Entertainment Ambassador asks for a change

Youth Ambassador for entertainment, Graham Rowe, says that the entertainment industry needs to take a business approach.

According to Rowe, who has also tried his hand in entertainment management for Chimney Records, his aim is to create an avenue for local event organisers to communicate with international organisers.

Rowe said the connection needed to be made because many organisers were going about their business the wrong way.

The ambassador also said that he believed that internships were valuable in the development of young entertainment practitioners, but outlined that even there, a lack of professiona-lism existed because some industry players often failed to keep their word.

"People tend to say that they are going to do stuff and don't follow through. Like my internship plans, there were some persons who said they were going to assist and they haven't," he said.

Get caught up

The young ambassador also pointed out other ills in the local entertainment business, citing, above all, bias.

"People tend to get caught up in the personal aspect, in terms of who they like and who they don't like, and that is not what being innovative is about," he told The Gleaner.

Rowe also said that persons in the entertainment industry needed to get used to the concept of losing to gain.

The youngster further said that the conviction of Buju Banton and the drug charges against Denroy Morgan could have a negative impact on the entertainment industry.

According to Rowe, artistes should take note of the current situation and its potential impact on reggae music.

"These two cases may be noted by foreign authorities and taken as a reason to put greater scrutiny and pressure on the reggae industry as a whole. If foreign law enforcement takes it as a trend for reggae artistes to be involved in illicit activity, the results will be less than good," he said.

He pointed out the possibility of more visa restrictions, which would gradually lead to a decrease in the returns from entertainment, if musicians were not more considerate about their actions.

"Up-and-coming reggae artistes are going to have to be much more savvy, public relations-wise and promotions-wise, to develop their careers and keep the industry alive in these potentially hostile times ... . All hope is not lost. There are a number of underutilised strategies that may be employed to keep income turning over in the industry," he concluded.