Beres Hammond Honoured In New York

Flanked by fellow entertainers, Marcia Griffiths and Maxi Priest, Jamaican balladeer, Beresford ‘Beres’ Hammond, received a proclamation from Brooklyn Councilwoman, Yvette Clarke, on October 31 at the Consulate General of Jamaica in New York, in honour of his great contribution to music.
“Beres has carried the banner of Jamaican music for a long time and is today an international superstar extraordinaire, and so I am thrilled to present him with this proclamation in tribute to his consistently good music, which he has given us for 30 years,” Councilwoman Clarke said, as she presented the proclamation to Mr. Hammond.
Dr. Basil K. Bryan, Jamaica’s Consul General to New York, also spoke of Mr. Hammond’s immense talent. “We always strive to highlight our country and our people and so it is only right that we salute Beres Hammond whose music has had a tremendous impact on the world,” he said.
Directing his comments to Chris Chin of VP Records and Cynthia Smith and Kernie Anderson of WLIB, who were also on hand for the event, Dr. Bryan added: “I would also like to congratulate VP records and WLIB Radio as they continue to celebrate Beres Hammond’s legacy, by sponsoring this reception in his honour”.
In his response, Mr. Hammond opted to perform his hit song, ‘Rockaway’ for the many well-wishers who had gathered to see him. He also joined Maxi Priest in singing backup for Marcia Griffiths’ rendition of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’.
The evening ended with the three entertainers leading the crowd in a rendition of Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’.