Smirnoff viewing party from Los Angeles: A live performance streamed on a big screen for patrons in Kingston and Ochi Rios to view. The person performing tonight was EDM DJ Tommy Trash..ever heard of him? Me neither, but being a big EDM fan I wanted to check it out.
Kept at Terra Nova pavillion in Kingston, the only way to experience this event was by invite and to get that patrons had to answer quizzes on Smirnoff Facebook page. I don’t usually have luck with these kinda things but I tried my luck and answered the question online and VOILA!! I had won two tickets.
Gates opened at 7pm I arrived at 8pm. Setup was done in the pavilion which had a VIP viewing platform over the pool, the stage in front with the a big screen and the bar to the side. As you entered the venue, you were greeted by Smirnoff hostesses who gave you a nice popsicle treat and that would be the only free thing for the night. You had to purchase your alcohol at the bar and the price list wasn’t cheap.
A few persons where already inside lounging and chatting among themselves. Show time wasn’t until 11pm, so music was played while the venue slowly got packed. Music for the night was provided by DJ Cruise, Cruise entertained the crowd with some EDM mixes while patrons drank, chatted and moved to the music.
Some time passed and it was show time. People gathered near the stage and DJ Cruise made way for DJ Tommy Trash as he popped up on the screen live from Smirnoff Play House in Los Angeles. After introducing himself and giving his shout out to Jamaicans in Kingston and Ochi, he began his set. While watching you could see there was a house party in progress as there were patrons behind Tommy Trash dancing, chatting, and taking pictures.
As for the crowd in Jamaica, the majority just stood and watched; some nodding their heads. This led me to ask: why were they here? I know EDM music is still a growing trend in Jamaica but if you’re not a fan of the music, why come? The only patrons who seemed to be enjoying the performance were on the VIP platform as you saw them jump and dance to the music, you know..like a real rave.
During the set, Smirnoff girls took to the stage, dancing to the music with smoke guns in hand attempting to entertain and hype up the crowd. As I mentioned earlier, the liquor was over priced so I’d say 90% of the crowd was still sober. Promoters seemed to realize this and to loosen them up, had hostesses hand out Smirnoff mixes and shots of vodka to the crowd.
The VIP platform is where the party was at so I made my way there to enjoy the rest of the show. Patrons jumped and sang to the music which made the whole platform shake. A little while after, Tommy Trash’s feed was cut and DJ Cruise took the stage and he played..you guessed it.. dancehall, which was well received by the gun salutes and shouts in the crowd.
So for the reminder of the night, patrons danced and shook to the raunchy music, myself included, but events like these show that the majority of Jamaicans haven’t accepted the EDM/rave culture as yet, but it’s slowly getting there.
🍸🍻 PartyHeart ❥ ❣ 🎉 
Good review. Dont think this event was promoted enough. Or maybe if it was promoted during school time at the colleges it’d have a better turn out. Then again, the drinks were so expensive.
LikeLike