Island Beats starts off with a bang

The newest event under the Dream WKND umbrella, Island Beats, made its debut recently at the 14th staging of the festival.

The Romeich Entertainment-powered event, held at Wavz Beach, Negril, saw patrons, flags in hand, repping the different Caribbean islands. The star-studded affair was complemented with music by DJs Brush 1 and Franco, Jus Jay out of London, Kryptic and Fyahman, Bishop Escobar and Shukkle Bus. Staying true to the name, the disc jocks wooed patrons with a variety of soca and dancehall music, while tapping into the pop genre that had the packed Wavz Beach singing along word for word.

"Going into this event, we already knew that it would've been a success. Partnering with Romeich, the first time he's doing something on Dream WKND, we knew it was going to be good. A line-up like Ding Dong and Stefflon Don only made it memorable. The energy was right, people came out and were entertained from early, so for us this was a sure shot and it went just as expected," said Dream WKND's festival director PJ Wright.

The star of the show, Ding Dong, took to the stage at approximately 3 a.m., delivering an epic performance. The artiste, accompanied by his Ravers Clavers crew, opened his set with his Badman Fawud, Badman Pullup hit. He then proceeded to delve into his extensive catalogue, reeling off hits such as Bomb, Good Ting Dem, Flairy, and Happiness. In an effort to further interact with the patrons, he invited a few of his fans on stage to showcase their dancing skills. The artiste, who is also a dancer, was just as thrilled to perform at yet another Dream WKND.

"Dream WKND cannot be Dream WKND without Ding Dong. I am a performer, and I get driven by performances, so in preparation for tonight, I sat and observed every performance [before the event] and realised the 'Ding' effect is missing. So yuh know we haffi bring the energy and the vibe. The dancer dem come out and do dem ting, the vibe was right, and so we come put on a show for the fans," he stated.

Prior to his performance, patrons were treated to surprise performances from Stefflon Don and Roze Don, who both raised the energy inside the venue. Stefflon Don had a rapport with her female fans, as she opened up with her hit Senseless, then transitioned to her song Moments Like These with fellow dancehall artiste Masicka. This was her first time performing at Dream WKND and she ensured that she brought her all on stage.

"I literally didn't know what to expect. I thought it was going to be a way smaller crowd, so to see that so many people came out meant so much to me. Big up all my fans in Jamaica, I love you all, and you can look forward to new music very soon." shared the 16 Shots artiste.

In addition to the performances, Island Beats also had fire dancers on hand, who had patrons awestruck. The night's festivities ended with bottles of champagne handed out to patrons.