Mainstream Recording Artistes Encouraged to Support JCDC Festival Song Competition

Acclaimed Reggae/Dancehall producer, Donovan Germain, is encouraging mainstream recording artistes to support the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission’s (JCDC) Festival Song Competition.

Mr. Germain, who is Chief Executive Officer for Penthouse Records, produced the top three songs in the final of the just concluded competition.

The 2023 winner is ‘Slashe’, whose given name is Donald Anderson, who topped the field of 10 finalists with the entry – ‘Best in the World’.

Mr. Germain said that, for him, it is not about winning the contest, but giving back to Jamaica.

“My only wish is that the mainstream artistes would buy into the process of making festival songs. [By] making a festival song, it’s something you can give back to your country. You, within yourself, know that you are contributing to the culture that you are a part of. When you go to Grand Gala, you see how important it is as the [National] Stadium is full every time,” he pointed out.

Mr. Germain, who said he grew up listening to festival songs, believes new artistes should take a shot at the competition.

He commends the JCDC for maintaining the event over the years and suggests that they continue to engage good producers.

“Find a producer to help the process because, the young artistes coming in, they try to produce the songs themselves and its not up to scratch unlike if a professional producer would have done it. But I have no reservations in encouraging them to enter,” Mr. Germain points out.

Slashe, who concurred, told JIS News that he believes more young persons should enter the contest.

He said his objective while working with Donovan Germain on his song, was to create a new sound for festival songs.

“We wanted to revolutionise the sound of Festival. We wanted to give it a fresh new sound that’s kind of attractive to a newer demographic, because these are the people that are voting,” he said.

Slashe also agreed that the JCDC should continue its mission to maintain the quality of the songs for the competition.

“Continue to appeal to the younger generation, continue to hold to the standard that dictates what festival songs should be quality-wise, production-wise, vocals-wise, and continue to encourage people to put out quality songs that represent our true culture as Jamaicans,” he said.

“The Festival Song Competition must always be celebrated, no matter how technology places itself or rears its head as we go forward. We should never lose sight of what Festival should mean to Jamaica, because it is highly and heavily entrenched in our culture from then till now, and should be beyond today,” Slashe added.