Strictly the Best, Vol. 37 and 38 In a genre as singles-driven as reggae, mixtapes rule. Compilations are the next best thing, though, so VP Records churns them out liberally: The Reggae Gold series is its annual crossover-friendly collection (translation: hip-hop remixes and liberal doses of Sean Paul), while Strictly the Best titles serve up [...]
Billy’s back Anyone who thought that Billy Ocean faded into oblivion after enjoying 80s fame, would be, erm, correct. The Trinidad-born singer who found success with hits including Caribbean Queen and Get out of My Dreams, decided that when the going got tough, it was time to take a break.
Ky-Mani Marley breaks from Van Halen tour to star in Park City Singing with Van Halen is a job that’s usually short-lived. But vocalist Ky-Mani Marley has bucked the trend. Actually, Marley isn’t singing for Van Halen, but before them. He’s been lucky enough to be the opening act for Van Halen on their current [...]
Sean Kingston’s ‘Beautiful Girl’ is mommy Janice Turner meticulously prepared tripe and beans for her celebrated son, Sean Kingston, last Saturday and if and when he desires ackee and saltfish, stew peas or pig’s tail, she will don her apron without hesitation. Two months ago, Turner, daughter of the legendary Jack Ruby and mother of [...]
Africa is Blacks’ Mecca, says Reggae star A leading Reggae superstar Jepther McClymont known in show business as Luciano or Jah Messenger has described the continent of Africa as the Mecca for all black people both home and abroad. “The continent to me is I and I greatest heritage we have now especially for those [...]
Detour to dancehall As reggae’s best-selling living artist, Shaggy took a detour from the mainstream this year. After multiple crossover hits, “Church Heathen” signalled a departure from the formula-though mixing Gregorian chants into a dancehall record was always going to raise eyebrows. Predictably, it failed to match past chart successes, but it was an overdue [...]
‘Many Moods Of Moses’ Being the King of the Dance-hall is not an easy throne to keep, with competition stiff and naysayers trying to take away your crown. STAR Artiste of the Month Beenie Man is confident in his stance as king of the entire dancehall movement, not allowing anybody to take away his crown.
Cocoa Tea After more than 30 years as a reggae musician, Cocoa Tea should be either a cutting-edge groundbreaker or a standard-bearing legend. As Biological Warfare disappointingly makes clear, he’s neither. The dancehall vibe he’s worked with for most of his career has seen him occasionally flirting with progressive electronic sounds that threaten to push [...]
Prophecy revealed When up-and-coming reggae singer Prophecy penned the single Chance – an anti-violence piece – and sent it off to the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) shortly after the untimely death of South African reggae singer Lucky Dube, he had no idea that he had set in motion what would become his chance of [...]
Kingston College (KC) choir in a Yuletide mood The purple and white gowns worn by the Kingston College Chapel Choir at their Christmas concert on Sunday might have been symbolic, the white indicating the purity of the voices, the purple, the royalty associated with the occasion. Certainly, the three dozen or so young men in [...]