Late Night/Early Morning review of MERGE....I dont even know where to start: (1) Ive NEVER seen such heavy marketing for a show before...they used EVERY marketing avenue possible....TV, radio, newspaper, internet, social media, flyers, posters, motorcades, whistlestops, giveaways, blimps, carrier pigeons, morse code...there is NOBODY in Antigua that didnt get the memo...A++ (Its all downhill from here) (2) For all that marketing you would expect somebody to anticipate that at midnight when the majority of the crowd is showing up, and everybody is trying to squeeze through ONE tiny entrance - there will be a bottleneck. I swear the line to ARG main entrance reached up by Archives on one side and down by YMCA on the other side....all trying to get to 2 ppl scanning tickets....seriously....seriously you expecting 10,000 + ppl and you set up the entrance process like if its Jaycees?? F-A-I-L. (3) It looks real bad when the highlight of an EL A Kru performance is the 2 min cameo from Mad T-Guans. Tizzy need another hit song pronto...or they might have to go back for Byke...wait...actually no forget that - she can just sing over Expose. #PoorByke (4) Mr. Killa KILLED it...Ive never seen anybody work the hell out of ONE song that much since JW & BLaze sang Palance in 12 different genres on repeat for 1 hr at Red Eye a few years ago. Special shout out to the Rolie Polie lady who didnt just do the usual flip and split and wink up...but comfortably and professionally held the 6:30 or the Downward Facing Fluffy Yoga position for about 10 straight mins while Mr. Killa worked behind her. I hope I can find her on LinkedIn so I can endorse that particular skill. (5 a) I dont know what it is about a stage and lights that will cause regular ppl who paid their money to go to a fete to get up on the stage and end up on their head top in front of 10,000 ppl....but there always seems to be a cross section of ppl who are willing and able to pappy show themselves for a few mins for the amusement of the artist and the audience. My future daughter will be banned from going to all parties, fetes, and any such events with a crowd and video light until shes about 42. (5 b) Shout out to the little homie with the misleading appearance that shocked the crowd and Destra. His mother will probably throw a fit tomorrow morning, but hey the street cred and legendary status he just gained amongst is friends is probably worth it....P.S. He mek Destra fall dung HARD no wah! :o No but seriously...she should probably get her back checked. :/ (5 c) Whoever allowed homegirl to come on stage with the Masking Tape outfit to vogue and get her Lil Mama on next to Destra....na do um again....seriously....na do um again. (6) The band changes/sound problems - Seriously, theres no point in even stressing these issues - because Im SURE it will be the talk for the next few days. Clearly there was some misunderstanding of Epic proportions, but whatever it is that caused Tian Winter and Iconic to walk off the stage without performing is an embarrassment to the organizers and an automatic write off in the eyes of the Antiguan public. I dont care if its Bunji, Fayann, Machel, or the Ghost of Michael Jackson himself...when we in Antigua, Iconic, Taxik, El A Kru, MadTGuans, Flames and ALL our other local acts MUST get the RESPECT that theyve worked so hard for...because they damn sure dont get it when they go to Trinidad. Its really unfair that Ezzy had to come out at the end of an already botched show....in front of an already agitated audience that Destra couldnt even move....to try to salvage a piece of a performance on backing tracks because of whatever fallout happened with the band...but props to the youth for doing his best in an impossible situation. I know some of my peeps were working really hard behind the scenes to make MERGE happen...but this is real and honest feedback from somebody who went to the show expecting to see the biggest and the best. I aint seen this many disappointed feters since Oungku and Onyan fool Antiguans with the r̶e̶u̶n̶i̶o̶n̶ retirement concert last year. Conclusion: Bigger isnt always better - Your move STAGE, your move....but for now SLEEP!!! #LongestReviewEVER #PoorByke #PoorDestraSpine
Posted on: Sun, 01 Jun 2014 10:24:34 +0000