Omarion, Sanchez, Strings Join Jazz Line-up

Family Day Show In Vieux Fort.

JAZZ a La Chaudiere in the South, a second stage at the Pigeon Island National Landmark and in excess of 70 artistes, are among the major Festival updates unveiled this week as the planning for the staging of the 25th edition of the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival gains momentum.

Jazz a La Chaudiere, Phillip Marcellin Grounds in Vieux Fort, rolls out what is being planned as a family day with a diverse line-up from Trinidad in the south to Haiti in the north. Headlining is reggae Jamaican Lovers rock singer and record producer Sanchez of “, “Loneliness”, “Never Dis Di Man”, “I’m Missing You”, “I Can’t Wait”, “Wild Sanchez” and “Pretty Girl” fame.

Since the artiste also branched out into gospel reggae, his appeal is now extended to a broader demographic.

One of the all-time favourites and most featured performing groups to have graced the Festival over its lifespan is the Haitian Jazz Band Strings. Dahlia Guard, Events Manager of the Saint Lucia Tourist Board, described Strings’ fourth return to the Festival as “fitting in light of the history they share with the Festival, and exciting, especially for the following they have developed here.”

The Jazz a La Chaudiere line-up also features the ethnic/jazz/blues sound of Trinidad & Tobago’s Dean Williams Quartet featuring soul soprano Lletesha Sylvester. Completing the line-up is Karma featuring Shomari Maxwell, and the band Phases, both from the host town.

The already high trending Teddyson John (TJ) will present an amped-up set at Mainstage Friday (May 6) featuring Kes and Da’ville. The complementarity between TJ’s sound and the unique blend of soulful vocals, calypso-inspired melodies, rock riffs and island beats of Kes, one of Trinidad &Tobago’s trending pop/soca groups, is undeniable.

Singer, songwriter, composer and producer Da’Ville has worked with recording companies such as Avex Japan, Ki/oon, Sony Music Japan, VP Records (Indie) and Fashozy Records (Indie). The infusion of his reggae fusion music which has topped charts regionally and internationally, and the slew of TJ and Kes’ hits are expected to ‘bring’ the signature energy for which Mainstage Friday is well known.

Singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor Omarion, formerly lead singer of the boy band B2K, will complete the Pigeon Island main stage line up on Saturday May 7. Omarion emerged as one of the more popular solo contemporary R&B artists of the late 2000s. His solo career debuted in 2005 via Epic label with the album O which went to the top of the Billboard 200 chart and attracted a Best Contemporary R&B Album Grammy nomination.

This year, what was previously known as the Pigeon Island Side stage is rebranded as Mainstage Stage 2, in light of the professional positioning of the line-up it boasts. These include Saint Lucia’s most notable names in pop and contemporary jazz music. Stage 2 will feature Rob ‘Zii’ Taylor on Friday May 6, Michael Robinson, Skip Monday and Barbara Cadet on Saturday May 7 and JessyLeonce, Derede Williams and ALIBI on Sunday May 8.