By Ayanna Kirton, Staff Reporter
The R&B group, Destiny's Child, is among the artistes slated for Sumfest 2003. - File
THE COST of staging Sumfest, which kicked off on Tuesday in Montego Bay, is expected to be about $42 million, according to concert operators, although local promoters and organisers, Summerfest Productions and Red Stripe, have declined to state the actual costs for the four-day reggae festival.
However, a release on the festival's official web site, reggesumfest.com, said this year the organisers have opted for quality over quantity, meaning the calibre of artists scheduled to perform.
The line up of artistes include the award winning American trio, Destiny's Child, who are scheduled to give their first performance on-stage after more than a year-long hiatus.
BIG NAMES
Other big name acts include Sean Paul, one of Jamaica's dancehall hottest star who recently gained platinum status with one million album sales for his sophomore release, "Dutty Rock"; Grammy award winning deejay, Beenie Man; crowd favourite, Sizzla; deejay, Bounty Killer, as well as other high profile dancehall and reggae artists.
Although all booking agencies contacted declined to reveal the rates the artistes were being paid, saying they were unable to discuss the rates up front, industry insiders said the going rate for 'big acts' like Bounty Killer and Sizzla is usually $500,000, while billing Beenie Man could incur costs as high as $700,000 due to his popularity abroad.
According to the insiders, the rates are often negotiated as promoters are seldom willing to pay the asking prices. One unofficial source said Summerfest Productions shelled out US$200,000 for Destiny's Child to perform on Sumfest's International Night, and that the rate was discounted because of the event's location.
Another industry insider said that local acts often discount their rates by as much as 60 per cent for Sumfest, generally out of patriotism and as a show of support for the festival, which is now in its 11th year. It is said that many Jamaican artists are aware of the level of promotion both Jamaica and the artistes themselves can gain from events like Sumfest and as a result they do not hold out for large pay cheques.
Last year, the festival's most popular night saw more than 10,000 patrons. This year, if the same numbers attend, Summerfest Productions could enjoy revenues as high as US$360,000 for a single night, enough to cover the estimated cost of its most expensive act, Destiny's Child, and a few of the local acts.
INVESTMENT
Roger Thompson, brand manager of Red Stripe, Sumfest's title sponsor, said the beer company has invested substantially in the event. "We have pumped a lot of energy and finances into Sumfest this year compared to previous years," he said.
According to Thompson, the results from the investment are evident in terms of the excitement and anticipation surrounding Sumfest this year. He added that the alliance with Sumfest was not based only on the intention to increase sales in Red Stripe Beer but also to leverage reggae music with consumers of the product by associating the brand with the popular reggae festival.
Thompson said that in addition to a monetary contribution and management skills, Red Stripe assisted Summerfest Productions with marketing and promotion, utilising the beer company's expertise to handle media negotiations, public relations, and the conceptualisation of promotion and marketing strategies. Industry insiders say if all goes well ticket receipts are expected to net $20 million over the four day event.
