| BY HOWARD CAMPBELL— Observer senior writer— |
KEITH Brown, a member of MKB Productions which operated the successful Heineken Startime shows, died in New York on July 19. He was 82.
His brother Leroy Brown confirmed his death in an interview with the Jamaica Observer.
“Keith was such a great all-rounder. He had a good innings,” said Leroy.
Brown distinguished himself in journalism and public relations at The Gleaner Company, Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation and Alpart Bauxite, before venturing into show promotion during the 1990s.
With Michael Barnett, he operated MKB Productions which staged the Heineken Startime and Startime shows over 18 years.
The first MKB show took place in April 1995 at Mirage nightclub in Kingston with rocksteady giants John Holt and Phyllis Dillon. Their final show was in 2013 at the Liguanea Club, also in Kingston.
“Keith was a media and public relations giant with a passionate love for music. So partnering with me in MKB was second nature for him, and he reveled in show promotion. He had a great knowledge of both Jamaican and American music history and understood both industries very well,” Barnett told the Jamaica Observer.
He added that they shared the same birth date (February 22). Though Brown was 15 years older, they had a strong professional chemistry that made Heineken Startime one of the most successful live shows of the 1990s.
“We complemented each other very well, he being the extremely popular sports and television personality, who almost everyone in Jamaica knew. And me being the more behind-the-scenes, get-the-job-done individual,” said Barnett.
“I loved Keith as a father figure and elder brother.”
Keith Brown, who was pre-deceased by his wife Vivienne, is survived by his brother, three children and four grandchildren.
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