Massive Crowd Support at Portmore's Stone Love/Guinness Independence Big Dance

Jamaica Independence Night

By Marc Stamp

It was certainly one of the biggest street dances held on Independence night. The Independence Big Dance staged by Stone Love and Ken’s Wildflower and sponsored by Guinness at the Portmore Plaza in Portmore, outside of Kingston, Jamaica, brought out a massive crowd that received a great show.

From as early as midnight, music lovers packed the venue. Patrons were stationed at vantage points all around including atop the building around the venue.

The entertainment package coordinated by Headline Entertainment was well received by the massive. In the early segment, deejay Ricky Ticky gave a commanding performance. The deejay demonstrated good stagecraft and rocked the crowd of mostly Portmore residents, especially when he performed ‘On and On’ produced by Stone Love, a song that is enjoying good play on several Jamaican radio stations.

Ras Ghandi, a favourite son of Portmore, got good support from the crowd, while the conscious artiste Gyptian ignited the crowd with the delivery of his chart topping song ‘Serious Times’.

Spice brought her usual lewd, sensual lyrics to the stage. She was sexily clad in a pink pantsuit and matching hat enhanced by long braided hair.

Then Voicemail with their slew of dancing tunes got a good response, especially the female patrons. Dancer Craigy Dread was especially a popular draw.

The Cadillac Dancers added their bit to the programme. Sample Man gave a very entertaining performance; he 'busted' the place with his humorous presentation.

Closing act and hit maker Bling Dawg showed maturity on stage. The crowd loved him!

The massive was in for a treat because some unbilled acts like Bascom X and Highlanders made appearances on stage for short sets.

After showtime, Stone Love with Diamond and Bill Cosby, along with Black Prince and Masterpiece, juggled some wicked selections until the crowd filtered out of the venue in the early morning.