Worrell King - File

Western Bureau:

Conscious lyrics will be flowing in paradise this April, as the 21st renewal of Western Consciousness, which will unfold on Saturday, April 25, has been confirmed for the scenic Paradise Park, near Savanna-la-mar, Westmoreland.

According to promoter Worrell King, all the requisite permissions have been obtained, paving the way for the show to move from its perennial home at the Llandilo Cultural Centre to Paradise Park, which is virgin territory in terms of staging major concerts.

"Llandilo has become unsuitable within recent years, because, unlike when we started two decades ago, it is now a major housing development and people are now complaining about the music from the show," said King. "The change of venue should make these people happy."

In addition, King is quite excited about moving the popular one-night show to the lush and spacious Paradise Park.

A lovely setting

"Paradise Park presents quite a lovely setting, because it is almost in the middle of nowhere, so we won't be disturbing anybody," said King. "Apart from the lush, green surroundings, it is also in proximity to one of the popular rivers, where people go to bathe regularly."

In addition to finalising the change of venue, King has already signed several majors acts and is in negotiation with others. Among the acts confirmed are veteran England-based reggae star King Sounds, the 'messenger' Luciano, the 'fire man' Capleton, dancehall star Beenie Man, who will be performing as Ras Moses, and veteran reggae crooner Leroy Gibbon.

The overall package

"We are going to build the overall package around the artistes we have already signed," said King, whose concept entails excluding artistes who engage in lewd and derogatory lyrics. "Everybody should know by now the type of artistes that we use on Western Consciousness."

While he refused to give any details, King acknowledged that he was in discussion with another major reggae group out of the United Kingdom, which he believes would add an extra dimension to the show.

"As I said before, we want to make Western Consciousness 21 very special, so we are going all out to give the fans everything possible," said King. "Once we have a confirmation from the group in question, we will be only too happy to make the details public."