Police chief outlines ‘strict conditions’ for Tommy Lee show

Commissioner of Police Keith Miller said Friday that Jamaican artiste Tommy Lee could perform in St Vincent Saturday night, but under strict conditions. {{more}}

Miller told a press conference in Kingstown that the decision was made after a meeting on Thursday with promoters for the show.

The 24-year-old artiste has to provide his full repertoire of songs and will be told which ones he can sing at “Halloween Bash”, the police chief said.

Further, the artiste, whose real name is Leroy Junior Russell, will have to abide by the nation’s drug laws.

Miller noted that the possession and use of marijuana is illegal in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

He said Grenadian law enforcement authorities informed him that Tommy Lee was arrested and charged there in April for possession of marijuana.

“I want to let Mr Tommy Lee know that the possession and use of cannabis is also a law in St Vincent and the Grenadines. So, very early, I want him to think about coming here to use cannabis or possessing cannabis,” Miller said.

The Association of Evangelical Churches had requested that the show be cancelled.

It said it had deep concerns about the lyrics of Tommy Lee’s song, “Uncle Demon”.

“The lyrics to this song are reprehensible. They promote violence, hatred and give rise to a culture that does not respect the value of life and that has started to stealthily creep its way into the very fabric of our nation, especially the youth,” the association said.

And Miller said he was prompted to do his own research and discovered some adverse comments about Tommy Lee’s performances and lyrics.

He said he also contacted the Jamaican authorities, who also expressed similar concerns.

He further said he would not allow anyone to adversely impact the nation’s youths, adding that information on the Internet suggested that a lot of young people are gravitating towards the artiste.

“And some persons think that he (Tommy Lee) is a bad influence. And that is the reason why we must ensure that corrective measures are put in place to ensure that the lyrical contents of the songs do not send across the wrong message.”

Meanwhile, Dougie “Nose” Joseph, of One Love Entertainment, the promoters of the event, also attended the press conference Friday.

Joseph said his group had no problem with the guidelines set out by the commissioner of police.

Miller mentioned that the promoters, in a letter, had also outlined some possible conditions to be considered and should there be a breach, the law should take its course.

Joseph thanked Miller, saying he did the right thing in that he listened to the concerns of the public then met with the promoters before setting down ground rules.

“We have agreed to abide by these ground rules because our organization … we are law-abiding persons and we would not like to see that we are doing anything that could cause misbehavior,” Joseph said.

He further say it was unfortunate that those who were protesting the artiste’s performance were calling for the show to be cancelled.

“It (the show) was not something that was going to happen without a cost,” said Joseph, a journalist.

Joseph said money was already spent on booking the Victoria Park, advertisements, flyers, posters and tickets. None of this money is refundable, he said.

“So to call for the cancellation at the ninth hour, I think it was a bit unfortunate … but we have gone past that stage,” he said.

Joseph said he wanted the public to know that the show is still on for tomorrow and the promoters have promised a good, clean show.

“People have nothing to fear that there would be anything adverse at the show,” Joseph said.