Dancehall dreams: The roots of reggae The small nation of Jamaica had its social issues, and, like the very best of art’s creations, the discontent gave rise to a musical movement in the 1970s: reggae, which led to the later emergence of dancehall. A new documentary by director Jérôme Laperrousaz, Made in Jamaica, is being [...]
Buju Banton’s Rasta Got Soul tour triumphs Mark Myrie, aka Buju Banton, is no ordinary entertainer; his songs say it all. Despite the ongoing campaign against him by members of the gay community, promoters are already calling his tour the biggest-selling reggae tour of the year. The answer to all of this is the magic [...]
Cliff advocate thrilled with HOF nomination Charles Earle, the American music buff who launched a Cyber petition to get reggae superstar Jimmy Cliff inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (HOF), says he is “absolutely thrilled” that the singer has been finally nominated. “I hope the voters see fit to give Mr Cliff [...]
Julian Marley spreading message of ‘oneness and unity’ It’s obvious that Julian Marley has been in town. He has been doing all the right “pee-arrey” stuff – morning television, lots of radio and some print in which he has been enthusiastically talking about his latest CD, Arise and his upcoming US tour of the same [...]
No gay reggae in the MIA In 1988 as a 15-year-old up and coming reggae singer, Buju Banton wrote a song titled, “Boom Boom Bye,” in which his lyrics told gay men he would like to, “burn him up bad like an old tire wheel,” or shoot them with an Uzi or an automatic weapon. [...]
Bounty Killer Denied Entry Into TT Jamaican Dancehall DJ, Bounty Killer, who was one of the main acts in last night’s “Cease Fire” concert at the King George V Park in Port-of-Spain, failed to show, as he was denied entry into the country on Friday night by Immigration officers at Piarco International Airport. Sunday Newsday [...]
No daggerin’ on Jamaican TV and on Worldfocus At the center of the music ban in Jamaica is daggerin’. Earlier this year, Jamaica’s national broadcasting commission banned sexually-explicit and violent lyrics and images related to daggerin’. Worldfocus — based in New York City, not Kingston — also decided not to air these images because we [...]
Jamaica considers cashing in on its image Usain Bolt had just been crowned the undisputed sprint king when a businessman boldly walked into the government office here hoping to cash in on the Jamaican track star’s record-setting dash. The visitor from the Cayman Islands sought to brand his creative ideas: U-Sane Energy Drink and Lightening [...]
Lost legends of reggae As we enter black history month, Davina Morris salutes some of reggae music’s past pioneers It’s impossible not to think of the late great Bob Marley when considering reggae icons. But, of course, there were countless artists before and since Marley who made a massive impact on the Jamaica-born genre.
Hip hop book taps into Jamaican roots The love of hip hop has taken Dalton Higgins, a music programmer, pop culture critic, author, broadcaster and journalist, around the world, but it was a visit to Germany that inspired him to write a new book, Hip Hop World. The Canada-born writer of Jamaican parentage takes a [...]