A group of Bermuda's young people are throwing a "birthday clash" to celebrate the Island's 400th anniversary tomorrow.

The Youth Task Force, charged with including young people in the 400th anniversary celebrations, has organised 'The Biggest R&B Sound Clash Ever' tomorrow featuring international R&B artists BLACKstreet and Jagged Edge.

"A sound clash is when two like or not like groups come together and compete," explained Berkeley Institute student Alexa Lightbourne. "There is no actual winner. You get the crowd involved. It is like a dance-off, but with music.

"It is very exciting, high energy and interactive. Although it is an event put on by youth, it is not just for young people."

Miss Lightbourne graduates this year after being head girl at Berkeley Institute, and a youth leader on the Youth Task Force.

"We are really excited about this event," she said. "We have been doing so much work and so much preparation to make sure the event runs smoothly. We just want people to support the youth."

She said that both groups, particularly Jagged Edge, are seen "all over" television and radio.

The clash was put together with the help of professional event organiser Kevin Bean, of the KDB Group.

There will also be a number of local groups and singers including Twanee Butterfield, a Berkeley musical group that plays trash instruments to create a unique sound, Amy Bento, Miguel Estrella and others.

BLACKstreet is an American R&B group founded in 1992 by Teddy Riley, the inventor of New Jack Swing.

The band has several albums out and has collaborated with musicians Janet Jackson and Jay-Z. They broke up for a time, but came back together in 2006 to release the album 'Level II'.

Jagged Edge is a newer group that released its first single in 1997 'The Way You Talk'. They have won numerous awards. In 2001 they won the Soul Train Best R&B / Soul Album by a Band, Duo or Group 'J.E. Heartbreak' and 2001 Best R&B/ Soul Single by a Band, Duo or Group 'Let's Get Married'. They were nominated again for a Soul Train award in 2007.

Miss Lightbourne said she hoped that the community would come out and support young people at the sound clash.

She said the tickets were affordable considering that these were international musicians.

"It is not a money making venture," she said. "We just wanted to support young people."

But the clash is open to any age.

Earlier in the year, the Youth Task Force organised a debate with primary school students, on a historical topic.

They also had a forum to discuss more serious issues facing young people in the community today, such as gang violence and teen sexuality.

"For this, we had guest speakers," said Miss Lightbourne. "Students had a chance to share how they felt about these various topics.

"Discussion about gang violence is always controversial. Everyone always has their own opinion about the solution. We, as a youth task force, feel that if we can meet one of the people associated with these anti-social groups then we are able to hopefully effect change.

"That person might tell another person and so on like a domino effect. Unfortunately, the problem students we are trying to target don't necessarily come to things like this. But we definitely got the word out."

She said the forum came to the consensus that everyone needed to display a positive attitude and be accountable for themselves.

"Children having children is also an issue," she said. "If you have a young person raising a child, they may not be able to teach a child about morals and values when they are still a child themselves."

When we spoke to Miss Lightbourne, she was about to graduate from Berkeley Institute.

"I am a former Miss Teen Bermuda," she said. "I love giving back to the community. I produced my own show last year called 'Respect' which featured Miri Ben-Ari, a hip hop violinist.

"I like the show environment. I am really looking forward to helping to produce this clash.

"I know everyone is going to have a great time. We have worked so hard to make sure this comes into fruition."

Miss Lightbourne is off to Queen Mary University in London, England in the fall. She hopes to study law and eventually become a music manager.

The clash is on June 5 at 7.30 p.m. at the Ruth Seaton James Auditorium. Student tickets are $20 and $30 for adults. Tickets are sold at Jazzy Boutique, People's Pharmacy and www.bdatix.bm.