Nine-year-old shines at Genesis, Montego Bay

At nine years old, Junior Gospel Champion Ramone Watson somewhat fulfilled the prophetic declaration 'A little child shall lead them' when he upstaged his more established and senior counterparts at Genesis 2013, held at the Montego Bay Community College on New Years' Day.

Except for Watson's breathtaking performance, it was the ever-consistent Sonia Rowe and the Jamaica Young People Action Company who injected life into an unusually poorly managed production, plagued by technical glitches.

Entering the stage at about 3:25 a.m., Watson, who hails from the neighbouring parish of Hanover, had the entire auditorium on its feet from the moment he belted out the first note of Alvin Slaughter's Midnight Cry, which, along with a medley of uptempo renditions, earned him an encore in an inadequate 10-minutes set.

However, it was Rowe who set the tone and demonstrated what Genesis should be all about, belting out You are God alone, The Angels called him Lord, He said I thirst, and Little is much when God is in it.

The 10 minutes alotted to Jamaica Youth Performing Arts Company was insufficient for what the group had to offer. The dedicated group of youths, selected from western parishes, reminded those in attendance that King Jesus is listening, and although there are 'Giants' in the land, declared The Lord is my shepherd.

LAYING THE FOUNDATION

These three performances in particular laid the foundation for popular acts like Sister Scully with a medley of songs which included I Saw the Light, Hard Road to Travel and Some Sweet Day, While Montego Bay's own Claudius England, known for songs such as Done for me, So what and Cover Me, continues to show extraordinary growth.

Minister Kevin Downswell, who is known for songs such as A change is coming, Close to you, That's Enough and If it's not for you (Lord it is nothing) had the capacity crowd glorifying God with songs throughout another memorable set even as he admonished the worshippers.

Then it was time to go to the Holy Ghost Gym with DJ Nicholas, who took the patrons through their routines with some of the many hits from his catalogue to close a show which patrons will be hoping organisers improve for the next staging.