Govana and friends blaze up Livewire concert at UBTR

‘Twas high energy on steroids inside Usain Bolt’s Tracks and Records (UBTR) last Thursday night as Govana, Ras-I, Puku Poo, Yaadcore and exciting surprise guests, courtesy of Govana, took charge of the stage at the sixth iteration of the Livewire series of concert.

With a cover charge of $2,500, patrons got more than their money’s worth, and their satisfaction was doubled by the fact that those affected by Hurricane Melissa will benefit from the show.

“Da show yah did iffy, but for us to be helpful to the people in the west we haffi gwaan do our work,” Ras-I told fans during his blazing half an hour set. He drew for his biggest hits, and of course, he also had to sing Somewhere Wonderful, the song that was chosen by the Jamaica Tourist Board as the official soundtrack for its 2025 Easter campaign. Performing just before the closing act, Govana, the confident Kingman stamped his class onstage, as he playfully interacted with his fans who alternated between being his choir and screaming out their approval.

At a few minutes to 1 o’clock on Friday morning, a dark-glasses-wearing Govana, with a white towel draped over his head, was seen and heard offstage, as Ruff Kut Band played his intro and his back-up singers took up their positions onstage. Naturally, when Govi Govi, as his fans affectionately call him, commandeered centrestage, the excitement was next level.

As he himself declared, “di catalogue big” and he obviously chose well because every song was fire. Govana, who reminded fans that “ me and all a mi ex dem cool”, tried his best to give fans a “likkle bit” of everything and they thoroughly enjoyed every minute, especially when the “Keisha” drama played out live over the phone. Particularly lively, too, was the intro to his track Wah Yo Deh Pan, which poses the question to a girl with a buxom derrière. His back-up singer, curvaceous Courtni, started smiling instantly, as all eyes were justifiably turned her way.

Fifteen minutes into his set, Govana invited some of his friends to join him onstage and added to the thrill of the night. Munga was first up and he introduced himself: “My name is Munga Honourable and mi give thanks fi life.”

He got busy and dropped a few bars which the fans loved, and with the energy supercharged, Govana’s mentor, Aidonia walked onstage and it flipped into a real ‘Genna Genna’ moment. Every cellphone inside the venue was raised to capture and transmit live the moment when dancehall music caused Tracks and Records “lif’ up”.

For Samory I, another of Govana’s surprise guests, Friday was his birthday and what better way for the roots singer to kick off his festive celebration. “Govana invite me and I had to be present. It was a full joy moment. As entertainers, we have to keep live music alive and keep the fire burning even as we continue to help out those affected by Hurricane Melissa,” Samory -I told The Gleaner.

Opening act Everaldo ‘Puku Poo’ Creary, who is also a well-known actor, brought full-on drama to the stage with a barefoot, shirtless performance and a crocus bag of lyrics. He was followed by Yaadcore, who donned a red, green and gold superhero looking cape, which matched his performance.

Event planner for the Livewire series, Carlton Davey from Young Kingz Entertainment, told The Gleaner that he and his team were pleased with Thursday’s event, which doubled as a hurricane-relief effort.

“We’re loving what we’re doing so far. This is the sixth in the series ... we started off in January and it’s been going very well. We plan to take it to the world,” Davey said.

He added, “The Livewire initiative is going to give back to the victims in the south west of Jamaica. Govana also made mention of the fact that he’s going to give a percentage of his fees to the victims as well. We have to build back Jamaica because they build us.”

Davey said he was thankful that the hurricane never came to Kingston because if it did “we wouldn’t be able to assist all the victims in St Elizabeth, Westmoreland and Montego Bay”.

“So we have to be grateful for the fact that it missed us so that we can provide support,” Davey stated.

The next staging of Livewire will be the third week of December at UBTR, and Yung Kingz Entertainment is promising to “close the year with a bang”.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com