Organizers of Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Kickoff Weekend said Monday they are ready for what is intended to be an explosive two-day event at Taino Beach on April 15 & 16. From left are Ministry of Tourism Grand Bahama Sports Tourism Manager Nuvolari Chootosingh; Director Betty Bethel; Minister for Grand Bahama Dr. Michael Darville; Event Coordinator Ginger Moxey; Marketing and Public Relations coordinator Yolanda Hanna; Entertainment coordinator Karen Ferguson-Bain and Beach Olympics Co-coordinator Jacquie Rolle.
Grand Bahama is getting ready to roll out its signature Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Kickoff event and with just over a week left, The Grand Life Street Team has hit the road in a mad rush of excitement to ignite the fever.
Organizers announced at a press conference Monday at the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Office Freeport that the weekend event will kick off in grand style on April 15 and 16 with an exciting lineup on Taino Beach. The hot spot will again be transformed into a Cultural Village filled with Bahamian arts and craft, food, fun and an All Star entertainment Show.
“Junkanoo Carnival is going to be awesome this year,” said Minister for Grand Bahama Dr. Michael Darville, who pointed out that Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival proved to be a major stimulus and direct benefit to 310 small and medium sized enterprises and 52 vendors at the Taino Beach Cultural Village.
Last year, The Bahamas National Festival Commission (BNFC) staged the inaugural event which had a tremendous economic impact on the island with over 30,000 spectators over the two nights, 600 employed during the Carnival period; $1.2M in direct local expenditure; $5.5M in direct economic activity and $2M in tax revenue.
“We are so excited. We’ve been waiting for this because of the impact that it had for our island. So many people benefitted, so many businesses benefitted,” Ginger Moxey, President & CEO Immerse Bahamas and BNFC Consultant said. “Once again we thank the minister for all of his support and the government of The Bahamas for ensuring that Grand Bahama Island is represented when it comes to Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival.”
Moxey said the event impacted small, medium, and large size enterprises and assured that this year, the Grand Bahama Carnival Kick Off weekend will be even more energized with added features, including the Ministry of Tourism Air Show.
Some of those businesses that benefitted include food and craft vendors to musicians, decorators, cultural enthusiasts, Junkanooers, sound technicians, life guards, entertainers, dancers, graphic artists, photographers, videographers, marketing professionals, accountants, electricians, plumbers, makeup artists, models, builders, media houses, printing, equipment rental, security, food and beverage and catering companies, event planners, sanitation services, catering companies, and tourism and related businesses.
Director of the Ministry of Tourism, Grand Bahama Betty Bethel said that the emphasis this year for promotion of the Kickoff event was placed on marketplaces where there is direct and connecting airlift to Grand Bahama Island.
“As a result we will have a mega Fam Trip of travel agents that will be here the weekend of the April 15 - 16. We are expecting a minimum of 50 travel agents from these gateways that we have been marketing in,” Bethel said.
Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator Yolanda Hanna stressed that the international media component gives the entertainers an opportunity to be seen and showcased in a way that many of them have never before.
“They’ve been aspiring towards it, they’ve been dreaming of it, but the opportunity is now here and it’s on their own grounds, their native soil. So we’re just so excited to give the entertainers, the musicians, the singers, the songwriters, the performers this opportunity to be seen and to show the world our culture,” Hanna said.
Corporate Grand Bahama has stepped it up a notch this year for Beach Olympics set for April 16 and co-coordinator Jacquie Rolle said that in addition to the obstacle course, volleyball, basketball and tug-o-war competitions, the 5K race, a new component, which will be held on Saturday, April 9, has been thrown into the mix and is open to the entire community of Grand Bahama.
Entertainment Coordinator Karen Ferguson-Bain promises the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Beach Party will be like no other from the down-home Cultural lineup to the Native Fashion Show to the spectacular music by our DJs, and performances by the talented list of entertainers on Grand Bahama Island.
The cost for the two-day event is $10 per day, which starts with a Pre-Show at 6:00pm; followed by the Music Masters Semi Finals lineup at 8:00 pm when 14 Bahamian contestants will perform the top 20 songs, over the 2-Day period, for a chance to capture the $20,000 grand prize. The top 10 contestants will move on to the finals at Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival in New Providence May 5-7.
Bahamian and international artists will perform in an All-Star Concert beginning at 10:00 pm on Friday night that will feature Geno D, Jay Mitchell, Jack Nasty, Fadda Fox, Ricardo Drue, King Bubba, Julien Believe and Stileet, and close out with a pulsating rushout.
Fitness enthusiasts will gear up early Saturday morning and head down to Taino Beach for Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Fitness Workout at 6:00am; Corporate Grand Bahama and other groups will come together to compete for bragging rights in Beach Olympics at 8:00am; and an all-day beach party begins at 9:00 am.
The Ministry of Tourism Air Show is scheduled for 2:00pm – 4:00pm and a Pre-Show kicks off at 6:00pm, followed by Part II of the Music Masters Semi-Finals at 8:00pm and the All-star concert at 10:00pm with Shurwayne Winchester, D-Mac, Ronnie Butler, Olatunji and Visage; another show stopping rushout, and fireworks.
Ticket outlets include Gizmos & Gadgets, Kross Town Food Store, Grand Lucayan Resort and Memories Resort.
Gallery: ON THE ROAD – The Grand Life Street Team is on the road and making its way around the island spreading the Bahama Junkanoo Carnival fever leading up to the Grand Bahama Kickoff Weekend on April 15 and 16. (Photos by Immerse Bahamas)
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