Dutty dancehall delight “I represent Jamaica. I love that. From long time I’ve been doing (it) since I’ve been swimming” – Sean Paul. An ambassador of dancehall music, internationally acclaimed artiste Sean Paul has earned his award as the Gleaner’s Entertainer of the Year.
Passport changes worry Caribbean `Life Needs the Caribbean. You Need a Passport.” That advertising slogan, posted at airports throughout the Caribbean, has this tourism-dependent area bracing for a hurricane-force blow. For decades, U.S. citizens have escaped winter’s ravages for the white-sand beaches on a whim. When re-entering the United States, they have needed to show [...]
Tarrus Riley sings in ‘Parables’ These days, Tarrus Riley is a busy man. With his 15-track album Parables, produced by Dean Fraser, released by VP Records for all of three weeks, he will be performing on the highly anticipated concert with Air Supply next weekend.
M-16 guitar came in hot Reggae historian and Peter Tosh’s former manager, Copeland Forbes, has joined in efforts to prevent the auction of Tosh’s one-of-a-kind M-16 Stratocaster guitar, slated to be up for grabs by the highest bidder on eBay. It was I who bought that guitar from a fan who custom-made it specially for [...]
Chico teams up with Lord Kossity for Booty Call Dancehall artiste Chico has again teamed up with French dancehall rap artiste Lord Kossity. They collaborate on the track Booty Call, which has been earmarked as the first official release off Kossity’s sophomore album Danger Zone for Universal Music (France).
Impending auction of Tosh’s M-16 guitar sparks controversy The recent announcement of the impending auction of an M-16 Stratocaster guitar that belonged to late reggae icon Peter Tosh, has sparked controversy among his children, who say they were not informed of the intended sale of the instrument. Jawara McIntosh, 26, the youngest son of the [...]
Peter Tosh, No More Auction Block For Me I wonder how many readers picked up on the nuanced punch line that opened Tanya Batson-Savage’s recent article Icon for sale. Ms Batson-Savage wrote: “A piece of reggae history will step on the cyberspace ‘auction block’ when Peter Tosh’s Stratocaster M-16 guitar is auctioned by the Flashpoint [...]
Studio bands fall apart Up until late 1984 when a young man named Noel Davy got very excited about a pre-programmed song he had found on a small Casio keyboard, it was actually musicians and not a glorified programmer who created the music for singers and deejays in Jamaican studios.
Billboard a moving target It was once said that local songs were unable to achieve much crossover success because international audiences found it hard to understand Jamaican dialect. Still, artistes such as Shaggy, JC Lodge, Sean Paul, Shabba Ranks and Super Cat have all had hits on the Billboard Hot 100 Charts, the main indicator [...]
Reggae icon, Joseph Hill, dies Joseph Hill, lead vocalist of reggae group Culture, collapsed after doing a show in Germany yesterday morning. He was 57. His daughter, Andrea Hill, said he died from a liver failure. She described him as a “well rounded, well known and well loved” individual. Mr. Hill’s last performance in Jamaica [...]