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Features |
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Summerjam is arguable
one of the biggest Reggae event of its kind not only in |
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Summerjam was
initiated 20 years ago out of love for Reggae and African music. Klaus
Maac, the director of Contour Music Promotion was engaged in organising
bookings for diverse music concerts and managing music concert events.
But he was a down to earth lover of Reggae and African music. At that
time, he noticed that there were no concerts offered specifically for
the Reggae and African music. He decided to organize a concert to fill
the niche. The first event took place on a very small location with a
few visitors. Within a few years, the information about the event got
around quickly and the number of visitors increased drastically. With
the number of visitors increasing, the list of popular artists
performing at the event got longer and the popularity of Reggae and
African music grew. The initial location of the event became too small
to accommodate visitors and the organizers had to find a new venue.
Eventually, a large premise with a beautiful landscape which offers
camping possibilities was found at the Fuehlinger See in |
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It was not all that
easy in the beginning. Contour Music Promotion had to apply its
knowledge in the Pop music concert industry to build up contacts to the
Reggae and African music artists. Information from business partners and
record companies were helpful. Listening to music from diverse artists
was useful in collecting information about artists and their type of
music. All necessary channels were employed to gain contracts with
artists to perform at the Summerjam events. One of the big names in
African music at the beginning was Manu Dibango. Klaus Maac was very
impressed by Dibango’s 1972 hit “Soul Makossa”. He quickly
established contact with the Cameroonian artist in |
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Reggae
music itself is a matter of feeling according to Klaus. The root is in |
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| Patrice | ||
| Summerjam has grown into a very big event. This proves the success of the concept and thanks to all visitors that make the festival a success. The visitors create the festival atmosphere that is conducive to community party and specific to the Summerjam. However, there are now new generation of visitors who are fans of new generation of music artists. Contour Music can therefore no longer afford to engage only the old big names in the Root Reggae/African music sector. Engaging younger generation of music artists in the Reggae and related music sector for the Summerjam is now vital for the financial success of the event. This is due to the fact that the event is solely financed through ticket sales. At least 20.000 tickets have to be sold to cover the cost. Media entertainment firms like MTV and Viva are only interested in covering the event but not in sponsoring it. These firms categorize Summerjam as a niche market which is not on their priority list. | ||
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Amadou &
Mariam |
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The Summerjam event
strives to find the right balance of music artists that would attract both
young and old visitors. The event should provide opportunities for people
with taste for a particular type of music to hear other types of music. It
is not only Reggae that is offered. The music performances include African
music, Hip Hop and Dance Hall. Depending on cost, both popular and
emerging artists are contracted for the yearly event. Contour Music
Promotion pays the highest fees to motivate music bands to come to |
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An organization or a
person who wants to organize an event comparable to Summerjam needs the
necessary contacts to the entertainment industry, insider information,
negotiating skills, dedicated pubic relation and advertisement team,
information and advice from the law enforcement office as well as support from a
security agency. Moreover, the person must have strong will and staying
power. It is business and risk is part of every business. Klaus Maack had
his share of unfavourable period, when his business flopped and he had to
declare bankruptcy. |
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| Klaus Maack, the initiator of Summerjam and director of Contour Music Promotion. |
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| Thorsten, member of Contour Music Promotion team |
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The popularity of the
event makes the media company covering it popular. It is quite difficult
for Contour Music Promotion to find a sponsoring partner that fits into the
event’s philosophy. The event should not be sponsored by a company
that conspicuously advocate alcohol consumption. A lot of young people
attend the Summerjam each year and the Contour Music Promotion team
feels responsible for their well being. These young people should not be
brainwashed by manipulative alcohol advertisements on the event’s
location. Marijuana is also forbidden on the premises, though there
might be some cases of violation. This decision has been helpful in
creating a very good image for the event. The local residents of the
location area complain about the garbage produced during the festival
but attest to the fact that the visitors are friendly and peaceful. We
have visitors who have been attending the festival since the first event
and some of the visiting teenagers are the results of loves found at the
festival. |
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Alpha Blondy |
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Contour Music
Promotion organizes diverse music festivals and concert tours. Festivals
are organized between September and July while concerts and other shows
are presented throughout the rest of the year. Thorsten is responsible
for print media contacts, advertisement posters, bookings, sponsorship
and information sourcing. According to him, it is necessary to maintain
good contacts to print media companies focusing on music. The Hip Hop,
Dance-Hall and Reggae magazine RIDDIM is for example a good source of
information for Thorsten in connection with information about artists for the
Summerjam. There is a regular exchange of information relating to music trends between the editorial team of RIDDIM and Contour Music
Promotion. There are basic things one should know. For example, new
record release generally takes place on Mondays. The job demands
constant learning and being up-to-date with the latest news in the music
sector. It is also necessary to know how to communicate with people from
different cultures in the music business scene. At the end of the day,
it’s all about business and you have to know how to play your game to
succeed. In all, Thorsten finds his job very interesting and he loves
all the activities involved. |
| Summerjam 2005 photos |
| Alpha Blondy> |
| Anthony B> |
| Amadou & Mariam> |
| Patrice> |
| Zoe> |
| Richie Spice> |
| Chuck fender> |
| Barrington Levy> |
| other artist> |
| Gregory Isaacs> |
| Reggae Party> |
| End. Afritopic |
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