By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, June 28: The Borneo Jazz Festival (BJF) 2021 broke its own records after garnering fans from over 33 countries with 116,000 online viewers for its three-day virtual journey.
The 16th edition of one of the longest-running jazz festivals in the region was viewed on BJF website, media platforms as well as TVS and Shopee Live throughout June 25 to 27.
Proud of how BJF and Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) 2021 finding its way to a much broader audience through virtual, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Sarawak Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said this has provide Sarawakian artists an even bigger platform for their artistry to be recognised around the world.
“The increased participation and the element of online engagement we received for BJF 2021 has given us a new baseline and will help us better gauge how we can best develop next year’s edition which is scheduled to be held June 24 to 26. Over the years, the iconic BJF has also helped raise Miri’s profile as the Northern gateway to Sarawak since its inception,” Abdul Karim said.
Typically held over two days, this year’s BJF themed ‘Borneo Jazz Memories: A Virtual Journey’ saw Sarawakian artistes performing in pre-recorded sessions in between exclusive interviews with seasoned jazz veterans like Singapore’s ‘King of Swing’, Asia’s Jazz Superstar Jeremy Monteiro; Dave Brewer of Dave and the Doodaddies; and John Hammond.
Meanwhile, the RWMF 2021 held on June 18 to 20, recorded approximately 140,000 viewers from 80 countries through its website and social media platforms including TVS and Shopee Live.
“The number of viewers from around the world is a testament to how well-loved and relevant these iconic events are. We are very happy to be able to reach out to the fans of these iconic festivals from their individual screens, and we hope to see the end of the pandemic soon so that we can continue to bring more value-added entertainment to devoted festival-goers.
“Next year’s festival tentatively scheduled for June 17 to 19, 2022 will be especially meaningful for the RWMF as we will be holding the 25th edition since we first held it in 1998. We hope to be able to celebrate its silver jubilee in a grand way,” Abdul Karim added.
Through the virtual platforms on www.rwmf.net and www.jazzborneo.com, viewers were able to watch the performances, interviews and flashbacks as well as engage in conversation with other online audience throughout the 90-minute events.
Viewers could also enjoy the shows on TVS, Shopee Live while order food and receive discounts on GrabFood, the official delivery partner.
With Shopee named as the official e-commerce partner, the virtual experiences of both RWMF and BJF were streamed via Shopee Live, giving access to millions of households across the country to enjoy the show from the comforts of their own homes.
Sarawak Tourism Board has opened an official store on Shopee to feature merchandise from RWMF and BJF. The merchandise included limited edition t-shirts, Batik Linut face mask, printed Batik face mask and other attractive products.
Those interested can still purchase the limited edition RWMF and BJF merchandise at https://shopee.com.my/placeborneosdnbhd. — DayakDaily
