By By Bill Crist, Special to The Advance
Organizers of a Fourth of July concert held north of Brewton have called the event a success.
"We wanted to offer Brewton the same high quality entertainment larger cities have, I believe we achieved that goal," said Knight Entertainment Production producer Karisky Samuel.
According to a press release from the promoters, bands from Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Georgia appeared at Brewton Jam Fest.
Organizers say the show was a success because of Brewton and the surrounding area's support.
Not everyone was thrilled by the concert, though, and several area residents called the Escambia County Sheriff's Office (ECSO) about concert noise. Samuel and co-promoter Okima Mitchell said they took steps to minimize noise.
"Our noise level was at a minimum," Mitchell said. "We didn't want to disturb people. We even hired a soundman to direct the music away from the houses."
Captain. Chuck McMullen with the ECSO said the promoters had contacted him several days before the event and took notes about emergency preparations.
"They were very cooperative," he said. "Everything I asked them to do, they complied with."
"The sheriff's department advised us about emergency preparation," Samuel said. "We had an EMT waiting on call and an access road was taped off for emergency vehicles. Everything they asked us to do, we did."
Mitchell said that over the course of the day, roughly 600 people attended the concert. She said that every artist who agreed to play did show up. The list of artists included Platinum House, Big Led and Warrington Celebrities from Pensacola, China and Kidd out of Brewton and Mobile and the Bentley Boys from Mississippi. Nathaniel Kimble, a blues artist, headlined the concert.
According to McMullen, the music kicked off at about 4 p.m. and the concert was over by 10 p.m.
"Overall, I think it went well," McMullen said.