Imagine being in the house for the ultimate reggae concert headlined by Bob Marley and friends.
Bob opens the show setting the mood for a night of stellar entertainment. Steel Pulse performs, then to the crowd’s surprise, Dennis Brown takes the stage. After D. Brown rocks, he invites U-Roy to come up and sing. The Wailers, Dennis Brown, and daddy U-Roy take turns thrilling the audience.
Next, on stage, we have Culture with original singer, Joseph Hill at his peak. Freddie McGregor joins in to deliver one of his greatest hits. Peter Tosh follows with two of his notorious numbers. Bob and U-Roy return to partake in the elevating vibes before making way for Frankie Paul.
F.P. displays crowd control and exemplifies dancehall style as the crowd jumps and sings out loud. The Steel Pulse band returns to contribute more musical excitement infused with meaning. Then to close the show, the legend, Ms. Lauryn Hill shuts it down as only L Boogie could.
Now that would be a bucket-list concert experience!
You want to hear lyrics and melodies that move your body while elevating your levels of consciousness. You look forward to seeing a solid reggae band sending out vibrations from the stage to stimulate your senses.
You need to join the masses at the Saturday, October 14th staging of this CONSCIOUS REGGAE CONCERT inside The Hanger – 2435 South Stone Mountain Lithonia Road, Lithonia, GA 30058.
Take in performances from PZED, Ijahknowah, and Ras Fraser Jr. backed by the noteworthy band of the moment, B.R.A.P. Highlanda Sound will be kicking in the lawn to pump dancehall vibes before and after the show.
If you have been looking for a spectacular night of live reggae music infused with the cultural flair of conscious lyrics and unforgettable rhythms, then look no further.
RBG Alliance presents a CRC for you – a Conscious Reggae Concert.
The event will feature Ijahknowah backed by the BRAP band and special guest artist Endel i.
Highlanda Sound will open the night from the DJ booth with musical selections related to the event’s theme.
Find details on this new Conscious Reggae Concert Series page, event page here and ticket site here.
The International Musikal Matinee family friendly outdoor concert series returns May 15, 2016. Be uplifted, and healed with conscious musical performances by Julie Dexter, the BRAP Band, and Highlanda Sound System.
This takes place Sunday May 15th @wrensnestatl. Gates open 4pm, showtime 6pm. $8 in advance, $10 @ the gate. (children under 12 FREE). Brought to you by Sarynity-Khai along with RBG Alliance. Click here for tickets/information.
Saturday October 27th, Sanchez and his band are set to hit the stage at Club Pisces in Stone Mountain, GA. for one show only. The event will be hosted by Jennifer Friday, special guest performance by Joseph Quote, and music by Bugsy Bam Bam, Papa John, and Madd Flava. PURCHASE YOUR EARLY BIRD TICKETS FOR $20, ONLY ONLINE LIMITED AMOUNT !
This just in: Due to circumstances beyond their control, the organizers of the Mykal Rose concert have postponed the event until a later date. Stay tuned for more information.
On Saturday March 28, 2009, my performance at the Red Stripe Live concert was ended prematurely and abruptly, as I was stripped of my microphone and escorted off stage. I have spent many years of hard work and sacrifice building my reputation and brand as an artist, with a great level of integrity and professionalism. Indeed, the decision to include me in the line-up of this particular event is testament to that. I therefore have a responsibility to my fans and the general public to explain exactly what took place.
Upon being booked for the event, the songs I would be performing in my set were submitted in their entirety (without edits) weeks in advance, as requested by the organizers of the event. I rehearsed the songs in their entirety, on two separate occasions, in the presence of representatives from Red Stripe. There was no written or verbal communication from Red Stripe indicating any disapproval of the planned set, nor any discomfort with any specific lyrics or song. During my final rehearsal, I was merely asked to bear in mind the nature of the show, and upon arrival at the venue I was given a generic briefing by the promoters. At this point, there was still no indication from the promoters of any issue or objection to the planned performance.
During my performance, I did not deviate in any way from the rehearsed set. I was therefore shocked when approximately eight minutes into the ten minutes I was allotted, I was forced to discontinue. I was subsequently accused of breaching company policy by using what the promoter labeled offensive and discriminatory lyrical content, specifically, the use of the word “fish” in the song titled “Pree This.”
The promoter then demanded that I apologize to the audience, a demand to which I did not comply. I am very disappointed by the unprofessional manner in which the matter was handled. I am even more concerned about the potential damage that may be done to my reputation that I have worked so hard to achieve and maintain.
My management has since been contacted by Red Stripe’s Maxine Whittingham-Osbourne, who admitted it was miscommunication among Red Stripe representatives rather than any wrong doing on my part that resulted in this whole incident. She also stated that after reviewing the lyrics of the song, agreed I did not break any of Red Stripe’s company codes. She apologized for failing to communicate with me prior to my performance that any lyrics were deemed questionable.
I still feel the need to take this opportunity to assure those who support my music that I am in no way at fault for Saturday night’s unfortunate incident. I will continue to exercise discretion in my work, and I remain committed to the high level of integrity that has come to be expected of me.
______________________
The lyrics of the song at the center of the incident are as follows:
“Pree This”
Intro
Jamaica a wi island
Jamrock, what kind a rock?… Trust mi is a diamond
Mi nah run lef an go no where
Mi nah try off a Philippines, mi nah try off a Thailand
No, because Jamaica a mi island
Fi lef ya come in like mi tek sea ova dry land…
Verse One
Well Pree this
How so much fish deh yah like seh a sea this?
And pree this, dem gooda hear that an want say me dis
Well pree this, see a Bible yah, gwaan go read this
And tell mi whey yuh see say yuh fi a man yuh P?
Eh eh, no sah, Jamaica mi can’t believe this
A find headless pickney, a couldn’t we this
No murder nah commit a St. Kitts and Nevis
But we a gwaan like seh we a Islamic extremist
Low mi nuh officer after a nuh speed this
How yuh a gwaan so and is a draw a weed this
Alright then nuh say nutten, hold this is a G this
Yuh face still mek up?… alright a three this
Di country a mash up, how wi ago treat this?
If we unite mi know we can defeat this
Because a full time we bring back the sweetness
Until Jamaica give wi diabetes
Chorus
Because the economy poor and the crime rate high
but a Jamaica still a we yard
Mi nuh know bout you but mi sure bout me,
dem ting deh nuffi gwaan ina mi yard
What mi say? Things not great but wi must hold the faith
Although times so hard, mi say
Wi affi try set it, we nah run lef it
Jamaica still a wi yard
Verse Two
Well hear this
Come mek wi pretend seh is a election year this
And everybody try find a better way fi steer this
Cause if we continue so, tourists goin fear this and
nobody nah go want come near this
Well hear this…
Jamaica we can’t move so we a live too careless
Nuff prayer a send up mek di Almighty spear this
Well Ja-Mek-Ya him a test wi, wi can’t fail this
Him goodly take it back, so do nuh mek him send a bailiff
Mi kick back pon di beach and mi a sip a Baileys
And mi a remember how much hurricane and how much near miss
But wi crime rate mek wi feel like wi deh pon death row
Is like is an electric chair this
Great news! Sizzla, one of the world’s most recognizable figures in reggae music is set to land in Africa for the first time ever next month. The Independence Stadium in The Republic of the Gambia will host two concerts to kick off Sizzla’s Africa tour. The event is highly anticipated and I’m sure is guaranteed to sell off. It will be interesting to see the crowd reponses to Sizzla’s live performances all over the continent as I’m sure he will be well received.
First off let me say for the record that since the mid 1990’s, when asked which artist puts on the best live stage show performance, my answer was and is Luciano. I found out that he was going to be performing in Atlanta through word of mouth the day before the concert and decided to go since it had been a while since I attended a stage show. Knowing that Caribbean events in Stone Mountain typically start late, I was in no rush to arrive. I got inside Club Intrigue at around 2am after paying $30. I had no problem forking up the money, because after all, it was for Luciano – my favorite live performer. At that time there was a short line outside and the venue, which can hold approximately 1000 people was about half full. More people continued to arrive over the next couple hours but the club wasn’t packed at all.
English: Photo of Tony Rebel, Jamaican reggae legend (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Early Warm (part 1)
Local sound man, Danger Marcus finished up his set on the turntables and turned the controls over to Adonai Sound from Jamaica. Dred from Adonai selected and mixed, while Atlanta’s Mix Master David acted as MC. Adonai’s Dred started out with some foundation music, but then brought it to more recent conscious and lover’s rock reggae before starting to juggle with songs like ‘Living Dangerously‘ by Bounty Killer featuring Barrington Levy. The music was decent though I would have liked to hear more culture played since it was a culture show. Also, Mix Master David’s specialty is mixing, hence his name, and he struggled to connect with the audience while talking over music being played by the Adonai. I don’t recall any forwards (big crowd responses) being achieved.
The Early Warm (part 2)
At around 3am, the stage show began with opening acts performing dirty south style hip-hop. The first 4 acts took the stage rapping about various subject matter unrelated to the theme of the night (Spiritual Fyah), performing at least 2-3 songs each which made me think to myself, among other questions, “are the promoters familiar with the music of Luciano at all?” After that the MC introduced Fire Harp, the first reggae artist, followed by Ras Idon, Ishmael Turner, and a female duet that reminded me of the group Floetry called Last Lyricists. These performances were good and much more appropriate, but I think this whole portion of the show was too long. Standing up and watching 8 artists you have never heard of sing songs you never heard before for over an hour doesn’t exactly energize a crowd, especially at that time of morning.
More Earlies
The MC then announced that the DJ would take over for a while until the remaining artists were ready to take the stage so Nolan from King Eternity began to select and was joined by Danger Marcus as MC. I think Danger Marcus was better than Mix Master David as he ventured away from the DJ booth in the corner of the stage out to front stage a few times to interact with the crowd. He had more energy, but It didn’t transfer over to the audience. This whole time, the majority of the people were at the back of the club, near the bar or in the far corners so it was pretty empty in front of the stage and on the main dance-floor. During his set, Nolan selected 2002 – 2003 tunes and juggled on riddims like Diwali, Buyout and the Buzz at 4 o’clock in the morning. The selection was not fitting with the theme of the night in general and this prevented the vibes from reaching anywhere. I still can’t believe that I heard no Beres Hammond, Garnett Silk, Capleton, conscious Sizzla… No Anthony B, Everton Blender, Chuck Fender, Bob Marley or any other Marley… You get my drift.
Showtime
It is at this point that the event started suffering from attrition and people began to trickle out one by one. I am sure patrons wondered if the artists they had paid to see were even in Atlanta at all, I know I did. Eventually the MC came back on stage to resume the stage show after the long break and brought out Anthony Malvo. There was still no band in sight, but at least there was a known reggae artist. Anthony Malvo was able to entertain the crowd singing covers of different reggae hits mostly, and his biggest response was in tribute to the late great Alton Ellis.
It was great to see band members emerge and take there place along with Delly who travelled from Jamaica to be the official MC/host. It was around 5am now, and whoever had stuck around that long had to be glad to know that Luciano would be coming out soon. Delly then introduced Papa Michi, Michigan from the foundation DJ duo Michigan and Smiley. I was shocked just to see this artist still performing at his age, but he went through some covers, another Alton Ellis tribute with the same songs Anthony Malvo sang, and also performed the 1980 hit, Diseases. Not bad at all, I just wished it was at least 3 hours earlier.
Star time
Queen Ifrica touched the stage and pulled stragglers in from the far corners of Club Intrigue to the front of the stage. She was well received and sang all her hits from the past 2 years, stopping only to give relevant speeches and introduce her songs like a pro. She worked well with the band and stayed on stage for approximately 30 minutes, ending off with her current hit tune, ‘Keep it to Yourself.’ Her performance was short and sweet.
Tony Rebel was up next. Rebel Tony showed poise and veteranship while on stage. He immediatley commanced attention from the crowd and went through the hits that he is know for globally, including Fresh Vegetable, Chatty Chatty, and If Jah. He also gave some lyrics about the rise of President Barack Obama to bring it current. Tony Rebel’s segment was longer than Queen Ifrica’s – I’d say about 45 minutes, which meant that now it was 6:30am.
Luciano took the stage to close the show and was well worth the wait. I will continue to support this artist because of the vibes and energy he puts into his shows. He skanked, jumped, and tumbled across the stage. He prayed for Barack Obama and gave good reports from his trip to Kenya, which was during the time of the recent Presidential election in the US. Luci did hits from different albums, but while singing Glory Be, given the signal that he had to leave to catch his plane. His performance ended up being not much longer than some of the opening acts which is sad, however in the short time he was on stage (at almost 7am) he was still able to completely energize the audience and get everyone back onto their feet and in a vibes. Then he stopped the last song and had the band start over, playing low so he could at least finish properly, kneeling down to say a prayer in the process. The Messenger Luciano shook the hands of all who were near enough to the stage and posed for pictures as if truly grateful for the opportunity to carry out his life mission – to spread Jah love and a conscious message through singing.
Please share your comments on these artists, concerts or events you have been to, etc. I will be breaking down the Atlanta dancehall scene in depth in future posts so you will want to stay tuned, trust me. That’s all for now.
Early Bird Tickets = $2o (while they last)
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