Stella McCartney celebrated resort season with her annual garden party in NYC. This year the designer moved the chic fête from the Elizabeth Street garden in Nolita to the garden grounds behind the High Line Hotel. Ky-Mani Marley the only child of Bob Marley and Jamaican table tennis champion Anita Belnavis kept guests grooving to reggae throughout the night, reminding [...]
United Kingdom-based reggae label Greensleeves Records is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. In commemoration of the milestone, the label has planned a series of activities to take place across the globe, with stops in places like London, Paris and New York. On June 21, the label will hold a 40th anniversary celebration concert at [...]
Frankie Paul has died. The gifted singer, whose real name was Paul Blake, died at the University hospital of the West Indies after a battle with kidney disease. He was 51. It was reported earlier this week that the family of the singer, who had been in hospital since April of this year, was seeking public assistance [...]
She’s Royal, the anthem to women from singer Tarrus Riley, turns 10 this year. Recorded in October 2006 and released in early 2007, She’s Royal was produced by renowned saxophonist, Dean Fraser.“The song came about as a self-esteem booster. At the time, I knew some girls who needed a confidence boost. I wanted women to [...]
The artiste, who now dabbles with reggae music, is following the footsteps of veteran artiste Prodigal Son who switched to reggae in 2013 and was met with strong backlash by the Christian community. However, he believes the practice does not breach the ethics of Christianity."Nothing is wrong with doing gospel and cultural reggae at the [...]
The Caribbean, with its fresh fruits and natural organic soil, is still not an in-demand destination for food. Why? Because we have not given it our all… Let’s do so now as we declare Jamaica the epicentre of food and generate a global buzz while we eat our way around our beloved country. Giving it [...]
Australian singer-songwriter Nattali Rize is fast becoming one to watch on the competitive reggae scene. Following the release of her polished debut album Rebel Frequency, she talks to RFI about breaking into the male-dominated genre, and finding her tribe in Kingston, Jamaica. Nattali Rize is surprisingly small in the flesh, but far from fragile. With [...]
To hear one of the best roots reggae albums to come out of Kingston, Jamaica, this spring, you have to drive a long way from Trench Town. In fact, you have to leave the city altogether and head up high into the mountains that surround it.Not every taxi is keen on making the trip, so [...]
For Jamaica’s leaders, Rastafari has been an important aspect of the country’s global brand. Struggling with sky-high unemployment, vast inequality, and extreme poverty (crippling debt burdens from IMF agreements haven’t helped the situation), they have relied on Brand Jamaica—the government’s explicit marketing push, beginning in the 1960s—to attract tourist dollars and foreign investment to the island. The [...]
Alerth Rockford Bedasse was central to the mento era of Jamaican music. He was the lead vocalist and chief music arranger for perhaps the most popular mento aggregation: The Chins Calypso Quintet. Along with Count Lasher, Harold Richardson and The Ticklers and Lord Flea and His Calypsonians, they were the essence of the mento upsurge [...]