Harbour City Shopping Mall venue gets thumbs up as Reggae Sumfest hosts Blitz

T JAMES, Jamaica – The action was at Harbour City Shopping Mall in Montego Bay, St James on Wednesday as Reggae Sumfest hosted BLITZ, an all-black fashion event. The party heated up at about 10:00 pm with the gathering of a critical mass which started to rock to a selection of 90s hits. By the time DJ Franco took control, the joint had heated up and the dance floor was full. It was indeed a fashion statement with many stunning, even risqué outfits. Onlookers enjoyed a virtual fashion show as patrons streamed in. Even with a scheduled 2:00 am closing time, the stream of partygoers continued to arrive steadily, up to shortly before it was time to end. The soon-to-be-completed mall was transformed into a party city, ablaze with lit signs, strobe lighting and festive feather banners to accommodate the revellers. Chief Executive Officer of Downsound Entertainment, Joe Bogdanovich gave the new location the thumbs up. “I was pleasantly surprised about the layout, the ease of access and most importantly the space which allows patrons at Blitz to thoroughly enjoy themselves,” he said. He commended the support from the team at Harbour City Shopping Mall who pulled out all the stops to have the space ready for BLITZ. “Entering the Reggae Sumfest landscape through the hosting of BLITZ is a game- changer and we should see more in the future. Harbour City Shopping Mall is in a great location, and I would like to enter into a multi-year deal with the owners,” Bogdanovich stated. Managing Director of Harbour City Shopping Mall, Zhiqiang King Lu said: “hosting the Reggae Sumfest Blitz event is a fantastic opportunity for us, the members of the Chinese community, to engage everyone. It is also an opportunity for us to pre-showcase the development which also includes the Sky Harbour Hotel – an accommodation development located on the property, but on the oceanfront. Reggae Sumfest BLITZ turned out to be a magic move. Initially, we were nervous about not being ready to host and then we were concerned about getting a negative reaction. However, the reaction from those who attended could not have been better.” He added that having “tasted” Reggae Sumfest through the hosting of Blitz, the decision has already been taken by the stakeholders in Harbour City Shopping Mall to make another bid to host even more events during Reggae Sumfest festival week next year. Meanwhile, Bogdanovich said all is in place for the staging of two great nights of Reggae Sumfest at Catherine Hall Entertainment on Friday and Saturday. He said Sumfest has just added Jada Kingdom to the line-up. “We are excited, we are selling tickets, we are working to make these two nights the best ever in the 30 years of Reggae Sumfest. Jada Kingdom is returning to the island and will be working on Saturday night. We are expecting a top-notch performance from her, and you never know who she might be bringing along,” Bogdanovich said.