Bootleggers profit from Rebel Salute

Tony Rebel, the main man behind Rebel Salute, says he is not surprised that bootleggers have already begun to capitalise on the most recent staging of his event and are now selling video copies of the show for $100.

Speaking with THE WEEKEND STAR, Rebel said that it is not new for bootleggers to somehow obtain parts of the show and put it together for sale.

He recalled getting the shock of his life one year when he travelled overseas, and was sold a DVD of Rebel Salute. The salesman was also shocked when he realised that his buyer was ‘Mr Rebel Salute’ himself.

Many would assume that perhaps the free live streaming was one of the ways the footage was obtained, but Rebel revealed that even before the live streaming, persons found ways to pirate the show, package it, and sell it on the streets both locally and abroad.

“Sometimes you don’t know who to trust because before the live stream, we wondered who could be giving these people footage of the show and where dem get it,” he said. “We nuh like the fact that somebody taking it and selling it, but that’s Jamaica. You would be shocked to know the people who give these people access, but it’s one a dem thing deh.”

The entertainer said that while it is sad that his own countrymen have sought to capitalise on his hard work in such a way, he has no intentions of filing any reports with the police.

“Police have enough murder fi go look bout. Dem hands tied yah now. However, if a man out deh a sell Rebel Salute, and I never give him permission and di police hold him and lock him up, I don’t response,” he said, adding that it has proved difficult to clamp down on bootleggers.

While there isn’t much he can do, Rebel described the act as not only unlawful but also disappointing. He lamented that too much work goes into the planning and execution of Rebel Salute each year for “a man to just get up and decide fi sell it fi a bills.”