Praise Fest 2.0. Event Review
Greetings Royals,
We are back with another event review. I must say, I am very excited about this one. Praise Fest 2.0 was indeed a success and I am very happy I went (despite some uncertainties) and got to see for myself. Here’s the thing about series events, it’s risky; your first event will usually set the tone for the next one and you run the risk of becoming monotonous. On the upside though, series events can become meaningful for people and so integrate itself into the life of the community it seeks to reach. If you manage to achieve this, people will keep coming back, because of the connection they feel to your event and what it stands for. I believe, and I stand to be corrected, that achieving this, requires quality, consistency, a tinge of novelty and a cause that people can get behind. Even for our Christian events, we need to let people see that we are consistent with our message, our cause is clear and our quality is remarkable and/or shows improvement. This year’s review is going to be a bit different, so bear with me. Let’s look at Praise Fest 2.0 with these components in mind.
Quality
When it comes to quality, these are the areas I would look at. Your selection of ministers, your sound, your space and your marketing. In my humble opinion, Praise Fest 2.0. would rate very high in this area but not 100% . The selection of ministers at this year’s event was well done. We had our home grown ministers, like K’Morale, Giddon Gilbert and the Flame band, a guest appearance by Kerry Davis, Ms. Mc Farlane, Kamaria Jordan and Dawnissa Alexander. It wasn’t just about the nostalgia and local pride, but these ministers really showed up. We didn’t see a drop in the quality but an improvement, and my friends that is what we want. I have to make special mention of the Flame Band, the musicianship displayed by these young musicians and singers, showed their dedication to their craft since their reemergence last year. Giddon Gilbert came with the energy as usual and effectively warmed the crowd up, staying true to the message of Christ and our Christian responsibilities. K’Morale surprised us, by leading worship to start and doing a great job, of setting the atmosphere. To me, it was also a mark of humility to not be a feature artiste at your own event. Ms. Mc Farlane brought some well known songs to life with her beautiful voice, and of course we had a lovely spoken word by Kamaria Jordan and who can forget the cuteness effect created by Dawnissa’s dance.
Energy, Energy, Energy! All we need to describe our MCs and guest ministers. We had the pleasure of being hosted by Danil Denis and Rondell Jessemy, quite the duo, a Lucian-Grenadian oil down, which had everyone holding their bellies… with laughter. They kept the energy going between sets and built quite the anticipation for the next set… and for the next event. Praise Fest 2.0. had two guest ministers, Jaron Nurse from Trinidad and Tobago and Emrand Henry from St. Lucia. Both accompanied by our local Redemption Band, who did an excellent job of supporting both men. Henry or the “Fire Man” as he calls himself, took the stage and demonstrated what it means to be the fire man. He took us on a journey, sharing his testimony and encouraging believers through word and song. Jaron Nurse closed the event, with his unique style, of musical exhortation you could call it. Nurse truly showed his heart for young people, as he shared his own testimony through word and song. The authenticity in these men as they shared with us was much appreciated.
When it comes to sound, we have to admit that Praise Fest 1.0. (2022) had it’s struggles. It was one of the things that may have taken away from the quality of last year’s event. But I love a good comeback and I have to tell you, Higher Level Promotions made a remarkable comeback. With a new system in place, the sound was excellent and I have a feeling we can expect that to remain consistent. However, there seemed to be an issue with managing the stage monitors, this wasn’t an issue for us the audience but more so persons on stage.
We can talk about marketing here, as we are on the subject of Higher Level Promotions, and Dawson Alexander. Praise Fest 2.0. really hit the ground running with marketing this event. Months in advance this event was being promoted on social media, the quality of the fliers, the hype. A job well done by Mr. Alexander and his wife K’Morale. Talk done.
Now when it comes to space, this is important. These events tend to run for hours, it’s important for persons to be comfortable, of course, I personally don’t mind the open space, the stars overhead, the cool fresh Chantimelle air, A++ for that. My main concern was the bathroom facilities. I had to wonder if there are persons who go to these events with an axe to grind with public toilets, or if the poor things just weren’t built for the demands. It may not be fully in the hands of the event coordinators, but just putting it out there in case it’s something that can be looked into, whether it’s a change of location, or better facility supplementation or monitoring.
So you see what I mean when I say quality? Praise Fest 2.0 took a step forward. I just wish so much more people were there to experience it.
Consistency and Novelty
So how could these two words go together? Because people need both to sustain interest. We tend to like to have a sense of what to expect and we also hope to be surprised… but not too surprised. It’s a weird balance to achieve. Hence the reason you can never truly please everyone. When it comes to consistency, Praise Fest this year met the criteria. Praise Fest 2.0. was Praise Fest 2.0., and by that I mean, you didn’t get the sense that this was a completely new event, too different to recognize. This was achieved by the set up, recurring gospel ministers like happy feet Giddon Gilbert, and the theme colours. Novelty is achieved by switching things up a little. I don’t think anyone expected K’Morale to do the opening worship, we also saw Kamaria Jordan adding her special touch with spoken word, not to mention the spur of the moment antics, like Denroy Peters almost taking over Henry’s set, turning gas into water (inside joke), or Denis and Jessemy facing off over oil down, we even got a little patois thrown at us.
Room for improvement? Time. This year’s event didn’t start on time, though there were activites to keep the children occupied and food on sale and an open pasture to frolic, starting on time is always something an event should strive to be consistent with. Even though once it starts, you kind of forget about the wait.
A Cause to support
From the start, Praise Fest seems to have been about the community, the community of Chantimelle. Dawson Alexander’s heart for his community is at the core of this event and we can appreciate that. Additionally, and most importantly is the cause of the gospel of Christ. As believers, we must make the message of Christ central to our events. Every set that night had that cause at heart, it was a true demonstration that we can enjoy each others company, as a family, and we can stay true to what we believe: that Jesus Christ is the way the truth and the life, and until we accept that truth, we will continue to be in darkness and without hope. We saw that reflected in the call to faith in the midst of Nurse’s set, led by Pastor Wilkinson along with a heartfelt prayer for the community and our nation.
When you bring all of these components together, you feel like you didn’t just go to an event, you share an experience, you leave motivated, encouraged, united and if you weren’t before, saved from sin. I admire what Higher Level Promotions and K’Morale has managed to accomplish, despite the challenges, they held to the vision, while adjusting where they could. A job well done.
Be a blessing,
KellyPW
Kelly is the founder of Royalty Press United. Author of the Gemstone Royals fantasy series, Twist of Faith and Crossroads. Counseling psychologist, proud Grenadian and devoted follower of Christ.
You must be logged in to post a comment.