Elephant Man brings the vibe at Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival

Neither evening rain nor tight shoes could hamper Elephant Man's performance at Miramar Regional Park as he brough the curtain down on the Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival.

As the self-proclaimed 'Energy God' raced onto the stage for his performance, he exclaimed how tight his shoes were and promptly took them off. The Jamaican dancehall sensation, whose career in music started with the Scare Dem Crew prior to becoming a solo artiste, entered with his hit single Ova Di Wall, which served to energise the patrons from the get-go. He then performed other songs from his catalogue of hits, such as Badman Forward, Signal De Plane, Wave Your Flags, Bun Bad Mind, and Haters Wanna War.

In an effort to rally the Caribbean nationals present, the Grammy-nominated superstar Elephant Man paused during one of his songs and called on everyone, especially "All a di Jamaican dem", to raise their hands, flag or rags, before calling for the stadium's lights to be dimmed, the venue now being illuminated by patrons' phone lights. Patrons, most of them Jamaicans, along with other Caribbean nationals, stood in the pouring rain to experience his performance, which helped the show end on a high. In addition to Elephant Man, other performances came from Nigy Boy, who thrilled the audience with his renditions; Digicel Rising Stars 2009 winner Shuga; the Chalice band, and The Fantells. The show was hosted by comedian Chris Daley. DJ Radcliffe, Richie D, Extatic Sound and DJ Worm did the musical juggling on the turntables.

For her part, Andrea Reynolds, global category manager, Grace USA, said hundreds of persons from all walks of life attended the event, paying the US$50 entry fee to bask in not just the entertainment package, but the rich Jamaican jerk pan food.

"We were telling people to still come out despite the rain. We're happy to be hosting another year of Grace Jamaican Jerk Festival. It's an annual event. We welcomed all different ethnicities to enjoy jerk. Jerk was originated in Jamaica and it's all about the spice, and we just want everyone to experience and enjoy this unique flavor from Jamaica," she said.