Dominica: All things set for World Creole Music Festival 2023

In just a few hours, the tranquil air of Dominica will be transformed and grooving to the beat of Bouyon, Kompa, Soca, Dancehall and Afrobeats as the island’s famous World Creole Music Festival (WCMF) is scheduled to begin.

The three-night festival will feature over 10 performers from Dominica, the Caribbean and Africa.

At a news conference this morning, Colin Piper, Dominica’s Director of Tourism, said this edition, which is the 23rd staging of WCMF, is one that no one has an excuse to miss.

“[Patrons] can expect a balanced line up and a lot of stalwarts because “Embracing Legacy Theme” is our theme and so there is going to be a lot of bands representing a lot of years in the business. We have morphed that with the new generation. So you are going to see and here from those who are creating their own legacy. So we just think this is going to be a great event that we want to encourage people to come to,” he told Loop News in an interview following the media briefing.

Photo: Dominica Festivals

Piper, who was part of the team that conceptualised the WCMF, said he is happy with the growth that the festival has achieved since its establishment in 1997.

“It is gratifying to see it grow. There has been challenges along the way but that happens with anything that is growing. When you go back and look at the stage when we began and then you look at what we have now you will notice that there has been a lot of growth,” he stated.

Additionally, Piper noted that the festival has been a great investment as Dominica earned what was spent more than nine times over. He highlighted that every sector benefits from the money spent by the thousands of people who come to the nature isle to experience creole culture and all that Dominica has to offer.

Piper said he’s looking forward to seeing Beres Hammond and Vayb along with local artistes and bands such as Midnight Groovers, TK International and Asa Banton.

The local artiste that will be performing for the festival want patrons to come out and show their support.

Rhe, the lead female vocalist of Dominican band Extasy, said they would like to see the Windsor Park Stadium filled to capacity before they perform.

“We are excited to be on the lineup for Sunday. We will be the first band on so please come early. Sunday is an earlier show so don’t allow us to sing to the tarmac. We are hoping that we see quite a few patrons on Sunday early for our performance,” she said.

Gordon Henderson, who is the godfather of Cadence-lypso, told ticket holders that if they missed a performance, they have lost an opportunity to “see how music from the Caribbean can fuse and how musicians from the Caribbean can play together instead of trying to fight petty insularities.”

Night One of WCMF will see Patrice Roberts, Vayb, Popcaan, Dj Stakz and Mr Ridge and Friends gracing the stage.