10 months ago
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Reggae Sumfest on the road in Brazil and Africa? That is the word from Downsound Entertainment founder and Reggae Sumfest head honcho Joe Bogdanovich, who spoke with The Gleaner days after executing a hugely successful festival in Montego Bay.
“We are looking at taking Sumfest overseas to meet overwhelming demands,” Bogdanovich said.
Bogdanovich disclosed that his team pulled out all the stops to market and promote the 2024 staging of the festival overseas to ensure its success. This included securing digital advertising coverage on billboards in New York’s iconic Times Square; in Toronto, Canada; and also in Gambia, Africa. Reggae Sumfest had pop-ups in Atlanta and Florida before staging a mammoth launch party at the Iberostar Hotel in Montego Bay. The success of the 2024 festival, he said, has paved the way for exciting plans to take the festival to Brazil and Africa.
“We are looking seriously at Sao Paulo in Brazil. We are talking to some promoters over there. They are big in the business. We are going over details right now. We are looking at doing that in the spring of 2025. We are also looking into Africa. Ghana to be specific. There is a lot to unpack there,” Bogdanovich said.
He has good reason to feel optimistic that he will achieve success in Africa. According to a BBC story published last year, the author states, “Afrobeats may be the dominant sound right now in Ghana, as in many other African countries, but the sounds of Jamaica can still be heard blaring through the speakers of Ghana’s roadside and beach bars almost every day.” The story credits Reggae King Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and the group Culture for planting the seeds of reggae music on African soil 50 years ago.
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Reflecting on the 2024 festival, which featured performers Beres Hammond, Capleton, Dexta Daps, Nigy Boy, Babyface, YG Marley and a surprise appearance by his mom Lauryn Hill, Munga Honorable, Luciano and more, Bogdanovich said he was immensely pleased.
“We achieved the wow factor. We witnessed it from the production set. We saw it when singer Lauryn Hill joined her son YG Marley, and we saw it with Babyface. The pre-events were the best in the history of Sumfest since 2016. We saw it on the faces of the patrons at each event. Nothing but joy they experienced. Great venue design, great music, fabulous food and good vibes provided,” the festival’s owner said.
Noting the economic impact of Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay and surrounding parishes, Bogdanovich stated, “Every hotel room in Montego Bay was sold out. You couldn’t get a room. The Airbnb properties were pretty much sold out as well. And this is all the way from Negril to Ocho Rios. I think it got to US$50 million in sales in Montego Bay the week of Sumfest, which is a new record.”
Reggae Sumfest, a seven-day, eight-event music festival, was held at Catherine Hall Entertainment Centre in Montego Bay from July 14-20.
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