The Gleaner

Ashe’s ‘CHILL’N with Mom’ to celebrate mothers this Sunday

shereita.grizzle@gleanerjm.com

THIS SUNDAY, as the world observes Mother’s Day, Jamaicans are being invited to mark the occasion with an online entertainment special hosted by The Ashe Company. With the usual plans of dinner dates, live events and concerts or a day at the beach off the table again this year, members of the performing arts group have put together a celebratory production, dubbed CHILL’N with Mom. They said that despite public-gathering restrictions and curfews, mothers should still be celebrated in the grandest way and promised that this Sunday’s production would leave every mom feeling appreciated and loved.

“Just like last year, when the pandemic started, social media and virtual shows are still very much an important part of entertainment. We may not be able to take our moms to the live concerts, but we can certainly use the technology to make sure she feels as special as she is. This show is our gift to all mothers. It’s an entertainment show, but the message behind it is that, on this special day, don’t feel so depressed, don’t feel so frustrated because of what you can’t do. Here is a platform you can come to for free and have a great Mother’s Day,”said ensemble member Marlon Anthony Tomlinson.

Tomlinson said the songs in the production are original and have been crafted with a specific message. “The songs you will hear are original, and they are specific to mothers. A lot of them will share the message, ‘Mom, you are special’because [we] want all mothers who watch the show to really feel loved. It’s a sad fact but a lot of the times we don’t really celebrate our parents enough and the great thing about this production is that even though it’s a Mother’s Day special, the songs can be played for your mother all-year round, so she doesn’t just feel the love on Mother’s Day.”

TAP INTO OWN CREATIVITY

Ifidel Williams, Ashe’s integrated marketing and communications lead, shared similar sentiments. He said that although there was a large pool of ‘mom songs’ that they could draw from for the show, they wanted to tap into their own creativity as a means of securing sustenance. Williams explained that with Ashe having now monetised their YouTube platform, the show is an added source of income and urged Jamaicans to support the virtual event.

“In a time like this, when we don’t know when an industry like the one we operate in will be fully opened and when we will be able to go back on tour and perform for major audiences, this is one of the ways that we have found we can sustain and continue to do what we do. We have a YouTube page that we monetised, and people are not going to monetise other people’s content. They are going to put a strike on it, or they’re going to send the benefits to the owners of the original content,” he said.

He said that YouTube is being looked at as another income stream for the company.“This is a viable means of sustainability that we have ventured into at Ashe and bringing funds back into the company. So, while the show is free and we are offering this to the world at no cost, we are hoping that people will come on and watch it because in watching it, you are supporting the creative arts in Jamaica and a group of young people who are ambassadors for Jamaican culture and the retention of that culture,” he said.

CHILL’N with Mom airs at 2 p.m. on Sunday on Ashe’s YouTube platform.

ENTERTAINMENT

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2021-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://thegleaner.pressreader.com/article/281951725691845

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