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 [...]
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 [...]
Almost 40 years on from his band’s first release, Ali Campbell still believes he has a very special job to do when it comes to maintaining the popularity of the music he plays. “It was always our mission to promote reggae,” he tells me, ahead of UB40’s gig at Wrexham’s Racecourse Ground in May. “I’m [...]
You could be forgiven for making an assumption when a Rastafari reggae artist named Chronixx sings about "spending every dollar" on a green substance that gives him confidence and calms his nerves. But you’d probably be wrong. Not that the 24-year-old rising star from Jamaica doesn’t smoke weed (he vapes). But it’s the spirulina he [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
AMERICAN rapper John Blake is re-establishing his Jamaican roots with his latest single One Life. The track is a collab with reggae singer Ambelique. “It is a blend of hip hop and reggae music on world issues, self-empowerment, human challenges and faith,” he said. “The single is doing well. We have started to get some [...]
I was in Kingston attending a small conclave of local filmmakers sponsored by the Jamaica Film and Television Association. After viewing five short films, each of the filmmakers got to answer questions from the media. After listening to all the chatter, I interjected with this simple question, "Does anyone remember ‘The Harder they Come’?" This [...]
The single, One More Song, happened rather serendipitously after Riley overheard the early vocal tracks, which had been laid down by Craigy T, and decided he had to be part of that project. It is produced by Jordan McClure. “Me, Tarrus, and my artiste Kenny Smith were in the studio one day vibing some of [...]
As news dawned that the US had installed a white supremacist in the White House, some found consolation in the idea that his presidency might at least make for some excellent music in response. Was this a desperate grasp for a silver lining? Or was it, as some people suggested, a tasteless opinion which trivialised [...]