskirts of the crowd. For some, that was quite the walk for someone who needed to ‘go’.
25. Keep belongings closeThis should go without saying. A few persons seemed to have lost their belongings, after hearing numerous announcements on stage asking to identify and collect items found throughout the venue.

Personal Performance Picks

Of the performances I was present for in 2017, here are my top 3 for each night:

Reggae Sumfest Dancehall Lineup:

• Spice – She commanded the stage! Her performance was full of creativity and held the crowd the whole tim
• Bounty Killa – Legendary artiste took us on a timeline, slinging hits after hits from the 90s onward. He didn’t fail to also inject humour (whether on purpose or not) with his naturally amusing personality; truly one of a kind
• Dexta Daps – A mix of sex appeal and roughness, he crooned and had the ladies as well as the fellas enjoying his set. He brought both his RnB and dancehall inspired hits and style to the stage.

Reggae Sumfest Reggae Lineup:

• Capleton/Stephen Marley – You could tell Stephen Marley genuinely loves the music as he obviously felt the power of the lyrics, shown in his gestures, throughout the performance. Every song was a hit, and he shared the stage with his son, introducing us to another generation of reggae music. The stage caught fire as ‘the fireman’ Capleton briefly appeared to turn the energy up 3 notches in a spirited, ‘more fyah’ type performance.
• Queen Ifrika – Not only did she sing, but spent much of her time sharing some of her strong views. Her words garnered positive feedback from the crowd, and sparked even more ‘forward’ as she tied the points with her lyrics.
• Mad Cobra –This was reminiscent of the 90s, probably our most colourful era of the dancehall genre. The performance and lyrics were clean and the delivery was top class, you could ‘bruk out’ without being a complete sketz (lol).

I thoroughly enjoyed my first time at Reggae Sumfest, and am so grateful that I had the opportunity to attend both nights. Many persons who couldn’t physically attend had the option to watch the entire show for free via live stream.

What do you think gives Reggae Sumfest its global appeal?

Let me know in the comments.

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