Duane Stephenson recalls Kartel/Mavado clash and the Sting that didn’t happen

Reggae artiste, Duane Stephenson, was booked to perform twice on ‘the greatest one-night dancehall show on Earth’, Sting, and he said that both times were history-making events.

The singer made his Sting début in 2008, the year of the highly anticipated Kartel and Mavado clash, and he has some potent memories. Stephenson recalled that although Sting is known as a hardcore dancehall show “there was a nice reggae section after which there was a mass exodus from the venue … but for every one person who exited, three persons were entering”.

“It was if there were two shows that night … the reggae show and the dancehall show… and both had their crowd. Trucks were parked along the Dyke Road in Portmore full of people who for one reason or another didn’t get inside the venue, but they were determined to watch that Kartel/Mavado clash unfold,” Stephenson shared.

The clash saw Kartel and his adherents representing the Gaza, while Mavado and his followers represented for the Gully. The vicious Gaza vs Gully feud between the two dancehall artistes had taken on a life of its own and the legendary Sting stage was prepped as the great decider. At the end of the night, both groups claimed winnings, with Kartel going a step further by releasing a song the next day celebrating his victory.

POSTPONEMENT

Fast forward to 2024 - 16 years later - and Stephenson was booked to perform on Sting for the second time in his career, but this time it turned out to be the Sting that didn’t happen.

For December 26, Stephenson was ready up to the 11th hour to perform at the annual Boxing Day gala. But he got the shock of his life on the morning of the actual day of the event, when he was notified via email that Sting was postponed.

“I was quite surprised because you would think that if something like this was going to happen it would not be the day of the show,” the August Town singer told The Gleaner.

“Rehearsals went extremely well, so everyone was prepped and ready to go. Ruff Kut was the main backing band. For some of the artistes ... they would switch out some of their members for other roots musicians ... and I figure that was to keep costs down. And it worked ... the music was great,” Stephenson said.

He shared that he reached out to the promotional team early on Thursday morning regarding the passes and was told that they would get back to him.

“The next thing I got was the email that was sent to all the artistes because they wanted us to know first ... before the news of the postponement hit the media.”

The entertainer, who is currently in the final stages of preparation to release a new album, was somewhat philosophical in his acceptance that “things do happen”.

“Sting has distinguished itself as being the ‘first’ in many areas of entertainment over the decades … so I suppose that this is just another first for them,” Stephenson said with a shrug, while emphasising that he was “extremely disappointed”.

The promoters of Sting, Supreme Promotions said that this postponement was the first in the concert’s 40-year history and shoved the blame at the doorstep of the sound, stage and light company, Clearsound. That company, however, subsequently pushed back at initial reports and detailed “unresolved financial issues and hazardous conditions” as the major reasons for them pulling out from Sting 2024.

“Sting is such an iconic show that for it to end like this is painful,” Stephenson stated. “Sting has been the staple dancehall event for so many years … it has made so many careers. Sting was that show that was known to keep ticket prices at a minimum, and it was especially needed now in these times of exorbitant ticket prices,” said Stephenson, who recently gave excellent performances at Ghetto Splash and JaRIA Reggae Wednesdays Jamz, both of which are free events.

He shared that the letter didn’t mention a new date for the event, nor did it address the issue of the artiste deposits.

“I received a 25-per-cent deposit [the standard is 50 per cent] and what I respect is that the promoters were transparent. They did express to me that they were struggling financially so I was aware of the dynamics,” he said.

The Little Cottage in Negril singer expressed concern over the way that business is conducted in the entertainment ecosystem and suggested that for Sting to rebuild it should perhaps consider a smaller venue for the next staging.

“It’s about time we rethink how we go about the real business of Sting. We have to put business first. We as artistes understand that. Before the show, the promoter picks you up at the airport up in a limousine ... after the show you grab a taxi or the hotel shuttle back to the airport,” he said.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com