WEH YUH KNOW BOUT CHRISTMAS GRAND MARKET?!

A Two-Day Jamaican Experience That Transformed New York

Christmas Grand Market didn’t just return to New York this past weekend — it came alive with purpose. Across two nights in Manhattan and the Bronx, the event unfolded like a memory brought forward, a reminder of who we are and the cultural heartbeat that follows us wherever we go.

In a year marked by the emotional weight of Hurricane Melissa, this gathering felt different. Tender. Unified. Necessary. For a few hours, New York felt like home — not imagined, but lived.

A HOST ROOTED IN STORYTELLING AND SOUL

The evening moved with ease under the guiding presence of Joan Andrea Hutchinson, whose voice carried the familiar warmth of a Jamaican veranda conversation. She didn’t just host, she connected. Her cadence held history, humor, and the kind of grounding energy that welcomes everyone into the same cultural space.

PERFORMANCES THAT BECAME SHARED MEMORY

The lineup? Andrew Clarke, Jodian Pantry, Mystic Saxx, NANM [A Robenson Mathurin Dance Company], The Braata Singers, Keisha Martin, and others wove together the kind of night you feel long after the applause ends.

Each performance stirred something different: laughter, nostalgia, reverence, community pride. And the audience met every moment with full participation.

People rose to their feet without hesitation,

dancing, singing, calling out in recognition as the classics resurfaced. The room shifted in waves, moving as one collective body. It wasn’t just response; it was resonance. All of it supported by a full band whose sound wrapped the evening in warmth.

A MUSEUM THAT BECAME A PORTAL

Tucked inside the venue was the Jamaican Museum display, a quiet installation that felt like stepping through time.

The dutchy — blackened, sturdy, familiar.

The straw broom.

The kerosene oil lamp.

The face basin.

The fuse bushing.

The pedal sewing machine — a soundtrack of childhoods.

And the chimmy, that essential nighttime companion in homes where the pit latrine lived outside.

People didn’t just look. They remembered.

Soft laughter.

A gentle nod.

A whispered “Mi memba…”

The display did not perform nostalgia — it invited recognition.

INTERMISSION — WHEN MEMORY BECAME CONVERSATION

Intermission didn’t interrupt the evening. It deepened it.

One woman approached first, glowing, telling me how much she enjoyed my performance — and confessing she never knew Grand Market or Braata Folk Singers existed in New York. Discovery lit her face.

Then another woman came up — quiet, leaning in with the kind of intimacy only shared when music unlocks a memory.

She told me she loved my set, and I joked, “You love too much mix-up,” laughing — not knowing she was about to reveal something personal.

She whispered:

“You know that every time I hear the song Tonight Is the Night, it remind me of a man who mi used to deal wid. And one time, him did haffi remind me fi tek off mi panty weh it fly after we carry on wid weself, so mi son don’t come home come see it.”

Mi seh, “Really?”

She laughed softly and said, “Yes… you took me back to a place.”

And I told her, “That was the idea.”

We both laughed and walked off — two strangers tied together by one fleeting, unexpected, very Jamaican moment.

JONKANOO — TRADITION IN MOTION

And then — like a drum roll from the ancestors — Jonkanoo burst onto the stage.

Colors leapt forward. Rhythms rippled across the room. Performers spilled into the aisles, weaving in and around the audience, drawing elders and industry faces into the pulse of tradition.

It wasn’t a reenactment.

It wasn’t nostalgia.

It was living culture, moving with intention.

A MARKETPLACE WITH HEART

More than ten vendors created a curated Grand Market experience — jewelry, artisan crafts, holiday pieces, nostalgic wares. Guests moved with purpose, connecting with makers and memories, supporting community with every purchase.

PURPOSE THAT FRAMED EVERY MOMENT

Through all the laughter, dancing, and celebration, the mission stayed clear: to support families in Western Jamaica affected by Hurricane Melissa.

Donation barrels filled.

The Amazon Relief Registry moved steadily.

This wasn’t charity — it was collective responsibility.

A CLOSING NOTE ON WHY THIS NIGHT MATTERED

Maybe what made this year’s Grand Market so powerful was timing.

In a moment when Jamaica is hurting, when so many are grieving or rebuilding, being in a room full of fellow Jamaicans felt healing.

Faces lit up.

Voices softened.

People embraced.

It felt like community in its purest form — not performance, but presence.

Christmas Grand Market wasn’t simply an event.

It was a return.

A remembering.

A gathering of heritage and resilience and joy.

A night where culture didn’t just show up — it took over the room.

And if reading this makes you feel like you missed something?

…you did.

But next year — make sure you’re in the room. 🇯🇲