Sheryl Lee Ralph Sings Jamaica’s Anthem

Few vacation pitches are as direct as the one Sheryl Lee Ralph delivered from a ballroom stage in Manhattan on Friday night. “Don’t just love Jamaica for your vacation,” the Emmy-winning actress told a black-tie crowd. She wanted travelers to love the island for its people, its culture, its food and its music. Her message landed at the American Friends of Jamaica’s 45th anniversary Hummingbird Gala at The Plaza. It also landed at a moment when Caribbean destinations are working to turn first-time visitors into lifelong returnees. The evening honored two figures who stand at different ends of Jamaica’s global story: Ralph, who received the International Humanitarian Award, and Adam Stewart, executive chairman of Sandals Resorts International, who received the International Achievement Award.

A Prayer, Not Just a Performance

Ralph did not simply accept her award. She sang Jamaica’s national anthem, “Eternal Father, Bless Our Land,” as part of her speech.

She framed the anthem as a prayer she has carried since childhood, learned “one foot in America, one foot in Jamaica.” She recalled learning it for Jamaica’s first Independence Day celebrations in 1962, when she was expected to sing and dance. Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness was among those in the room.

The moment is easy to read as pure sentiment, but it speaks to something travel marketers spend fortunes trying to manufacture. Ralph’s relationship with Jamaica is lifelong and personal, and it runs through the diaspora. That connection matters commercially as well as emotionally. In my reading of the Caribbean market, visitors with family or cultural ties to an island tend to be among its most loyal returnees. That is general industry knowledge rather than a figure from the event, but it explains why a speech about love and loyalty carried real weight in a room full of Jamaica’s international supporters.

“Over and Over Again”

Ralph’s most quotable line was also her most traveler-focused. She urged the audience to love Jamaica as the place “you come back to one time, not two times, not three times, but over and over again.”

That is the tourism ideal in a sentence. The Caribbean is crowded with excellent beaches, and sand and sun alone rarely build repeat business. What brings people back to Jamaica is the layer beyond the resort: the music, the food, the humor, the sense of a place with a strong identity. For travelers planning a trip, her advice doubles as an itinerary tip. Leave the property, eat locally, and listen to the island.

Sandals’ Founding Story, Told by Its Heir

Stewart used his time to celebrate Jamaicans and the vision of his late father, Gordon “Butch” Stewart. He noted that Sandals began in 1981 with a 99-room hotel in Montego Bay, St James. It has since grown into one of the Caribbean’s best-known hospitality brands.

He framed the company’s biggest success as proof that Jamaican talent can compete anywhere. “Our business today is 20,000 team members, of which 97 per cent of them were born in the Caribbean, and the platform is Jamaica,” he said. He added that when the company needs to “elevate” or “evolve,” it brings in “the Jamaican army” to show the world “the magic of Jamaica.”

Those figures are Stewart’s own, delivered from the podium, and they point to a workforce story that often goes untold in travel coverage. Guests see the swim-up suite and the beachfront dinner. They less often consider that the people delivering the experience are overwhelmingly from the region. That regional footprint is a real differentiator in a sector where leakage, meaning tourism revenue that leaves the destination, is a long-standing concern.

Stewart also credited his father’s decision to establish the Sandals Foundation in 2009. He thanked the employees and corporate partners who have supported its work. He then offered an optimistic reading of the present, pointing to improved economic indicators and declaring it “the absolute best time in the history of our country to be a Jamaican.” As is usual with after-dinner speeches, that is a sentiment rather than an audited conclusion. It still captures the confidence of an industry that sees Jamaica as a flagship Caribbean market.

He drew a laugh, too. With Ralph’s rendition of the anthem still fresh, he promised the audience he would not be singing along: “I am not going to sing with you.”

The Prime Minister’s Verdict

Holness congratulated both honorees and described their achievements as examples of Jamaica’s growing international influence. “Their achievements take different forms, but both demonstrate how far Jamaican excellence can reach and how much good it can do,” he said.

The pairing was telling. One honoree built her profile in entertainment and advocacy, and the other leads a hospitality group. Between them they show how Jamaica’s global reach works across culture, commerce and charity, and how closely those threads are tied to the island’s visitor economy.

What the Hummingbird Gala Is For

The American Friends of Jamaica is a U.S.-based charity that raises funds for causes on the island, and the Hummingbird Gala is its major New York fundraiser. According to Caribbean National Weekly, the organization has raised US$12 million and deployed US$7.2 million to support initiatives in Jamaica. Recipients include the Clifton Boys’ Home, the Janet & Rupert Banton Foundation and the Jamaica 4-H Foundation.

Pre-event coverage said Ralph was recognized for her HIV/AIDS advocacy, particularly during a period when the disease carried heavy stigma. It said Stewart was recognized for institution-building and for support of healthcare, education and disaster recovery through the Sandals Foundation, the We Care Foundation and Sandals Corporate University. The event listing also billed reggae artist Sister Nancy as a special performance.

The AFJ also runs a South Florida gala. Its 2026 edition, according to local reporting, focused on hurricane recovery, including rebuilding roofs and restoring schools damaged by Hurricane Melissa last October. For travelers, that is a useful reminder that the island’s recovery is ongoing, and that visiting responsibly is one of the most direct ways to support it.

It is tempting to file a gala under society news. For travelers, though, this one points to three practical takeaways about Jamaica travel.

First, the island’s tourism leaders are talking about purpose as much as product. Philanthropy and community investment are becoming part of the hospitality pitch across the Caribbean, and visitors increasingly choose properties and destinations with that in mind.

Second, the diaspora remains Jamaica’s most powerful ambassador. A gala at The Plaza, with a prime minister present, shows how seriously that relationship is taken.

Third, the call to “love Jamaica for the people” is a call to travel differently. Book locally owned tours. Eat at neighborhood spots. Go to a live music night. Those choices spread tourism dollars beyond the resort gate.

Jamaica in the Caribbean Context

Compared with neighbors such as the Dominican Republic or the Bahamas, Jamaica’s competitive edge is cultural gravity. Few small islands have exported as much music, cuisine and style as Jamaica has. That is why Ralph’s argument works as tourism strategy. Beaches are easy to replicate, and identity is not.

The evening was in part a celebration, and also a statement of intent. The island’s boosters believe Jamaica is entering a confident chapter, and that its story is best told by the people who live it. With the AFJ marking 45 years of support for causes on the island, the diaspora’s role looks set to keep growing.

For travelers, the invitation is simple and a little poetic. Come for the sunshine, but stay curious about the people, and plan to come back “over and over again.”

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