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NEW GOVERNMENT NEW SONG? THE FIRST JAMAICA 50 SONG SHELVED!

May 21st, 2012 | Add a Comment

A song proposed to be the official soundtrack for Jamaica’s 50th anniversary celebrations has seemingly fallen out of favour.

Late last year, the Jamaica 50 Commission approached music producer Mikey Bennett to compose a theme song for the country’s Golden Jubilee in August.

Top:BRYAN… said there was no official arrangement

Bottom: Mikey Bennett

Bennett accepted and came up with Find The Flag which featured 15 artists. However, he is at a loss to what has come of the song which was submitted during the previous Jamaica Labour Party administration.

“It was launched as the official song, but I have heard the new minister announcing a new song,” Bennett told the Jamaica Observer. “But nobody has said anything to me, and I can’t even go back to the artists dem and say ‘bwoy, listen, there is a new song’.”

Beres Hammond, Freddie McGregor, Tarrus Riley, Konshens, Capleton, Admiral Bailey, Ken Boothe and Marcia Griffiths are some of the artists on Find The Flag.

According to Bennett, “Nobody has communicated anything to me or to any of the artists dem to say that the song is not the song no more.”

However, when contacted, chairman of the Jamaica 50 Commission Robert Bryan, said there was no official arrangement or agreement making Find The Flag the official song for celebrations in August.

“I didn’t see anything about it when I came in. We didn’t see any contract, nothing,” Bryan said. “When I spoke to Mikey [Bennett] he told me he wrote the song and produced it, but that was just about it.”

As far as a new song is concerned, Bryan stated, “We have a campaign song that is in keeping with the marketing theme of Jamaica 50, which is A Nation On A Mission. And that song will be used to drive the marketing campaign and deliver the marketing campaign message.”

He added: “A couple of people have done songs in celebration of Jamaica 50, and we have embraced quite a few of them by issuing proclamations that these songs are in. We are still in the process of selecting one of those.”