Guyanese shine during ‘Plant It’ concert

Aug 10, 2015 News

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…promote healthy living, agriculture

By Desilon Daniels
Though Saturday evening’s concert was officially dubbed ‘Plant it Guyana’, people on the streets had their own name for it: ‘The Chronixx Show’. After all, the Jamaican star was the one the people wanted to see. Anyone else who performed, they thought, would just be fillers.

But in a surprising move, the dozen or so Guyanese who performed on Saturday more than held their own during the ‘Plant it Guyana’ concert – or ‘The Chronixx Show’ if you prefer – at the National Stadium, Providence.
Besides Chronixx and his band, the Zincfence Redemption, all of Saturday’s performers were Guyanese.
While a few of them, such as the group First Born, were already well known, the majority of the artistes were relatively unknown to the Guyanese public. So it was no surprise that when their names were announced the majority of them received lukewarm receptions from the audience.
That changed after their performances. They were all dressed magnificently but their voices and performances managed to surpass even their brightly coloured outfits.
They were each allowed limited time to sing two or three songs, but for those few minutes, they riveted the thousands gathered, bellowing or crooning their lyrics. While some chose traditional reggae, others chose to divert and add other genres such as R&B.
The most commendable part of all was the fact that they performed original songs, which were also catchy enough for the audience to pick up on easily and sing along to when prompted.
Particularly interesting were the performances of the sensual Sister Petra and, of course, the experienced First Born.
Petra managed to give an unforgettable performance that invariably set her apart. For ten to 15 minutes she commanded the stage, perfectly toeing the line between modesty and sexiness. She was also backed by two vocalists and the Irits Band, which both worked well with her expert delivery.
Just after she exited the stage with resounding applause, Kaieteur News caught up with Sister Petra. Despite her youthful appearance, she revealed that she was in fact 34-years-old, has three children and lived in New York.
She shared that the ‘Plant It Guyana’ show was her first big performance in Guyana, though she had performed on other big stages in other countries.
“I’m so, so thankful to have been a part of this,” Petra exclaimed before continuing, “I was a little bit nervous but overall it was fun.” She explained that she had been practising for about two months but the onstage jitters were nevertheless there.
“It’s a big difference compared to practising amongst the people you see every day but the crowd was very nice and it felt great to come and represent,” she added.
Questioned about her sensual lyrics, Petra laughed and explained she “loved being a woman”.
“I love celebrating my womanhood. I do have some degree of modesty because I am a mother but my children dress me so once they’re fine so am I,” she said.
First Born also delivered a highly entertaining performance. The group had the honour of performing right before Chronixx. Besides the Jamaican artiste they were awarded most of the time, entertaining the audience for more than half an hour. The group’s three members performed like the veterans they are.
The crowd was clearly enjoying it and sang along enthusiastically. Their song choices did not only allow the entire group to shine but also individual members who interacted well with audience members. Their entire performance segued nicely into what could only be described as an electrifying performance by Chronixx.
A full rundown of Saturday’s show – including Chronixx’s performance, crowd reactions and backstage conflicts – will be available this Friday in Kaieteur News’ entertainment section.
“PLANT IT GUYANA”
But even while they performed, the musicians always kept in the back of their minds the serious message that was being promoted for the concert.
During interviews with Kaieteur News following their performances, several of the performers stressed the importance of Guyana becoming more self-sustainable through agricultural pursuits.
Sister Petra was particularly vocal about the issue. As someone living in America, she attested to the difficulties she experienced in finding healthy, organic foods.
“Living in the States, some of the things used in foods are so bad for the body. Here in Guyana the people are blind to the issues faced in America when it comes to illnesses and unhealthy eating is pushing health issues,” she said.
She stressed that she was wholeheartedly for the entire initiative to promote farming in her home country.
Similarly, Guyanese musician Jah Iris also endorsed the farming initiative.
“We have so much land here and we are so rich in terms of natural resources. We have it so good here but we’re not using it all properly,” he said. He continued, “Organic food is the best and it’s great for healing persons of illnesses. Organic is the way of nature and, if you follow the laws of nature, you won’t be sick so by violating the laws of nature you’re sinning against yourself.”
Another Guyanese artiste, Ras Abnahakim Selassie explained that as a part of his Rastafarian faith he only uses organic foods. He said that worldwide persons are suffering from not eating similarly.
“The food and everything is being contaminated in the world so the promotion of farming is something we need here,” he said.
He further said that the concert was a way to promote the benefits of farming and to make persons more aware of what is happening to their bodies when they eat unhealthily.
“Organic is a blessing from the Father and we all can contribute in our own way. Even if it’s a seed or a simple plant, we can make a difference,” he said. “This is a positive message going out and I’m sharing the message through music,” he added.
The ‘Plant It Guyana’ concert was presented by RACE (Rastafari Achieving Creed Empowerment) Productions as a way to promote farming in Guyana.

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