After a two-year hiatus, Dominica has staged a successful World Creole Music Festival as part of the island’s 44th Independence celebrations. The festival hosted 23 artists, 11 of which were local artists in the genres of Cadence-Lypso, Bouyon, Compas and Dancehall. Soca, Zouk, Reggae, and Afrobeat were performed by other regional and international performers.
Preliminary data suggests that there were 7,755 visitor arrivals during the nine-day period leading up to WCMF 2022. This is a 10% increase in visitor arrivals over the corresponding period in 2019. Visitor arrivals by air surpassed 2019 by 6%, while visitor arrivals by sea reflected an 11% improvement over corresponding period in 2019.
Attendance at the festival in 2022 also surpassed 2019. Based on preliminary reports from scanned tickets, the total attendance at this year’s event was 33,173. This is reflective of a 14% increase over 2019’s attendance. Patrons had the option of general attendance, seating in the stands or patronizing the Coastal Village VIP.
A combination of increased ticket sales and an increase in ticket prices resulted in 31% increase in gate receipts over 2019. Over 200 media and influencers were accredited to cover the World Creole Music Festival. As such, Dominica has received regional coverage spanning from Trinidad and Tobago in the south to St. Kitts in the north. Patrons generally enjoyed the performances, each having a favorite based on their preferences.
The Minister of Tourism, Honorable Denise Charles, stated that this year’s festival has been coined as the “best creole festival” by many patrons. The aim was to take the creole festival to a new level in terms of the variety of bar and food options, standard of entertainment, expanded grounds area, and the entire experience. Additional ground space was provided in anticipation of the expected crowds, a new elevated experience was introduced in the Rainforest Lounge; new genres of music formed part of the exciting line up; ten premium bars were added to the grounds in addition to picnic benches; and several young local artistes were given an opportunity on the international stage.
The next staging of the World Creole Music Festival 2023 will be October 27-29. Other major events will be Mas Domnik, Dominica’s Carnival, which will run from January 14 – February 22, 2023; and Jazz ’n Creole which is slated for April 30, 2023.
Discover Dominica Authority (DDA) extends special gratitude to this year’s World Creole Music Festival sponsors which include presenting sponsor, the Government of Dominica; headline sponsor, Digicel; gold sponsor, Tropical Shipping, silver sponsor, Coulibri Ridge; bronze sponsors, RCI Guadeloupe, RCI Martinique, and premier banking partner – National Bank of Dominica; corporate sponsors, Tranquility Beach, Belfast Estate–Kubuli, Josephine Gabriel & Co. Ltd., DBS Radio, The Wave, Spektak TV/TRACE, L’Express des Iles, and PDV Caribe Dominica Ltd.; and business sponsors, Wandy’s & The Nook, Pirates Ltd., Carib, ABS Antigua, Hott 93/GEM Radio, Philipsburg Broadcasting, and Q95 (WICE FM). Special mention is made of partners CNC3, Trinidad Express, The Sun, The Chronicle, Kairi FM, DOWASCO, DOMLEC, and Multi-Solutions Inc.
For more information on Dominica’s World Creole Music Festival, contact the Dominica Festivals Committee at (767) 448-4833/255-8221, visit the official website www.DominicaFestivals.com, or follow Dominica Fests on Instagram and Facebook.
