Yesterday, what was billed as the "First Annual Atlanta Carifest" was a complete no show, literally. Where do I begin? Insufficient promotions, lackluster ticket sales, low turnout on show date, headliner acts canceled, all resulted in a NO SHOW! To be clear, there was a venue and a show did take place, but none of the headliners performed. Those slated to appear included Machel Montano, Freddie McGregor, Alison Hinds, Etana, Tanya Stephens, Chino, Kiprich, and others. If you are familiar with soca and reggae music, you know that these are some of the the biggest names in the Caribbean music industry. It is almost hard to believe that such a lineup could produce such a low turnout. I spoke with a few insiders about this and their perspective is that the show "was not well promoted". This was the beginning of the "No Show" story.
I, like many others in the media, eagerly anticipated the Atlanta Carifest. I especially took great interest as a female promoter stepped up to the plate in a bold move to host such a magnanimous show. However, I knew something had gone awry when I received an email earlier in the day stating "D'VA Promotions is sad to announce that Machel Montano and Alison Hinds will not be performing as advertised due to circumstances beyond their control as a result of flight complications. We sincerely apologize to Machel and Alison's fans. We are fully committed to giving you a quality show with the artists that are here. We thank you for your support of the festival and we hope that you continue to support our vision." Unfazed, I still decided to attend the show to see the other scheduled acts. As I approached the venue, there was no signage directing concert goers or any signage that would indicate a concert was taking place (this was not a good sign - pun intended!). Still unfazed and remaining optimistic, I entered the venue and that's when I saw the promoter and it was all written on her face. That's when I knew it was not going to be the success I had hoped for. I found my way to the concert field and spoke to many of the concert goers. I realized that many of them were still unaware of the headliner cancellations and were still anxiously awaiting performances by their favorite artists. Once concert goer paid $60 for VIP, arrived at 11AM to see Machel and Allison and was simply livid when very late in the evening it was announced that neither would appear. Needless to say, she wanted her money back. This sentiment was echoed by many others. Luckily, there was no riot (but then again there weren't enough people for that). As music played and countless unknowns continued to take the stage, it became evident that there would be no major acts performing. It all came to an end when the music abruptly stopped playing, the show hosts left the stage, the lights began to shut off and the deejays packed up. There wasn't even an announcement that the No Show was over!!!
This show was simply a disaster! That being said, kudos to the countless fans who stuck through it all and made lemonade with their lemons. Big ups to the hosts of the show Ragashanti and Jason Walker (WRFG 89.3 Atlanta). Ragashanti was simply hilarious! Also, a shout out to Singer J who during his performance acknowledged the fans. This was something the promoters neglected to do. A flopped show is beyond anyone's control but saying thank you to your supporters is a beautiful thing and its free!! Shame on the promoters for not addressing those in attendance and thanking them for their support and for the late announcement of the cancellations. For the concert goers who sat in the sun all day, for all the decked out divas whose fashion statements went unnoticed, for the vendors who made no money, for the performers who never performed and for the love of Caribbean music, I'm putting up some pics from yesterday's No Show.
Show Host, Ragashanti
Girls just wanna have fun!
Posted by: Red Carpet Shelley
on Aug 24, 2009
