‘Ghetto Splash is definitely on’ - But promoter again laments lack of sponsorship

Several "big named" artistes are set to ignite the stage of the annual Ghetto Splash festival on December 17, but promoter Patrick Roberts said the lack of sponsorship is of great concern in powering the event.

"[Ghetto Splash] is something that the fraternity and the people are definitely in tuned to, but wi still have some hiccups re sponsorship and that's one a di pullback, because wi have one addi biggest lineups suh far with several major headliners. So [the show] is definitely on," Roberts told THE STAR.

Among the entertainers are Luciano, George Nooks, Tarrus Riley, Beenie Man and Charly Black, who are categorised as 'Trailblazers' in entertainment. Joining them will be a plethora of young, trending acts such as Jamal Dunceman, Skeng, Nhance, Pablo YG, Moyan and Jahshii.

The event, which has been going for 35 years, has made significant contributions to the entertainment space, creating a platform to expose new talent while embracing established acts and reinforcing community spirit.

"Ghetto Splash is about unity. There are only two forces that can unify any nation - it is through music or through sports. The whole concept behind [creating] Ghetto Splash was because most of these artistes have a fan base and [some of] these same persons who clamour fa dem, through their social [platforms], are financially incapable of seeing them up and personal at an event. So our objective was to give back to these fans a quality up-and-close experience, [similar to] Reggae Sumfest," said Roberts.

He stated that the only difference between his event and Sumfest is that Ghetto plash is free, but "the production is on par and officially executed just the same". Roberts added that the DownSound Entertainment CEO/Sumfest promoter, Joe Bogdanovich, is an annual supporter and promised to assist in sponsoring this year's staging. He said other potential sponsors such as the entertainment ministry have also pledged to come on board but he is still awaiting a final confirmation.

The event will be brought to life by Clearsound Productions and backed by the popular Ruff Kutt band at the Waterhouse Mini-Stadium. Roberts highlighted the major impact the show has had while being hosted in Waterhouse, St Andrew.

"Economically, this event provides for small businesspeople who applied their trade to this event in order to send back their kids to school. It [also] unifies the communities together that have warring factors and this event has carried them together that they can reverence in one accord [and] unity, and that is the main inspiration for us to want to go forward [annually] with this event," he said.

He stressed that over the 35 years, he has produced an "incident-free" event with the help of several security personnel, who cover all angles of on-the-ground activities throughout the night. Roberts further underscored that despite the current upheaval in the community at present, it will not hinder the event from being granted a permit.

The annual dancehall fiesta promises to deliver nothing short of the event's known "high energy and packed show" as Roberts sets things in place to ensure patrons have a "good time". However, while praising inner-city residents for their continued loyalty to the product, "it's appalling to really realise why most of these companies are lacklustre in sponsoring a mega event of this nature.

"But wi have two weeks and we're still appealing to sponsors to come on board and engage an event of this nature," Roberts implored.