Sumfest final night hits the right note

• Hip hop queen Nicki Minaj, a hit
• Int'l Jamaican acts wow the crowd

Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer

Western Bureau:

Anticipation simmered, slowly building to fever pitch, as fans anxiously awaited Reggae Sumfest 2011 International Night 2 headliner, Nicki Minaj's first performance in Jamaica on Saturday night.

Hip hop's resident queen and HNIC (Head Nicki in Charge) opened her act on the final night of the 'Greatest Reggae Show On Earth' to a rousing response to the hit song Roman's Revenge.

It was 1 a.m. when Minaj hit the Sumfest stage, on the heels of Hezron, Protoje and Gyptian. Holding true to her image, she ignited an electrical current that permeated the air, delivering a scorching performance.

Little Nicki Minajes stood in the audience singing in unison with their idol.

Accompanied by her 'Bold' and animated dancers, Minaj's stage acting was fully felt by the thousands in attendance.

Eliciting an explicit set, her lewd lyrics and onstage gyrations were a reminder of Jamaica's own Lady Saw.

With crotch-grabbing, sexually suggestive moves and a seductive smile, Minaj served a vulgar innuendo which was greedily devoured by her fans.

Each song was met with an even louder reaction than the last. Playing to the crowd, Minaj performed a remix to Gyptian's Hold Yuh, showing a knack for knowing how to keep an audience invested.

Bad girl Nicki was the most potent ingredient in the cake baked by the indomitable Jah Cure, whose prowess on the stage came extremely close to the American hip hop act.

Cure had the audience swaying throughout his delivery of Sunny Days and Reflection from his catalogue, reminiscent of the time when he was incarcerated. Each theme resonated with a forgiving audience interested more in his music than his shortcomings.

Cure faced the only setback of being the superstar on Saturday night's show, having not enough time to perform all of his hit songs. However, he found time to feature Jah Mason, who received one of the most profound ovations after singing his chart-topping My Princess Gone.

Prior to Cure's musical antidote, seasoned veteran Wayne Wonder took the audience into a time machine, with crowd-pleasing hits from the 1990s, capably littering Catherine Hall, Montego Bay, with hit after hit. As expected, Wonder did not disappoint. The artiste, who appeared on the first Reggae Sumfest 19 years ago, still has the power to bring an audience to its knees.

Protoje, a definite protégé of some of reggae's greatest performers, his opening song, Rolled, was an instant crowd-pleaser. Drawing comparisons to Damian Marley, Protoje received a huge forward for his lyrical display and clarity. Adding the element of surprise, he drew for Rasta Love, receiving just that from the crowd. Using Wrong Side of the Law as his exit, the St Elizabeth-born artiste hailed fellow Rastaman Buju Banton, who's currently incarcerated in the United States. Protoje left the audience wowed, surprised and wanting more.

Continuing the trend of roots and lovers rock, Gyptian held the audience's attention from start to finish. Mama Don't Cry was a crowd favourite, but I Can Feel Your Pain was met with an even louder response. There was no pain, just joy from those in attendance.

Reminding the audience of his first song, Gyptian performed Serious Times, then introduced his new single. Closing with his international breakthrough song, Hold Yuh, Gyptian easily received the loudest ovation to that point of the show.

It was also a night of honouring those who have made sterling contribution to the music and E.T. Webster was recognised by the organisers, Summerfest Productions, with a Lifetime Achievement award.

Hezron got the audience involved with She's My Woman, his performance was aptly appreciated both by younger and older audience members, but it was his closing mainstream hit, Forever and Always, that earned him a huge ovation.

Not for everyone

Not all artistes have great stage presence, and not all deserve to be on Reggae Sumfest; new artiste Trudy was an unfortunate example.

Her appearance was followed by Turbulance, who opened his segment with his hit Notorious. Performing each of his hits from the past decade, by the time he got to the third song, Turbulance had the ladies singing along, word for word. Receiving his biggest recognition for Name and Number, the audience demanded an encore, which was granted.

Chalice was to close the show in a typically professional manner. The older audience members hung around and Chalice did not disappoint them.

Earlier performances came from Ramize, Ashley Martin, Denyque, Cherine Anderson and Laza Morgan.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com