ReggaeTimes

HOW THE LEGEND BEGAN

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) was founded in 1963 as the Jamaica Festival Commission, with the aim to develop and promote the creative talents and cultural expressions of the Jamaican people. The JCDC’s main function is to ensure that the nation’s cultural heritage is preserved and sustained for the benefit of future generations. It also organises the annual Independence celebrations and other events of national significance.

In the years since its inception, thousands of Jamaicans have benefitted from its programmes in dance, traditional folk forms, speech and drama, music, culinary arts, fine arts, photography and literary arts. The Commission has been able to expose and nurture the talents of renowned practitioners such as Bob Marley, Professor Mervyn Morris, Kapo, Barrington Watson, Lennie Little-White, Stephen Cat” Coore, Joan Andrea Hutchinson, Fae Ellington, Steven Woodham and Susan Alexander.

The Commission fulfills its mandate primarily through its annual Festival of the Arts, with parish and national competitions in the performing arts, literary arts, fine arts and culinary arts.

Festival Events

 MELLO GO ROUN’

On Wednesday August 4, 2010 a potpourri of the performing arts again evolves into a major exposition of Jamaican culture.    Mello-Go- Roun’ has remained one of the most sought after events on the calendar of activities of the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) because it features the most entertaining performances from the Festival of the Arts and not solely the award winning pieces. 

EMANCIPATION VIGIL

This is a grand celebration for Jamaicans island wide. On Saturday July 31^st the Emancipation Vigil will commemorate the milestone in various communities and town squares heralding in the “Firs’ a Augus’” through traditional folk forms, music, song and dance, guest performances and re-enactments of that moment when celebrations  broke out island wide at the announcement of being ‘Full Free’

AUGUS’ FAIR

Augus’ Fair will provide a total package for patrons wishing to indulge in traditional Jamaican culture and for parents to teach their children about ‘Ole Time’ Jamaica. Homage to the island’s rich heritage is paid through games, songs, dancing, folk forms and a showcase of traditional Jamaican cuisine. Augus Fair is fun for the entire family including lessons in Maypole, Quadrille and other traditional forms plus live concerts, and kiddie’s rides are just a few of the exciting activities that Augus fair brings to life on Monday August 2, 2010

WORLD REGGAE DANCE CHAMPIONSHIP

The World Reggae Dance Championships is here again. On Monday August 2, 2010, dance groups from all corners of the island will have the opportunity to showcase their talents.   The competition takes the form of  eliminations followed by a grand final where  groups of dancers compete in full ‘costume’ and perform a distinct choreographed work for a panel of judges drawn from the Jamaican dance fraternity.  Top Dancehall artistes and a major sound system will provide additional entertainment throughout the night.              

 NATIONAL VISUAL IMPACT CAMPAIGN

Small, medium and large enterprises are being invited to participate in a Business Place/Shop Window Display Competition organized by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) in collaboration with the Chambers of Commerce and Parish Councils. Displays must be mounted by July 20 and the competition is scheduled to be judged between July 27 and 29.

Business owners, Government Agencies and other institutions are also being asked to decorate places of business and to fly the national flag during the period. Use of the national colours black, green and gold - as well as bandana are being encouraged. The campaign is designed to heighten national consciousness, during Independence or Festival celebrations this  year.     (more…)

Una Morgan performed at CFW 2010 (Caribbean Fashion Week) on Sunday June 20, 2010 to a full house of fashion enthusiasts, models, designers and media. CFW is Jamaica’s prime fashion event for the year and the artiste lineup matched the high standards of the event. This year’s performers were Protoje, Leftside, TOK, Katia Cadet, Johnny Gill, Faraji, Gramps Morgan and Una Morgan.

Una, known and loved by her international audience as a member of Morgan Heritage, delighted with her first solo performance singing her latest songs “Giving” and “Wine For Me” and she managed to reach the audience even though the performance was interrupted by technical difficulties.

Una says that “unfortunately the performance was not as good as it could have been due to technical difficulties with the sound. I Know it affected my performance, but ,overall it was a great experience though to perform at CFW and it was exciting to be on stage as a solo artist.”

The audience could feel Una’s energy and enjoyed her performance, and her infectious smile. Styled by Dexter Pottinger for the event Una looked amazing as she performed on the CFW runway in a green dress.

Una also joined her brother Gramps Morgan for part of his performance the two wooed the audience with beautiful reggae music representing as some of the best singers Jamaica has to offer.

After her first solo performance Una Morgan is not resting. She has a new video to shoot this month for “Wine For Me” featuring Cecile.   Una’s first solo album is scheduled to be released in September 2010 and she is currently also preparing for her reality show as well as designing two clothing lines, one together with Cooyah and her own line for plus size women.

Dancehall superstar Busy Signal has added yet another award to his fast rising collection. The artiste topped out other nominees in the category, Best International Single, at the recently held Reggae Achievement Awards, kept at the Jamaican Canadian Centre in Toronto, Canada.

The hit single “One More Night” was the song nominated in the category and based on the overwhelming crowd response when it was announced as the winner, it proves the success of the single.

“One More Night is definitely an international hit and it’s good to know that my remake can win an award like this…big up to the fans,” stated Signal.

Busy Signal has been quite busy in the studios for the past couple months, releasing hit after hit packed with compelling powerful lyrics, that have been intensifying the airwaves.

 The video for “Let Peace Reign” has been released and the anticipated video for “Summn’ a Guh Gwaan”, the collaboration with Alliance chief Bounty Killa, will be released next week, both tracks were produced by Shane C. Brown of Jukeboxx Productions.

Busy signal has been creating a huge buzz, releasing the “turf gear” clothing ling, he is also set to release his latest album D.O.B. by mid July.

Illustrious Jamaican singer and songwriter Tarrus Riley delivers a powerful socio-conscious message renouncing the scourge of violence on his latest release Wildfire.

Teaming up with producer Don Corleone, Riley’s petition for peace hits a sincere note as he pleads to a higher power to protect his nation against the rising levels of violence. His chorus to “protect the people” comes on the heels of recent calls by several Jamaicans at home and across the Diaspora to take a stand against crime.

Now in heavy rotation across local and Caribbean airwaves, Riley recently concluded shooting the corresponding video and is expected to debut it in coming weeks.

A versatile and accomplished musician, Tarrus’ melodious harmonies have endeared him to a large number of reggae fans across the Caribbean, US, UK, Canadian, and Japanese markets. Having scored a slew of chart hits from his latest compilation Contagious, such as the title track Love’s Contagious, Living The Life Of A Gun, Good Girl Gone Bad, Start Anew among others, Riley is easily one of the most popular and well-respected artistes in reggae music today.

With a solid booked schedule headlining several dates across the US and Caribbean, Riley is currently gearing up to perform at the international reggae and dancehall music showcase Reggae Sumfest on July 24.

Veteran reggae artiste Hopeton Lindo is spearheading a song project commissioned by the Jamaican Diaspora Movement in South Florida, entitled I Am Jamaica

According to Lindo, who is best known for the hits “Territory” and “Turf”, the song is aimed at encouraging Jamaicans to come together and unite.

Lindo, having been approached to work on this project, which is aimed and unifying and inspiring Jamaicans globally, has stated that he thought the song was very appropriate at this time.

I Am Jamaica was produced by Lindo and it features the vocals of Shaggy, Freddie McGregor, Marcia Griffiths, Courtney John, Lindo, Peter G, Sophia Brown, Fiona and Anthony Cruz.

Some of the artistes featured on the recording have already shot their scenes for an accompanying music video.

All artistes have volunteered their time for the collaboration and all proceeds from the song will be donated to various charities across Jamaica. 

Reggae singer Lutan Fyah leaves the island today for a tour of several European countries. He says tours like these provide him with the experience which will help him become a better performer.  Lutan Fyah, born Anthony Martin, leaves for Amsterdam where he is scheduled to perform in the coming days.

Lutan Fyah, who released his album Phantom War under the Greensleeves Records imprint in 2006,He is set to perform at the Summer Jam reggae festival on June 20. From there he has a few more shows on his schedule. However, some of the locations and dates are yet to be confirmed.  Those shows aside the artiste, who once harboured thoughts of becoming an architect and who represented his high school St. Andrew Technical high at football, has several other shows lined up for the summer.

In August,  LutanFyah says, there are a few festivals in the United Kingdom for which he expects to take the stage. He is also down to perform at Reggae Jam in Germany, on August 2, and Reggae Giel in Belgium, on August 7.  However, before those, he performs in Italy on July 4.   Following those performances,  he might return to Jamaica before heading out to Canada for a reggae festival there.  From Canada, he flies down to Suriname in South America for a performance on August 28.  His full summer slate, he said, is something he looks forward to.  “It’s always a good feeling to be on tour ,” he explains. “You gather new experiences and learn how to relate to audiences because you learn how to perform even better.”

He reveals that reggae artistes like himself, Capleton, Luciano and Anthony B, are getting new opportunities from some of the unlikeliest of places. “  People are starting to reach out to us from places like Chile, Brazil and Argentina, Slovenia, Poland and Israel,” said the man who last year released a 30-track double disc album called Africa.

He also added that several countries from the African continent have also been reaching out to artistes like him. Those countries include Kenya, Gambia and Senegal. These countries he said have a love for Jamaican music.  Meanwhile, Lutan Fyah has been receiving positive responses for his new song Jail, which he said was released about two months ago and which already has an accompanying video. The song, he reveals, speaks about his wrongful arrest and subsequent exoneration after spending four days in jail back in 2007.

BASSETERRE, St Kitts:- Sizzla Kalonji, one of the most prolific leaders of the conscious reggae dancehall movement, will be performing at this year’s St. Kitts Music Festival, which starts on Thursday 24th June to Saturday 26th June.

Born Miguel Collins, Sizzla has released more than 45 solo albums and more than 15 combination albums, crossing different genres of reggae music. Sizzla is among the reggae artistes credited with leading a movement toward a re-embracement of Rastafarian values in contemporary reggae music.  He has recorded material that is concerned primarily with spirituality and social consciousness, through the exploration of common Rastafarian themes, such as “Babylon’s corrupting influence,” the disenfranchisement of the youth, oppression of the “black ation” and Sizzla’s abiding faith in Jah and resistance against perceived agents of oppression.

He owns the record company, Kalonji Records; which in a joint venture with Damon Dash Music Group and KochRecords, released the critically-acclaimed album, The Overstanding” in November 2006.“There is very little doubt that Sizzla Kalonji is one of the most revered conscious reggae artistes,” said Faron Lawrence, chairman of the Executive Committee of the St. Kitts Music Festival. “That is why his inclusion in the 14th Annual St. Kitts Music Festival certainly was an easy decision to make, for we expect Sizzla to reinforce the fact that the St Kitts Music Festival is a spectacular musical show, which blends rich exciting music with exhilarating performances.”

The reggae legend has cemented his greatness for this generation and many generations to come with breakthrough albums like Black Woman & Child in 1997, the classic Da Real Thing in 2002, and the Rise To The Occasion in 2003 by dancehall producer Don Corleon.

He now resides in Harare, Zimbabwe after this year in May he was given a farm there, for his performance at Zimbabwe’s president Robert Mugabe’s

Now in its 14th consecutive year, the festival attracts both residents and visitors alike and is known for featuring rising local talent alongside internationally-renowned acts. It features a mix of musical styles on the popular market, including R&B, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Reggae, Soca, Calypso, Gospel and Contemporary, to name a few. Past artists have included such prominent acts as John Legend, T-Pain, Michael Bolton, KC & the Sunshine Band, Wyclef Jean, Ne-Yo, Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Billy Ocean, Sean Paul, Boyz II Men, King Konris, Stephen Marley, Regina Belle, Maxi Priest, Biggie Irie and Lord Nelson.

International dancehall recording artiste Busy Signal has launched a clothing line “Turf Gear”. The “Hot Head” has clearly shown that he has some business sense, or good advisors as he seeks to profit further from his reputation.Busy is known for his unique fashion sense, easily switching from casual jeans and t-shirts for day to day wear, to “bazzle” high fashioned outfits, courtesy of  designer Carlton Brown, that usually leave onlookers in awe.

Busy, being praised all the time in the media and informally for his fashion, decided it was time to create his own clothing line.This is when he teamed up with Castelle Barnes from Brandz Apparel to cultivate his idea of a clothing line. Turf Gear has been launched in recent weeks and there has already been talks of expanding the product line outside t-shirts. The shirts are designed in Jamaica, manufactured in America, sold online, as well as at Intuition on Constant Spring Road. This is the first of many business moves Busy said persons can expect from him in the future, as he wants to go into real estate, among other things.

As well as the clothing line, Busy is also looking forward to the July 13 release of his next album, D.O.B. (Definition of Busy Signal). This will be the artiste’s fourth album since he started professionally in the music industry five years ago.Producers on the album include Stephen McGregor, Busy Signal himself, Shane Brown, Karl Morrison and DJ Kareem. Some of the songs released from the album already include One More Night, Picante and My Money.With his hands in producing, recording and now business, Busy thinks he’s on the right path but is still looking forward to more professional success and awards for the future.

The 20th staging of the Jamaica Ocho Rios International Jazz Festival commences Saturday, June 12, with a Jazz Wine and Fashion Show at the French Ambassador’s residence in St Andrew.

Staged this year by the Sonny Bradshaw Foundation, which was established in memory of the Festival’s late founder, C V ‘Sonny’ Bradshaw, organizers will donate proceeds from the Jazz Wine and Fashion show to the Consie Walters Cancer Care Hospice.

Fashions for this opening event will come from Bling Bling Fashions, importers of high fashion garments from European, Middle and Far Eastern designers of formal, semi-formal and high quality casual clothes. Local designer Les Campbell will display formal and informal high-end male fashions while Fashion Whirl will showcase locally designed female wear.

Scheduled for a 6:30 pm start, the fashion and jazz show will feature, one of Jamaica’s premier jazz groups The Desi Jones Trio, as the band on stage. Performing will be trumpeter Ettienne Charles, an alumnus of the prestigious Juilliard School, who has received critical acclaim for his exciting performances, thrilling compositions and a knack for connecting with audiences worldwide.

Also thrilling the audience will be Canadian singer Kiralina, who declares that “jazz has always been an intriguing genre of music for me and I frequently enjoy inserting and delivering some raw jazz interpretations into my repertoire.”

Lila, a seasoned, professional multi-instrumentalist whose dedication to her craft is shown through her musical expression, compositions, and enthusiastic performances, competes the list of performers. Her primary instrument is the violin and her mastery of the instrument’s intricacies gives her the innate ability to touch the heart, soul, and spirit of her listeners.

Basseterre, St Kitts — Jackson 5 Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Tito Jackson has joined the line-up of performers for the 14th Annual St Kitts Music Festival, scheduled for June 24-26, the St Kitts Tourism Authority has announced.

His concert, Tito Jackson in Tribute to the Jackson Family, to be held on the first anniversary of his brother Michael’s passing, will include not only his solo repertoire, but selections from the entire Jackson’s catalogue, including some of his late brother Michael’s songs, and sister Janet Jackson’s music as well.

Tito said in a recent interview that he was looking forward to visiting St.Kitts and performing at the music festival. Senator Ricky Skerritt, Minister of Tourism & International Transport for St Kitts said it was an honour to have Tito billed for the festival.

Born Toriano Adaryll Jackson, aka Tito has devoted his entire professional life to music, first as a member of Motown’s, The Jacksons (Jackson 5), and presently as a solo artiste. During the course of his musical career, he has performed on stages throughout the world, including Manhattan’s famous Apollo Theater. He has had numerous television appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show, American Bandstand, Soul Train and on the Jacksons‘ own primetime television series in 1976.

Now in its 14th consecutive year, the festival attracts both residents and visitors alike and is known for featuring rising local talent alongside internationally-renowned acts. It features a mix of musical styles on the popular market, including R&B, jazz, hip-hop, reggae, soca, calypso, gospel and contemporary, to name a few. Past artists have included such prominent acts as John Legend, T-Pain, Michael Bolton, KC & the Sunshine Band, Wyclef Jean, Ne-Yo, Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Billy Ocean, Sean Paul, Boyz II Men, King Konris, Stephen Marley, Regina Belle, Maxi Priest, Capelton, Biggie Irie and Lord Nelson.

Located in the northern Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, the island’s stunning variety of tourism attractions include hiking through the tropical rainforest, riding the scenic railway that connects the island’s sugar plantations, visiting the Caribelle Batik factory, touring Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park, the only man-made UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Eastern Caribbean.