With Crop Over in full swing, entertainer and event producer Michael Mikey Mercer is placing the spotlight squarely on up-and-coming artistes, as he prepares for the return of his production, The Reunion, set to take place on July 25 at the Kensington Mall carpark.
Speaking to media during a site visit on Wednesday, Mikey stressed that a key element of the event is providing emerging talent with the chance to shine on stage—a rare opportunity for many trying to break into the highly competitive Crop Over circuit.
“We’ve been doing it for the past two years—we asked the public to suggest some of the newer artistes and whatever song they would like to hear. We do our research and we put together a nice segment to give them the exposure because it is not easy getting on some of the bigger stages for the season,” he said.
Mikey, who was adamant about the need to keep supporting upcoming talent, said the team behind the show has already received an overwhelming response from the public, who have suggested a large number of artistes and songs.
He noted, “So far, I have approximately 125 names and songs and we only actually released [the request], I think, the day before. It could be a bit overwhelming, but we understand the importance of it because we got to help the youth. We [did the request] a little earlier this year so we could contact [the artistes] a little earlier, so we could maybe try to get them on a smaller stage so you can see what they’re working with. And if we got to give them a little bit of stage training or so before the show, we would do that.”
Mikey added that the initiative isn’t just about giving artistes stage time—it’s also about nurturing growth and, perhaps, even paving the way for future mentorship.
“Bajans love Bajans more than they tend to say. I cannot wait until love in Barbados becomes trending. What I want to say to the artistes is ‘keep doing what you’re doing, keep pushing, like keep elevating and keep growing because people are watching. Some of them may not always applaud, but they’re watching. Just try to grow positively and go forward’,” the soca artiste said.
Mikey said all was set for the staging of his show, which will also feature a number of popular acts of the season.
He gave the assurance that security at The Reunion will be of the highest standard: “Tight, tight, very, very tight. Fortunately, over the past three events, we’ve never had any issues whatsoever and we intend to keep it that way. Our private security and the police, we’re working hand in hand. We’re going to make sure we have a very, very safe event.” (SB)
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