US introduces new booking procedure

A decision by the U.S. immigration authorities to increase fees for work permits for artistes who work in the United States, has raised some concerns in Britain, but not in Jamaica.

In the past, acts who visit the U.S. for tours, promotional work, TV appearances, etcetera, were charged a basic US$110 per application. Under new guidelines introduced in June, in order to obtain the permits in less than the normal 30-90 days waiting period, the artistes will now have to pay US$1,000, in addition to the standard fee.

Paul Birch, chairman of the British Phonographic Industry's (BPI) international committee, suggests that it is unfair that while the British provide the same service, free of charge within one week, the U.S. is adding a US$1,000 charge with the wait still extended to two weeks.

"This is a trade barrier," Birch suggests.

There are others in Britain who see nothing wrong with the development. For example, Billboard quotes Bob Tulipan, founder of the Traffic Control Group, as commenting: "I think the reality here is that they are genuinely trying to help."

The US$1,000 charge is not per artiste, but per application. This means that a number of artistes and musicians for a single concert can all obtain work permits under a single payment.

Asked to comment, Jamaica/New York booking agent/promoter Delroy Carroll told us that he saw no problems with the new procedure for Jamaicans who will have to use the facility, "since the additional fee covers the whole group and the processing will now be reduced to a limited time."

The events which marred this year's Dancehall Night at Reggae Sumfest are mostly seen as negative but, in fact, there has been some positive developments coming out of it.

For example, with the calls for an improvement in the quality of the music coming from the genre, a number of the older dancehall acts are being encouraged to return to the music and several are actually heeding the call.

Recently, we learnt of the decision of DJ Errol Scorcher to start recording again with the relatively new Stampede label, after a break of some 15 years. Probably the most welcomed news is the decision of top sound system selector Danny Dread (Derrick Ffrench), a very influential figure in local dance music in the 70s and 80s, to return to the dance halls.

Danny has already arranged to launch his return with an appearance at, of all places, Knoxwood/Burnt Savannah, St. Elizabeth on Sunday, October 28, along with Beenie Man, Cobra, Bling Dawg, Nitty Kutchie, Boom Dynamite and other leading acts.

VC (Valberton Craigie) whose By His Deeds was one of the biggest reggae hits this year has, finally, come up with the follow-up single, Gwaan.

VC is joined for this single by his producer, Martin Lewis. The song is released on their own Dig Dis label, boasting the same reflective lyrics of By His Deeds. He has also taken the opportunity to add a new verse dedicated to the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

Lewis who, incidentally, was deejay Shaggy's engineer for several years, co-owns the Digital Noize studio with VC. They recruited top musicians Mikey Fletcher and Dean Fraser for the new project.

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