Jamaicans paid $10,000 ($120 US) to party with West Indies cricket superstar Chris Gayle at his Grand T20 Victory Party in Chancery Hall, St Andrew, last Saturday found themselves with a bargain.
“It was a huge success,” said Radcliffe Haynes, director of the Chris Gayle Foundation. “The food and music were great as evidenced by the party going on till early into the morning.”
With the proceeds of the event destined for the Lucas Cricket Club and nursery, Haynes was unable to give the collected figures as yet. “We’re still tabulating,” he said.
Upon entering the venue, partygoers were treated to high-class cocktails from sexy hostesses dressed in black.
As expected, everyone was fashionably late ignoring the 6 pm start time listed on the ticket. After 9 pm, most of the attention was focused on the dance floor where the music and mixed drinks flowed freely. Heineken Green Synergy’s alumni DJ Nico reeled off a fresh set of dance hits to rock the crowd. When he was done, Renaissance’s DJ Smoke really got the party started.
Gayle was readily available to adoring fans who broke out their smartphones for photo opportunities. If he was not enough, then they could pick and choose from members of the West Indies cricket team, celebrity sprinters Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell and Yohan Blake. Shaggy and Beenie Man were on hand if the sports stars were not enough to please the impromptu paparazzis.
Richie B opted for slower lovers’ rock only to find the crowd even more energised as they danced — a few literally out of their shoes — and sung to their favourites. Bringing the night to a close, Coppershot took over the final stint and injected a shot of calypso before breaking out dub plates to carry the party into another day.