Teino Evans, Staff Reporter

Maxine Whittingham (left), communications manager at Red Stripe, and Worrell King (right), promoter of 'Western Consciousness' and 'Tribute to Peter Tosh', with Cordell Green partially hidden. - File

Some promoters of major stage shows and other music events are now finding themselves in a bind, as sponsors are withholding significant portions of funds pending incident-free completion of the show.

This means that stage shows have to run their full course, without bottle-throwing and stampedes, cursing by artistes and anti-gay lyrics, before the promised funds will be handed over.

It is not all promoters who are feeling the ill-effects, however.

"Mi hear of it. Dem did start it up and it subside, but dat nuh happen to me. So far me an Magnum nuh have no problem; dem neva withhold nothing from me," Dexton Ennis, a popular show promoter told The Sunday Gleaner.

Deeper in pockets

Ennis, who has staged annual shows such as 'Magnum Party By The River' and 'Follow Di Arrow', says such a move by sponsors would indeed affect promoters.

"It woulda affect we (promoters), because wi haffi guh dig deeper inna wi pockets because sponsorship really come in handy. Yuh woulda need di money fi spend before, but as mi seh, mi hear 'bout it, but mi nuh know how much teeth it have now," Ennis said.

Maxine Whittingham, communications manager at Red Stripe, says they usually have terms and conditions where sponsoring events is concerned.

"We have certain stipulations in our contracts as it relates to shows that we sponsor. It's basically a contractual arrangement, so if the promoters and ourselves have an arrangement as to how a show or event is to run, then they need to carry out their portion of the bargain and we carry out our side. Where there is a breakdown, there are consequences on either side," Whittingham said.

The terms and conditions of any contract, Whittingham says, are always up front.

"For example with Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest (Sumerfest Productions), we all sit at the table and agree upon what we want to happen and it's agreed up front," she said.

She was, however, unable to give exact examples in the case of a breach of contract saying "Each contract and situation is different, so I couldn't say what action would be taken (if promoters don't hold up their end of the bargain), but with our contractual arrangements there are stipulations. It could mean that a portion of the contracted amount is not paid over but it doesn't mean that this happens in all instances."

Victim of sponsors

Worrell King, promoter of 'Western Consciousness', says he has been a personal victim of sponsors withholding money and he lays the blame at the feet of the artistes.

"That is something that has been happening. It has to be of great effect to the promoters, because there is no big production that a promoter can totally finance. There must be a partnership, some source that the promoter has to find the money from to finance the event and most logically that would be the source of sponsorship. In the same breath, the sponsors must protect their brand and, in protecting the brand, they want to be associated with a good product and even though they demand of the artistes clean presentations, the artistes don't always have to deliver that and the promoters feel it," King said.

"I have been a victim of this for all my 17 years of putting on events. I suffered the consequence of the sponsor withholding cash. Last year's 'Western Consciousness', we presented something like 23 artistes and the very, very last act did that. They withheld 50 per cent. I will not give any figures, but I lost 50 per cent of the sponsorship deal and this year I lost my sponsor, after seven years. Is di wickedest part of the whole scenario. Right now I'm trying to negotiate with the sponsors to get them back," King said.

He said it is "a really sad thing", as "promoters have to put on these events and have to worry until the very end, worrying that the artistes may just break the contractual arrangement of presenting a clean set. It is a nervous situation, that's where it has reached now."

Disregard guidelines

Some artistes have continued to disregard some of the rules, conditions and guidelines that sponsors have asked them to abide by.

One person, requesting anonymity said "A Jamaica dis, a wi culture, bad word is a part of it an wi nuh uphold certain behaviour some guy waan bring roun here. Di sponsor dem always a try fi dictate di ting an dem nuh know nutt'n bout wi music."

In addition, a story published in The STAR on Saturday, August 12, reported that Bounty Killer and other deejays maintained their anti-gay stance at the recently-held bmobile Reggae Sunsplash, despite Cable and Wireless being part of the coalition of sponsors that banned Bounty Killer and Beenie Man from events under their sponsorship following Jamaica Carnival's 'Last Hurrah' in 2005.