Reggae star Beenie Man won’t be there, but the party will go on.

That’s the word from organisers of Soca versus Reggae: Cloud 9 Edition.

The Grammy Award-winning Jamaican artist was scheduled to perform in Bermuda at Cup Match but plans fell through when he developed difficulties travelling through the United States and Canada.

“He was supposed to perform at a concert in Miami recently,” said organiser Vejay Steede. “Unfortunately he was turned back at the airport because he had some problems with his passport and visa.”

Mr Steede said it was a setback, but he promised patrons it would not dampen the event which has soca and reggae artists competing to be the most popular music style.

“This is the ninth year for SVR” he said.

“This will be an exciting year because so far the score is tied. This will be a tiebreaking year.”

Gyptian and RDX will perform for the reggae team.

“They have international super hits like Bring It On (Beautiful Lady) and Hold You’(Gyptian), and Kotch (RDX) in their collective catalogue,” said Mr Steede. “We are confident that this line-up will bring every ounce of star power necessary to defend the SVR crown for the reggae team, and defend it well.”

The soca team will be led by Shal Marshall, known for Oh Na Na Na, and 5Star Akil, known for To Meh Heart.

“We feel that this new line-up promises an extremely dynamic, entertaining, and exciting show,” Mr Steede added. “We do, however, understand that many of our patrons and supporters were very much looking forward to seeing Beenie Man — as were we — so we’d like to offer anyone who has purchased early bird tickets with hopes of seeing him live on stage a full refund.”

SVR will be bigger and better than ever this year, he promised, with an open bar and catered cuisine.

“If you’ve been to an SVR event in the past, expect that level of sheer delight and more. If a patron requires a refund due to these developments, then he or she should contact us directly on svrbda@gmail.com.”

SVR will be held at Tiger Bay in St George’s on July 31. Gates open at 8pm. Tickets, available on www.bdatix.bm, are $65 or $160 VIP. Prices include BermudaTix fee.