Kesi Asher, Staff Reporter
DJ Nicholas (left) and Kerron Ennis performing at Genesis Festival 2005 at National Stadium car park. - CARLINGTON WILMOT/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
THE GENESIS Festival 2006 will be a 19-hour triple fest of music, with shows in Kingston, Mandeville and Montego Bay.
"It's going to be a radical day and the young people are going to have a radical time," said the Reverend Dr. Peter Morgan, adviser to and long-standing member of the Jamaica Youth for Christ. "We are determined to rescue the youth of this nation by whatever means possible."
"We are concerned about the state of our nation's youth. This is wholesome entertainment for the youth and the whole family. We are turning the spotlight on alternatives to violence," said Dr. Donovan Thomas, national director of Jamaica Youth for Christ.
At the festival's launch, which took place at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston, on Tuesday evening, details of the event were revealed.
The Kingston leg will take place on January 1 and go from 1:00 p.m. until midnight. Artistes scheduled to perform include Chevelle Franklyn, Christopher Martin, Robert and Jenieve Bailey, Katalys Crew, DJ Nicholas and Kerron Ennis.
ATTRACTIONS FOR CHILDREN
The show will be held at the National Stadium car park and there will be numerous attractions for children. There will be the Digicel Funzone, an obstacle course, a trampoleaper and a mechanical bull. Other attractions are wall climbing and dirt biking, while the night will culminate with grand fireworks. Most of these rides, however, attract a charge.
"The Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation is making sure that the park is available to us. They are fully supportive of this event," said Thomas.
The Kingston patrons won't be the only ones enjoying Genesis 2006 on New Year's Day. The Mandeville leg will take place at the Mandeville Primary and Junior High School, starting at 9:30 p.m. and going until daybreak.
FEATURED ACTS
This show will feature Katalys Crew, DJ Nicholas, Kerron Ennis, Sister Scully, Joan Flemmings, Bunny Anderson, Echoes of Joy and many more. The Mandeville show will be a little cheaper than Kingston.
"I believe in economies of scale, the lower the price of the ticket, the more persons will attend the show. That's our philosophy. Besides we don't have as many overhead costs as Kingston," said Samuel Smalling, chairman for Genesis in Mandeville.
Genesis 2006, Montego Bay, will be held at the Montego Bay Community College auditorium, also running from 9:30 p.m. to daybreak. The highlight of that show will be nine-year-old Thalia Prout, who will perform at the gospel show.
Wayne Miller, marketing and communications manager for Digicel, said, "We welcome any opportunity to partner with any local organisation that is promoting a clean, healthy lifestyle. The organisation has a successful track record for execution."
