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Thread: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

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    Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Some years ago when we started the highways to Negril I predicted that Negril was going to become the entertainment capital of Jamaica. I vision a place where Jamaicans from all over Jamaica mainly from Kingston, Montego Bay and Ochi rolling into Negril every week end for entertain of all type feature music of all type but mainly reggae roots rock. My prediction has not happen so far. It has not happen for a number of reasons.
    • As soon as it was about to take of the government the police on the music. One senior officer said in a meeting he was sent to Negril to control music.
    • Shops , bars, and places that play music as part of their business model was targeted.
    • The major hotels and some residents who said they want quite and the music is a issue for them, some of these people retired and make Negril their place of living.
    • The local organizers have not done a good job of organizing and managing the music and the type of event.
    • The class of people that that have the government ears are those that have issues with music particularly outdoor music.
    • The way how the town is organize or lock there of .
    We have seen the town move from a vibrant 24hr rocking town to now dealing with dead one at nights. As the town grows entrainment grow over the years. So some places that were tolerating music for two nights a week suddenly have to deal with it for seven nights. It should be noted that we are an outdoor culture.
    It is true that the visitors now a days are different from those in the 70’s , 80’s and early 90’s when I started business in Negril. They don’t seem to be as fascinated about partying under the moonlight. They seem to want to party and then go home. Also many of the older tourist who are here every year are definitely not into all-night or loud music partying, many of them are not even drinking liquor any more. I have experience where I see a table in the garden with about eight people and thought they were drink and I might be making a good sale only to discover that they are not drinking liquor but rather drinking water.
    The town faces a balancing act which is not an easy task. Local business needs entertainment/music to attract so they can a chance to make some money. The visitors are on the beach in the days. Afternoon they are in there hotel for dinner etc. Late night is when the local business get a chance to sell to some of them that are brave enough to venture out. If the police continue to pressure many local businesses will go out.
    SOLUTION
    • Requires some cooperation and support for local business.
    • Technology to address the music volume
    • Small business marketing (niche)
    • Organize, organize and more organize so local business voice are very loud. There is a Negril Entertainment Association. They are doing their best. However they don’t always have the support of the authorities.

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Contrary to popular belief, not everyone in Negril wants it to be like the rest of Jamaica. There are a lot of powerful people with lots of investment in keeping Negril as quaint and quiet as possible.

    Without regulations, Jamaicans will keep parties all night until the sun comes up the next day. Some like that but not the majority of those who go on vacation for some quiet time.

    There is and always has been a disconnect between what Jamaicans want and what the tourists want and as long as the money is on the tourist side of the ledger, Negril will resist going down the highway towards being the entertainment capital of Jamaica.

    Just my opinion
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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Quote Originally Posted by Accompong View Post
    Contrary to popular belief, not everyone in Negril wants it to be like the rest of Jamaica. There are a lot of powerful people with lots of investment in keeping Negril as quaint and quiet as possible.

    Without regulations, Jamaicans will keep parties all night until the sun comes up the next day. Some like that but not the majority of those who go on vacation for some quiet time.

    There is and always has been a disconnect between what Jamaicans want and what the tourists want and as long as the money is on the tourist side of the ledger, Negril will resist going down the highway towards being the entertainment capital of Jamaica.

    Just my opinion
    right on bill!! you know your stuff . . .

    personally, i am not a night person and want to enjoy my beach time.
    hearing "noise" till 5 a.m. is not really what i want to do with my vacation time . . . .

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Quote Originally Posted by JitterBug View Post
    right on bill!! you know your stuff . . .

    personally, i am not a night person and want to enjoy my beach time.
    hearing "noise" till 5 a.m. is not really what i want to do with my vacation time . . . .
    A case in point. Saturday night we had a sound system down the road about 100 yards away. This is a local system called Reggae King from Elderslie and the crowd kind of small but the sound was HUGE. We don't have police up here and thus no lock off time.

    At about 3 or 4 in the morning, the DJ was shouting guttural animal noises into the microphone on top of what could only be considered noise making the result an ear-splitting din. You might get the impression that the locals liked it but when you talked to those who live near the venue you got a different point of view. The vulgarity and female demeaning was also an issue with people who have children but everyone just quietly acquiesced to what the minority wanted.

    One man's music is another man's noise. Put Bob Marley on at night and people would enjoy it but the sound system people only play Marley music etc. until midnight or so when the REAL party begins (at least in their minds).

    In Negril, the police would lock off the sound well before that happened. A good choice in my opinion.

    Hi Jitters!

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    About 15 years ago we stayed at Port Antonio a couple times. Walked the town every day...only white people we saw was us! The locals treated us with a curious aloofness. Like, why are these people here? We got the impression that, while they were polite and hospitable to us, they really didn't care to have tourists there. The "tourist industry" did not seem like a high priority for them. Don't know whether that has changed? An interesting couple of visits there though.

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    I always wondered if the locals are up all night listening to the loud music, whether willingly listening or not......how do the kids get quality sleep enough to do well in school and how do the adults get enough sleep to do quality work during the day....I think most of us who vacation in Negril, go there for the beauty of the island's scenery and not for the blasting music 'til 4 am every night......I don't mind a couple of times a week but not every night.....I probably would have to vacation elsewhere..

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Times have definately changed. When i started going to Negril Mi Yard was our hangout at night. We layed around on the beach all day recovering from the night before and after sunset we had a nap and then took in a show. After that it was off to Mi Yard and we could usually be found walking home as the sun was coming up. Now we maybe stop in once or twice but never stay the night. Not sure i would feel as safe as i once did walking the west end at that time of nite but we are also 20 yrs older now so what we want from our time in Negril has changed. We see many of the same people each year who are also getting older and it seems most of the new visitors to Negril stay in ai resorts and the ones who dont seem to be turned off by the hassles and never return. Kinda sad when you think about it. Also there doesnt seem to be as many big shows like there was years ago. I miss the way Negril was but we still love it and still discover new places and things and our desire to return hasnt changed. One thng that hasnt changed for us is our love for the people and how most of them treat us and welcome us. Friends who once worked where we always stay search us out when they hear we are there and not for a hand out but to see us and spend time with us. Those are lifelong friendships and the connection to the people that drives us to return as often as possible. I wish all visitors to Negril could develope connections and friendships like that.

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    Well said - Irieonline -
    The days of "Big Shows " seem to have come and gone
    -live music shows - or at least any of "great quality " are a thing of the past - over the years
    Beres Hammond - MXIII- Shinehead- Ziggy Marley & the MM- Bounty Killer -Gregory, was the Wayne Newton of Negril- the Bob Marley bash -was filled with top notch talent
    -the west end lost Kaisers/ Central park /MXIII/ Samsara- ALL had great venues ...
    seems like the wave of the future is - Govt' Mule @ an AI -hmmm come to think of it Negril Escapes had a excellent lineup ..some time ago

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    If it were just weekends when the parties were happening then I believe most tourists would schedule their vacation plans around the happenings on the weekends, whether it be to attend or avoid parties. I will say my biggest disappointment in Negril is the lack of big name shows. I will also add that when I've had the chance to see a big name artist, it was entirely too late before they came on or they never showed up. Is govt mule coming on at 1 AM at the AI and does anyone doubt they will show? Most concerts in the US are done by midnight and the younger crowd goes out to a nightclub if they want to continue the party. I think the gap between Jamaican nightlife and the tourists idea of a nightlife is just too big these days.

    I always say the key to anything being successful is consistency. The more you repeat the same experience the more those people attracted to that experience will come back and bring others looking for the same experience. Unfortunately Negril, being a tourist destination, doesn't have the option of measuring consistency over months but rather needs to measure consistency over years. This is because visitors only return once or twice a year.

    People don't like change. Every time you make a change you risk aliening some of the current group in hopes of attracting a newer larger group to replace it. This is why branding is so important. Branding enables a person to trust what experience a particular brand will give them. When brands change too much, customers flee.

    Negril needs to determine what its brand or brands (its large enough to offer multiple experience throughout the town) are going to be and then ensure current businesses aren't tarnishing that brand. New businesses should fit the brand its set out to establish. Then they also need to be consistent in ensuring businesses are delivering those experiences year over year. If you allow businesses to compete with each other for what the "brands" are going to be you risk having businesses trying to establish conflicting brands and conflict rarely produces consistency unless its constant conflict.

    Of course this would not be easy and it would take years. Initially there would be winners and losers, just as there have been with recent changes in regulations. But eventually businesses will thrive as they consistently deliver the brand(s) established and tourists seek those experiences out year over year. Whatever it is they want Negril to be, they need to be consistent in trying to delivering it. It's only through consistency that tourists can learn how to tailor their vacations to avoid negative experiences and repeat the good experiences they have had in the past. It's also how businesses determine where best to establish their brand.

    There's plenty of room to offer everyone whatever it is they are looking for in Negril today but it can't be done all in one small section of town without it creating conflicts.

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    Re: Interesting article from Mi Yard- thoughts ....

    I think nostalgia may once again be playing tricks with some memories. The "big shows" featuring Freddy McGregor, The Marley sons, John Holt and Shaggy were held on the cliffs at Negril Escape just 5 years ago. Since then, Rockhouse had a great concert series as recently as last year featuring the likes of Tarrus Riley and Chronixx:

    http://negril.com/nt/nt022715.htm

    Many of the performers remembered and mentioned have passed on. Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs and John Holt are no longer with us.
    For older fans, the Jolly Boys and Mighty Diamonds performed recently in Negril.

    Etana, Tarrus, Jah Cure, Queen Ifrica and the legendary Luciano and Yellowman are all regulars in Negril.
    Negril.com - For the vacation that never ends!

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