by Marlon Madden As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to create a high level of uncertainty for live events and large gatherings, officials in the entertainment industry are skeptical whether Caribbean patrons would be willing to pay to “attend” online fetes and just how much. To date, the majority of the online fetes and “lockdown parties” in Barbados and the rest of the Caribbean have been free, with a handful of them attracting some level of sponsorship from the business community. However, with a level of uncertainty still hanging over the possibility of large gatherings any time soon, those in the industry are beginning to question whether patrons would pay the same to attend an online event as they would if they were to attend a live performance that could sometimes be costly, depending on the venue and the artist.