Popular Trinidad-American rapper Nicki Minaj, R&B singer-songwriter, arranger and record producer R Kelly are the first confirmed international acts for this year’s highly anticipated Reggae Sumfest on July 21-23 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Last year R&B stars Usher and Chris Brown performed at Reggae Sumfest as well.
 
“Nicki Minaj, one of the hottest acts in the world right now, will be treating her multitude of fans to a scintillating performance,” Johnny Gourzong, executive producer of the event said. “Last year we had a tremendous festival with great Jamaican and international acts. This time around patrons will again be treated to amazing performances with the likes of Mavado, I-Octane, Beenie Man, Jah Cure and so many other great artistes.”
 
Gourzong also expressed delight that R Kelly will perform at the event as well.
 
“The Reggae Sumfest team is excited to be presenting R. Kelly on the Sumfest stage. We have been trying to contract him for the last five years and it is great to see that it is finally happening. We are expecting a spectacular performance from Mr. Kelly.”
 
It will be R Kelly’s second performance in Jamaica. He made his Jamaican debut in 1996 at a concert at Jamworld in St. Catherine. At that time, he was the hottest artiste in R&B, thanks to the multi-platinum success of 12 Play, his 1993 album that announced him as a bona fide superstar. That album contained big hits like Bump N Grind, a cover of the Spinners classic Sadie, and Your Body’s Callin. 12 Play set the pace for a string of anthems that include the inspirational I Believe I Can Fly and If I Could Turn Back The Hands of Time.
 
Also slated to perform on the festival is Atlanta based Atlantic /Elektra recording artiste Laza Morgan, son of reggae legend Denroy Morgan, whose multi-platinum ‘I’ll Do Anything For You’ ruled urban playlists in the 1980’s. Morgan will perform on ‘International Night 2’ on Saturday, July 23. Morgan’s raspy, resonating voice and rhythmic ‘DJ’ style flows are causing heads to turn stateside with his new single ‘One by One’ featuring dancehall hitmaker Mavado. After signing with Elektra Records last year, Laza was featured on British pop sensation Alexandra Burke’s hit single “Start Without You” which topped the UK and European singles charts in September. He was also featured on Flo Rida’s hit single ’21’ from the album “The Only One.” His forthcoming Elektra debut has already yielded a single, ‘This Girl’ that was featured in Disney’s feature film Step Up 3D and its smash soundtrack. ‘This Girl’ has generated over seven million hits on YouTube and has created a buzz that spans the globe.