Mariah, Magic! set to ignite Jamaica Jazz stage

The Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium will host the 18-time, chart-topping Mariah Carey, who visits Jamaica Jazz for the first time on Friday, January 30. Currently, the top-selling female recording artiste of all time, Carey, who has just announced her first residency at Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas, is excitedly working with the jazz promoters to tailor her performance to the Jamaican audience, according to festival producer Walter Elmore.

The Hero singer is reportedly thrilled about her upcoming performance, aiming to deliver a Fantasy showcase of some of her greatest hits. Carey's fans can expect an energetic, sultry and melodious presentation that is sure to stir Emotions, and have them singing We Belong Together, by the end of the night. This will be the singer's first appearance in the Western Hemisphere since her last tour in 2006.

Opening act

Richie Stephens will open for Mariah Carey on Friday night, bringing with him the winners of the Ska-Teck Dance Competition. Other performances include Bajan saxophonist Arturo Tappin and Morgan Heritage.

Magic!, the Canadian band with the chart-topping single Rude, is one of the headline acts on Saturday, January 31. The Reggae Fusion band, who count The Police and The Wailers as inspiration to their music, will belt songs from their album, Don't Kill The Magic. The band is well known locally as Let Your Hair Down from the album continues to receive heavy local airplay.

Pointer Sisters

I'm So Excited will also ring out through Saturday night as R&B and pop sensations The Pointer Sisters, who were wildly popular in the '70s and '80s, will perform their slew of upbeat hits such as Having A Party and Jump For My Love. Their performance will be followed by the inimitable Charlie Wilson, R&B crooner and former lead for The Gap Band. Fondly known as Uncle Charlie, patrons can expect hits such as There Goes My Baby, You Are and A Million Ways To Love You during his performance.

The hits keep coming on Saturday with American reggae band SOJA and Peter Cetera, former lead singer for the band Chicago, whose paramount '80s monster hit songs like The Glory of Love, Next Time I Fall In Love featuring Amy Grant and Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now, sits atop every 'souls' throwback playlist of Jamaican music lovers. Sitting up there with Michael Bolton, Lionel Richie, Kenny Rogers and Air Supply, all past headliners of the festival, Cetera will unleash his vast catalogue and have patrons waving hands in the air to every song.

The 2015 staging of the Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival, The Art of Music, is slated to take place from January 29 to 31, at the Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium.