On the 70th anniversary of Bob Marley's birth, Chronixx announced he would embark on a tour of Jamaica during his acoustic performance at Bob's former residence, 56 Hope Road. Nothing else was known at the time but the reception was that of delight with a hint of curiosity.
Despite the island's rich musical history, Jamaica’s produce rarely tour the famed island. That's exactly what inspired the home leg of the Capture Land World Tour. "We have been to the seven seas and six continents. By travelling, we always saw that the platform was there in the other markets, but we have never seen a reggae show of that magnitude in Jamaica," says Brendon ‘Barnz’ Sharpe (Chronixx’s manager) of the tours inspiration.
Jamaican artists’ home fans see relatively short sets (30-45 minutes) at one of the big festival shows while those abroad enjoy a full concert experience with sets surpassing an hour. Team Chronixx’s desire was to give home supporters the show quality their international peers experience.
"[The tour] was the only way for us to really get what you want to show to the people musically and visually. Just creating our own platform to present our music. We thought we'd do community by community, parish by parish," he says of the strategy. The initial leg comprised of four parishes; St. Andrew (Kingston), Portland, Westmoreland (Negril) and St. Elizabeth. A second leg later in 2016 saw them complete seven of the fourteen parishes (Mandeville, Manchester and Spanish Town).
One of the tours main obstacles is lack of live infrastructure. Unlike Kingston and Montego Bay which have reasonably sized venues to house patrons, much of the island isn't quite as fortunate. "There are no performing arts venues. That's the main issue for us,” he explains. "We have the music, we have the product but where to display the product? There are no places in Jamaica for that."
Open fields were transformed into incredible venues after fencing, lighting, and sound equipment was rented and a stage erected from scratch. This is an obstacle that troubles many fellow artists. “I can relate that to other musicians such as Protoje, Kabaka Pyramid, Kelissa, Dre Island - we all face the same issues," he says. Support acts on the tour included fellow young performers Jesse Royal, Earth Kry, Pentateuch.
With high production values comes extremely high costs. Most of Jamaica’s large events are sponsored, very often by alcohol beverage companies whose ethos contradicts Chronixx's Rastafarian beliefs. "Where support is concerned, we needed help getting the whole expenditure covered for the whole production," says Barnz. "Production is very, very expensive in Jamaica." It isn’t much easier for bigger live events either. "Sponsors go for the parties rather than live shows. A lot of the large shows like Reggae Sumfest, Rebel Salute - these festivals are dying,” Barnz is keen to highlight. “We used to have at least ten annual reggae festivals. 2015 you had 3 or 4."
However, what were potential threats to the tour’s existence became the highlights. "The creativity that our team put into this - the planning, we instilled LCD video screens and we got one of the best sound systems in Jamaica," he says with pride. "We were happy with the results and the feedback and the turnout from the patrons." In spite of production costs and lack of sponsors, attendees only paid JA$2000 (approx US$16) to get in, except Chronixx's home town, Spanish Town. where entry fee was JA$1000 (approx US$8), and further discount for college students. "We kept the ticket prices low to ensure we got the support," he says.
St Thomas, St. Mary, St, Ann, Montego Bay and Hanover supporters needn't fear of missing out as there are plans to hit those towns. "We need to plan and revamp before we execute again," he reveals. And this isn't just about Chronixx, it's about playing a part in preserving the music, the culture and showing others it's possible. "It’s a culture that we have to fight to keep alive," exclaims Barnz. The journey is to be continued.
