Stone Love ready to ring in Christmas at Gran’ Market

Stone Love sound system is all about "putting the festive in the Christmas season this year" and is pledging to make it twice as nice.

The sound will take on double duty on Christmas Eve, playing at Weddy Weddy at its Burlington Avenue HQ before heading to Gran' Market inside the St William Grant Park, downton Kingston.

"It's been a long time since something like Gran' Market has been done ... and this year, in particular, we want to play our part in helping to lift the spirits of everyone in the surrounding communities," Stone Love founder, Winston 'Wee Pow' Powell told THE WEEKEND STAR.

"We have the blessing of the mayor of Kingston and we will be playing non-stop good, clean music for the young and the young at heart. Security has been arranged and niceness is guaranteed. Stone Love to the world!" an excited Powell added.

The veteran sound system man, who will be celebrating Stone Love's 53rd anniversary on Saturday at D'Lux Restaurant and Lounge said that he and the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation have been in discussion about bringing gran' market back since September. He admitted that it "wasn't [his] great idea", but he bought into it wholeheartedly.

"As a youngster growing up, me used to love Gran Market," Powell said. "It's part of our culture and it's sad that there's so many things where culture is concerned that we are putting aside. We getting too 'foreign-ised'. Look at Independence celebrations for example. Ever since we get Independence, we used to have street dance. I remember [that] the biggest street dance used to be at Papine and Half-Way Tree Square ... no more," he reminisced.

He noted that Gran' Market used to be a huge night, especially in Brown's Town, but opined that in Kingston, it has waned.

"Redman Sound Station used to be the sound until it change to Jamrock and then it continue til it fade out," he said. Powell said that when the idea for this year's Gran' Market came up, he " jumped on and seh it haffi happen by all means necessary".

"I'll be carrying my likkle basket and put it in a little corner and hope for Santa to put something in there. Back in the days we use to put our caps behind the door and when you wake up next morning bare goodies... Santa pass through," Powell said with a hearty laugh.

He said that people from all 14 parishes live in downtown Kingston, therefore Stone Love will be playing to the entire island that night. He is particularly concerned about using the healing power of music to soothe the souls of all Jamaicans directly or indirectly affected by the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa.

"All of we feel it. I have family who lose dem roof, and Stone Love has fans across the length and breadth of Jamaica, so we have been playing our part in the recovery effort," Powell said.