Local musician Jean-eric Smith accepted a Cayman Islands Government grant recently on behalf of Caymanian musicians who are performing at this year’s Pan American Games.

The 2015 Games will host performances from Caymanian musicians Andy Blake, Stuart Wilson and Mr. Smith, popularly known as “Notch”.

At a meeting with Ministry of Health and Culture Councillor Roy McTaggart and Deputy Chief Officer Nancy Barnard, the artist collected a cheque for CI$5,000, to help the group to perform at the Games in Toronto, Canada.

“The government realises the importance of supporting Cayman Islands’ musicians, as music is such a key aspect of our cultural and social life. We wish the group all the best in Canada,” said Mr. McTaggart, handing over the cheque to Mr. Smith.

Mr. Smith is a passionate advocate for the Cayman Islands music industry. As the current president of the Cayman Music and Entertainment Association, he is the visionary behind the new initiative to have local musicians serve as cultural attachés to sporting contingents at major international sporting events, on a yearly basis.

The Pan Am Games, held every four years, takes place 10-26 July 2015 in Toronto, Canada. Athletes from 41 different nations, including the Cayman Islands, will come together to compete in 36 sports. While there, the musicians will be representing the Islands at the first ever ‘Cayman House’ located in the FUSE Marketing Group’s downtown Toronto headquarters. In addition to their performance, the musicians hope to continue to gain international experience and form useful networking ties with Canadian music companies.

Explaining that this opportunity is also important to the Islands’ tourism industry, Mr. Smith said: “Exposure from these games could prove to be a great step towards promoting Caymanian music and culture abroad and help to bring more visitors to our shores”.

Photo caption Photo by Japhia Augustine:

(L-r) Culture Councillor, Mr. Roy McTaggart, local musician, Mr. Jean-eric Smith and Ministry Deputy Chief Officer, Ms Nancy Barnard