With nine acts scheduled for the first night and seven each thereafter over the course of the festival's three days, production manager Robert Stewart reached out to veteran sound engineer Raphael "Raffie" Alkins to take the festival to a different level and help solve the logistical dilemma of managing so many performances in such a short span of time.
"This was an easy one," Alkins notes, recalling the hectic days on the laid-back island leading up to the event. "I showed the team a flow chart I designed for the show and how to make it happen. The most important part of a plan in these kinds of applications is the microphones. If you have the right quantity at your disposal, you can pre-mic everything for each act ahead of time and have it ready to go. Then when the show starts, you literally roll the acts in-and-out almost like they're going through a revolving door. As one comes on, the other before it has been moved to the side on rolling risers, and that stage is being struck."
Alkins came to the event knowing he'd never be able to find the sheer number of microphones he'd need for the job in Jamaica. Turning stateside to Tom Krajecki of Shure, who he had met before at a number of awards shows, he ultimately amassed a sizable mic locker shipped to the site from Shure headquarters in Niles, Illinois, and from the manufacturer's Nashville office.
Lionel Richie took the stage on the second night with a KSM9. Shure UHF-R wireless was used on all other backing and lead vocals throughout the festival, with a variety of capsules. Working in an environment lacking the support of FCC rules and regulations, Alkins found that his UHF-R systems were nonetheless more than up to the task.
(Jim Evans)
