Mans 'n' mans 'Unashamed' of spreading the gospel

Marcia Rowe, Gleaner Writer

When the student services and development manager of the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, proposed a choir competition to Chancellor Hall's resident adviser, he shared the information with Nicholas McAlister, who saw it as an avenue for a big gospel concert.

"The necessity of a spiritual transformation is needed on Chancellor Hall," said McAlister. The night ended well.

"It is straight ministry and we are hoping that persons would give their lives to Christ tonight - the mans (men from Chancellor Hall) on Chancellor will know that there are guys there who are unashamed to spread the gospel of Jesus," added McAlister.

And to reinforce the point, McAlister and his team, who hail from Chancellor, the hall of the lions of the last battalion of male supremacy in the west, titled the concert Unashamed (Romans 1 vs 16) in the Chancellor Hall Quadrangle.

The concert got off to a shaky start, but once the technical problem was solved, it was a joyous moment for the ever-swelling crowd. They saw wonderful performances in song and sign language from artistes from as far away as Montego Bay in the west and Manchester in the south; some performed as groups and others as soloists.

The headliner was Omari. Fresh from his recent album launch, he began with his trademark opening Why and included his popular Help. Before Omari, the group Chosen Vessel performed.

Prior to bringing the Kingston-based group on to the stage, emcee Nadine Blair gave a powerful ministry in song and speech and perhaps in response to a whiff of odour that permeated the air, she told the audience to "just continue to worship." And they did.

Chosen Vessel was energetic and instructive from the start. "Clap your hands and walk around," said the lead singer of the group before they sang Lord We Appreciate You. The group Nexus also gave a good account of Take Me Back and a folk classic, Bright Soul. They were led by Hugh Dawes, a former mans.

men in control

But the performers of the evening were the four men from Preston Hall who sang under the name of Pretro Vocals. Like all the acts on the programme, they sang of encouragement in By Your Mercy and This Is The Moment For The Lord. Upon completion of their performance Blair said, "Love to see men in control," while a member of the audience commented, "There diction is good, I could hear every word."

Silent Praise of Kingston and the Anointed Hands from Manchester ministered through sign language. And other acts on the programme were Adfel, Taylor Hall Choral, Dwyane Murphy, Apostle and the group Elements from Montego Bay.

So what do the other lions of the hall with the smallest number of residents have to say about the concert? "It was a great low-budget event. The gospel concert will revamp Chancellor Hall's image. We are very appreciative," was the response from Romel Robinson, a second-year entertainment management student.