-Mavado blamed for inciting crowd
Kerwin Bollers, of Hits and Jams Entertainment, has said that the organizers were not on top of security during recent concerts staged as part of the ‘Jamzone Summer Break Weekend.’
Based on reports reaching Stabroek News, close to 100 vehicles were stripped and valuables stolen during the string of events promoted by Bollers‘ company; many at the parking lot adjacent to the Guyana National Stadium at Providence, East Bank Demerara, where concerts were held.
Confirmed reports also indicated that patrons were robbed in the VIP area while Jamaican dancehall artist Mavado was on stage, headlining the Regional Night concert at the stadium. Bollers referred to the robberies as “unfortunate,” saying that they have since apologized to the patrons who approached them.
The promoter said Hits and Jams received no reports about cars being vandalized, but that they were aware of security breaches inside the stadium, “some of which were beyond our control.” He said the company imported security rails from Trinidad and Tobago to secure the VIP area, and that it managed to hold off crowds until Jamaican singer, Mavado performed.
Bollers said security systems were in place, but there were also emergency changes and many of the details changed from time to time for “various reasons.” He said the Guyana Police Force, which was working with Hits and Jams, was forced to change the security arrangements because of the large number of government officials and dignitaries who turned out. “We invited a lot of them, but we didn’t expect that they would all come,” he added.
Mavado was responsible for the security breach in the VIP area, according to Bollers. He said the Jamaican singer encouraged people to “come over the rails” while he was on stage and what ensued was a mad rush by hundreds of persons to get closer. “This is when things went wrong and we tried to control what was happening at the time, but the rail system couldn’t hold off the amount of people that were pushing it,” he said.
According to Bollers, the team was contemplating whether to call an abrupt halt to the show at that stage because they had feared “several things.”
However, a decision was taken to let the show continue since the sudden halt might have triggered something major. He said that certain elements used that opportunity while in the VIP area to rob others.
Concerns about Mavado
Bollers disclosed that his team had particular concerns for the Mavado show because of the “type of following that Movado has,” so they worked on keeping security strict. The focus was to keep things under control, Bollers said, “but I will say again that had he not encouraged people to push the rails that would not have happened.”
“…I feel what we need to do as promoters is to outline certain security features in our agreement with these artistes and put clauses in there so that they stick to it,” he also stated. He said that after the Mavado show, they advised R&B singer Ne-Yo not to make any related suggestions to the crowd. Bollers added that artistes visiting the country need to understand and respect the security systems which are put in place at the various shows.
Bollers admitted that the team had limited supervision with respect to car park arrangements, adding that while there was some level of security and lighting, it was not entirely adequate. He said that even though they anticipated a huge turnout they did not expect that amount of people and vehicles, noting that on the concert nights over 20,000 persons were at the stadium. In addition, he said over 4,000 vehicles were all competing for parking space on separate nights. “We have to work on security and improve on a lot of things for next year,” he said.
Bollers is of the opinion though that securing vehicles is likely to pose the toughest challenges. He mentioned the Jamzone beach party at Splashmins Fun Park, saying that the vehicles have outgrown the designated parking area, which means that patrons were forced to double park along the highway. He said also that they have been pushing for persons to carpool but to no avail.
Ne-Yo cost millions
Meanwhile as part of their agreement with sponsors, Bollers said the team cannot disclose the amount received in sponsorship but he pointed out that more than 60% of the financing came from sponsors. He said they sold a package to the sponsors and in return, received a substantial amount. In addition, government waived the taxes.
He added that he is aware of the questions circulating about how much money his promotional team pumped into the event, where that money came from and the concerns about security breaches. “We know what the word on the street is. People are always going to have something to say, we can’t help that,” he explained.
Tax breaks are now afforded to promoters during certain periods of the year, he said, noting that Hits & Jams were exempted from paying the related taxes, including VAT. According to Bollers, it was the only way the team could afford an international act such as Ne-Yo.
Government was a partner in the events this year in addition to several corporate entities, including Carib Beer; Digicel Guyana; Guyana Times and the National Communications Network (NCN). “…We got major support from our sponsors, millions in dollars,” the promoter said, noting that the beverage companies usually jump onboard with Jamzone because they see direct returns.
Bollers would not disclose how much the team spent to get Ne-Yo here, but he confirmed that it was millions of dollars. Ne-Yo’s fee was “way above US$50,000,” he said, when asked to give a figure but he declined to say whether it was close to the reported US$140,000.
Bollers stated that they were able to book Ne-Yo for a good price because of the reputation of the company; Hits and Jams went through a booking agency in the US that usually books international artistes for Caribbean events.
He said if they went directly to Ne-Yo’s people the price would not have been as reasonable. He added that they only met Ne-Yo and his people for the first time in Guyana save for a few brief phone calls.
He said Ne-Yo coming to Guyana and leaving with a good impression works in their favour because “he is now there to give a testimony about his experience here.” Bollers said that they were trying to bring Ne-Yo to Guyana for three years before the team decided to book him for the local concert. According to him, one of the problems is that many of the singers have no idea where Guyana is.
He said too that once Ne-Yo could give an account of what the stage equipment was like in Guyana, including sound and lighting, and local hospitality, “doors will open for the country.” He said the aim was to keep the singer and his team comfortable here and to offer them a taste of Guyanese warm hospitality. “Suddenly people here move from nobody can’t bring Ne-Yo to we want to see Usher and Rihanna next,” he noted, adding that people are now starting to believe that artistes of a certain caliber will come to Guyana to perform.
With respect to Jamzone, he said there is room for growth and that they are still working on a blueprint for success. But Hits and Jams is currently focused on exporting Jamzone as a Guyanese entertainment product with a Caribbean flavour.
As for the pageant going international this year, Bollers said keeping it locally would stymie plans to market it to the region and later to an international audience.
