By: Precious Mills
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Wednesday 30th July 2018) – “In terms of Buju Banton, obviously if he is available we’re going to try and get him; that goes without say but I guess nobody knows what will happen until after December.”
So said Chairman of the Artiste Selection and Production Committee Jonel Powell while responding to this reporter during the post 2018 St.Kitts Music Festival press conference when asked about a rumour that Buju Banton is being looked at for next year’s festivity.
Powell has informed that his committee has already started looking at and engaging artistes for next year and that the public can early artiste releases as was done last year leading up to the 2018 production.
The well-known Grammy winning, Jamaican Reggae icon (Buju Banton), whose birth name is Mark Anthony Myrie, is expected to be released from a United States federal prison (the McRae Correctional Facility in Georgia) come Saturday 8th December after would have served time relating to a 2009 drug conviction.
A member of his management team, Jodian Ebanks, at media briefing during a Love and Harmony cruise aboard the Celebrity Summit vessel in March this year announced in that the artiste is slated to perform his first concert in the Caribbean region in April 2019.
That country is Trinidad and Tobago and the show time is set for Monday 22nd April 2019-Easter Monday. No venue has been disclosed as yet.
A concert in Buju Banton’s homeland Jamaica is scheduled for later date.
Speaking about the artiste’s excitement, Ebanks commented: “Buju is very excited about being on the road again. Jamaica is very special to him and he wants to be able to give his home country the type of concert it deserves.”
According to her, “Trinidad was chosen as the dates, travel schedules and all the other variables all came together for that time of year and was the best fit.”
In February 2011, Buju Banton’s Before the Dawn album won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album which contains hits like ‘Battered and Bruised’ and ‘Try Life’.
He best known for other Reggae and Dancehall hits like ‘Untold Stories’, I Wanna Be Loved’, ‘Not An Easy Road’ and ‘Waterman’.