Revellers takeover streets for Foreday Morning Jam

The Barbados Light and Power (BL&P) Foreday Morning Jam got underway in the wee hours of Saturday morning as hundreds of revellers left the starting points at Queen’s Park, the Helipad in Bridgetown and the Barbados Investment and Development Corporation (BIDC) car park.

At approximately 1:15 a.m., the band departed from Queen’s Park, Constitution Road, St Michael.

The fervor and excitement was in the air as music trucks started to blast some of the Crop Over season’s biggest tunes such as Lil Rick’s Can’t Style Me, King Bubba’s She Always Bend Over, Mole’s Breathe and Pick Your Position by SK.

The glee and euphoria of playing mas was reflected not only in the j’ouvert revellers but also the bystanders who lined the streets to get a glimpse of the action. Some even jumped in to join the festivities.

Up until after 6 a.m., the road was filled with dancing, revelry, paint and the sweet sounds of soca from Barbados and the rest of the Caribbean.

With 22 bands making their way to the Mighty Grynner Highway, there was noticeably a bigger turnout in comparison to last year.

Bystander, Jeneille Richards, who was with her family along Princess Alice Highway, shared her opinion of the jump, noting that this year’s turnout was an improvement to last year’s.

However, she said the harshness of the economic times was evident based on the costumes.

“I am seeing a lot of t-shirts, I thought I would have seen more costumes…I guess with the economic troubles that is good because everybody gets to jump,” she told Barbados TODAY.

She also commended the bands for their tightened security and the large police presence, which ensured that everything went smoothly.

Kam Boyce was also enjoying the festivities but noted that the attendance has declined.

“Foreday is great as usual, but it is less crowded than I know of. I don’t see any violence, I don’t see any negativity, I just see a lot of positivity,” he said, adding “The security are doing their job and police presence is everywhere”.

The Foreday Morning Jam has faced competition with the increase of private jumps such as Native and Caesar’s Army, and Foreday bands such as Mix Nutz, Spekturm, Muddsylde and Envy Mas Band branching off from the jump to host their own events on the night.

Unfortunately, this year there will be no Stag Jam Tune Competition, to recognize the most played tracks on the road, due to lack of sponsorship. (KK)