From left to right, Elephant Man, Junior Kelly and TOK
THE RENAISSANCE Disco pumped high octane music at the launch of Appleton's Hot Shots on Thursday night.
The launch was held at the Terra Nova Hotel on Waterloo Road in Kingston. Guests gathered for the 7:30 p.m. start and enjoyed the clever mixes of the DJs on the turntables, while sipping specially mix drinks 'Appletini', 'Blue Lagoon', and 'Peach on the Beach'. While the drinks and music flowed, the vibe became increasingly more relaxed and friendly. Though the official start did not occur until 8:40 p.m., the guests enjoyed the music and the lively atmosphere, rocking to the music and chatting with each other.
It seemed, in fact that the announcement by MC. Paula-Ann Porter that the official proceedings would commence, dampened the party mood that had been rife all evening. She introduced Carline Samuels of Hot Shots promotion, who gave a general overview of the plans for the event to be held on December 20 this year. Samuels announced the venue this year would be the previously under-utilised Hope Gardens. Much emphasis was placed, however, on there being no parking allowed at this venue. Instead, patrons will be provided parking at Jamaica College campus on Hope Road from where shuttle buses will take them to the venue.
The line-up of the show created a buzz of excitement at the launch with the announcement of the NERDS featuring Pharrel and Chad of The Neptunes as headline acts. Other acts include the 'Energy God' Elephant Man; Buju Banton 'The Voice of Jamaica'; 'Reggae Family' Morgan Heritage with supporting acts from Junior Kelly, TOK, Warrior King, D'Aville and The Clique.
Other interesting features of the show this year will be the absence of a fence at the front of the stage which would normally demarkate the VIP section. Instead VIP will be housed backstage where drinks, food and a chance to socialise with the stars will be available. The cost for such privileges is $3,000 pre-sold and $3,500 at the gate. General admission will cost $1,500 pre-sold and $2,000 at the gate. Tickets go on sale on December 17, 2003 and will be available islandwide.
Security will be provided by Synergy and Atlas and no firearms or offensive weapons are allowed. The launch ended at about 9:40 p.m. after brief performances by The Clique, Junior Kelly, and D'Aville.
