Festival Song Winner Encourages More Women to Enter the Annual Competition

The 2024 Festival Song Winner, Kimiela ‘Candy’ Isaacs, is encouraging more women to enter the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC)-organised competition.

“Come out and represent your country. The competition is not a man-based thing. It is neutral… women and men. So, women come on out, step up to the game, go for it,” the visually impaired singer declares.

This year’s renewal saw an unprecedented number of females, six, shortlisted among the 10 finalists, marking the first time since the competition’s inception 58 years ago that they were outnumbering their male counterparts.

Ms. Isaacs copped the prestigious title with her entry – ‘#OneJamaica’ – during the competition’s final at Jamaica College’s Karl Hendrickson Auditorium in St. Andrew on July 13.

First runner-up was Trishmaq with ‘Jamaica is a Big Brand’, while second runner-up was Sister Novelette with ‘Fi Mi Island Home’.

Ms. Isaacs describes as “quite an accomplishment for Jamaica”, the fact that “three females hold the top three positions”, adding this “is something to talk about.”

Consequently, she says it is a motivation for women to come forward and participate.”

Ms. Isaacs tells JIS News that she is grateful and honoured to have topped this year’s competition.

“I feel blessed and highly favoured and excited. Representing Jamaica is something that I enjoy doing. So this is an avenue to represent my country in the best way possible [and] I consider it an honour,” she says.

The Festival Song winner is looking forward to the upcoming Emancipation and Independence celebrations, particularly as she will be performing at various JCDC events.

“The festival season has always been a highlight of my summer every year. So, just imagine me performing over the ‘Emancipendence’ celebrations… it’s even more exciting for me,” she says.

Ms. Isaacs shares that after hearing the crowd’s response following her performance during the final, she felt more confident that she had a chance of winning the competition.

She attributes her inspiration for the song to divine influence and a desire to spread unity in Jamaica.

“Let us be united. We are one Jamaica. One Love, One Jamaica. In order to maintain that spirit of oneness, we have to put aside the negative and run with the positive. You have to maintain that spirit of oneness,” she adds.

Ms. Isaacs notes that Jamaica’s achievements and successes would not have been possible without God.

“We couldn’t make these achievements, we couldn’t make these strides without God. All the achievements, all these successes that we have had, the oneness that we have among ourselves could not have happened without God,” she points out.

Despite her visual impairment, Ms. Isaacs sees herself as a capable, normal performer.

“The only drawback is that while [other] people [so able] would run up and down on the stage, I can’t do that. So I have to find ways of enhancing my performance, and that is something that I love doing. It helps me to think,” she explains.

The singer adds that: “going out there and using my voice to do the work and imagining people doing this and doing that… I think out of the box as much as I can when I am about to perform.”

Ms. Isaacs says she has never regarded her disability as a setback, but always deems it “an opportunity to move forward.”

“Always remember to tell yourself [that] anything an able-bodied [person] can do, you, as a person with a disability, or you being extraordinary, you can do even better. Never consider yourself as a failure, but see yourself as an overcomer in everything you do,” she advises.

In addition to her Festival Song victory, Ms. Isaacs boasts a collection of 65 medals, including 30 gold, five silver and 30 trophies garnered from her performances both as a JCDC Festival Competition performer and composer.

She also clinched second place in the JCDC’s Gospel Song Competition in 2009 and, in 2021, she was a Festival Song Competition finalist.
Ms. Isaacs credits her supportive family and friends for her success over the years.

“I know that they have always been there for me. I can call when I need to talk. When I feel a little out of it, they always have a word of encouragement. They are always covering me,” she said.

The song writer, who is an educator at Wolmer’s Girls School, and also teaches at various primary schools, shares that her life’s mantra is: ‘Sight comes from the eyes, but vision comes from the heart’.

The Festival Song Competition, which was established in 1966, is the longest-running original song contest in Jamaica.

It serves as a platform for aspiring artistes, song writers and producers, with the winning song becoming the musical backdrop for Jamaica’s annual Emancipation and Independence Celebrations.