On December 7 as news circulated that Buju Banton was on his way back to Jamaica after serving eight years in an American prison, Claudia Thomas tuned into developments on her television in Jamaica.
“I was at home and everyone was blowing up my phone with the video of his arrival,” she recalled.
Thomas is in her mid-40’s, and works for a real estate company in Kingston, Jamaica’s capital. Three weeks before Buju’s Long Walk to Freedom Concert on March 16 there at the National Stadium, she showed little enthusiasm to attend.
“I’m not really following it because I wasn’t planning on going. Can’t manage the crowd,” she said.
One month before the show, Marlon Burke of promoters Solid Agency, reported that tickets for the VIP and Grandstand areas were completely sold out. Tickets range from US$200 to US$32 went on sale online in January and have been voraciously snapped up by Jamaican and overseas fans.
Burke added that physical tickets for the football field and bleachers area are selling steadily.
The 46-year-old Buju is headliner for an event that also includes his son Jahzeil, Chronixx, Etana, Romain Virgo, Agent Sasco, LUST, Cocoa Tea, Ghost and Delly Ranks.
Thomas first met Buju Banton in the early 1990’s when he was riding high with the song Gold Spoon. She remembers visiting him at Penthouse Records and being struck by his personal charm.
“I thought he was handsome, talented. But I loved that he was humble,” she said.
Since he was arrested on drug-related charges in December, 2009, she is no longer enamored.
“I was disappointed that he strayed from the right path,” Thomas admits.
Buju Banton’s last live performance was the Buju Banton and Friends Before The Dawn concert at Miami’s Bayfront Park Amphitheater on January 16, 2011. That show raise funds for his legal fees. Reply Reply All
You must log in to post a comment.