Masicka is no longer waiting for a promoter to call. The dancehall star is staging his own show, the inaugural Forever 1NE Music Festival, on Saturday, December 19, at Caymanas Park in Portmore, the hometown that raised him, according to DancehallMag.

The first names on the bill are Dexta Daps, Shaneil Muir and reggae singer I-Wayne, revealed at the festival media launch on Monday, November 2, at D’Ferrano Restaurant and Lounge in Portmore, according to DancehallStarz. Masicka headlines his own night.

This Is My Event

Asked whether he was simply the face of somebody else’s production, Masicka was direct. “This is my event,” he said, according to DancehallMag. “It’s a collective effort. I mean, we have partners.”

The festival is being presented by Masicka and his 1Syde team in partnership with Zimi Entertainment, with Magnum as title partner, according to DancehallStarz. Zimi Entertainment promoter Zimmy urged fans to secure tickets early, according to DancehallMag.

For Masicka, the hometown staging is the point. “It just feel like giving back and keeping it in my hometown,” he said, according to DancehallMag. He added that he wants fans to go home talking about the experience, and proud of it.

The Minister’s Stamp

Entertainment and Culture Minister Olivia Grange attended the launch and praised the move beyond the music. She called Masicka “one of the most dynamic forces on the dancehall scene” and described the project as “worthy of commendation,” according to DancehallMag.

Grange pushed the wider point as well: artists can pave the way for the future by looking beyond their own performances and recordings, and by creating opportunities that benefit the wider music industry. St. Catherine East Central MP Alando Terrelonge opened his own remarks with a line that summed up the night: “Tonight, home is where music is,” according to DancehallMag.

A December Built Around One Name

The festival closes a year that has kept Masicka at the centre of dancehall conversation. His third studio album Forever Reign, released through Def Jam Recordings in August, has passed 71 million streams, a milestone Jamroc Nation reported earlier this month.

The deluxe edition of Forever Reign arrives on December 4 with eight additional tracks, according to World Music Views, which also reported that the deluxe could be his final release under Def Jam as he weighs a new chapter in 2027.

Asked about Grammy talk, Masicka kept it grounded. “If the Grammy comes, it comes,” he said, according to DancehallMag, adding that listeners streaming his music is what keeps him going.

December 19 is now circled in Portmore. An artist who built his name as a performer is betting he can build the stage itself, at home, with his musical family beside him.

Nation, is Masicka staging his own festival the power move dancehall needs, or should the general leave promotion to the promoters?

Photo: Masicka performing live. Photo: Pelpa Time Production, via Wikimedia Commons