Entertainment News
February 2005

PASSED

Entertainment personality, dancer and choreographer, Gerald Levy, popularly known as "Bogle," was killed on January 20 after a night at club "Weddy Weddy Wednesday" in Kingston. For the full story, click here. His funeral was one of the biggest Kingston has seen.

Reggae singer Daddigon was killed on January27. The artist was an original member the Dutty Cup Crew with Sean Paul, and worked extensivelywith the Marley brothers. For the full story, click here.

BOB MARLEY TRIBUTES

The BBC celebrates Bob Marley with four tribute shows that can be heard online.

Danny Glover, India Arie, Angelique Kidjo, Shaggy, Luciano, and others joined Ziggy Marley, Stephen Marley, Damian Marley, Julian Marley, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths and Judy Mowatt on the stage, at a symposium and on the streets of Addis Ababa and Shashemane from February 1 through 13 to honor Robert Nesta Marley’s 60th birthday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. For more information visit www.bobmarleyfoundation.com.

Wellington, New Zealand celebrated Marley's birthday in style with the 7th Annual One Love festivities and live music. Organized by Radio Active (a local Wellington station), the event took place on February 6 at the Wellingon Velodrome. Over 10,000 people enjoyed music, sun, and fun!

To commemorate Bob Marley's 60th birthday, Reggaeking.com is running a sale for the entire month of February. ReggaeKing.com, dedicated to the legacy and sale of the Reggae King's music and merchandise, carries the largest selection of Bob Marley products in the world.

MUSIC NEWS

This year's Grammy Awards ceremony take place on February 13 at Los Angeles' Staples Center. It will be broadcast on CBS at 8 pm ET/PT. Reggae nominees are Jimmy Cliff, Toots & the Maytals, Steel Pulse, Sly & Robbie, and the compilation "Def Jamaica."

Buju Banton's label, Gargamel Music signed a 7" deal with hip-hop's largest vinyl distributor, Fat Beats Distribution, Inc. on February 7. The first product from this joint venture will be the exclusive 7” vinyl March release of “Magic City,” the lead single from Buju Banton’s soon-to-be-released album "Rasta Got Soul." Both comapnies are pleased with the alliance that will bring reggae and hip-hop to new heights.

Trojan Records released the CD "Reggae Pulse 5: Protest Songs" on February 8, that showcases classic protest songs from widely renown reggae artists like Peter Tosh, Bob Marley, Black Uhuru, Luciano, Beres Hammond, Steel Pulse, and Third World.

Artist Fyah Blaze recently released his debut album "Truth & Rights" on Eight76 Records. He is definitely one to watch.

Check out the latest music videos from Fatan Mojah and DYCR at the Down Sounds Records site.

XM Satellite Radio hosted a Steel Pulse performance at their headquarters in Washington DC on February 10.

Quiet Storm Records' latest release is entitled "Island Love Jams." The compilation is 16 tracks of “love-themed” songs from Hawaii! For more information, click here.

U.K. dancehall star Tippa Irie & the Black Eyed Peas are nominated for the "Best Rap Song" for their smash hit "Hey Mama" at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards taking place Feb 13th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

JetStar Records is getting ready to release Luciano's latest effort, "Hail the Comforter," along with CDs from Marcia Griffiths and John Holt.

Greensleeves Recording artiste Macka Diamond walked away with the award for Top Female Artiste for 2004 at the Excellence in Music and Entertainment award presentation held recently at the CVM studio. For 2005 she is working on getting more material out there, including her long awaited Greensleeves album.

Freddie McGregor performed at Venice Italy's famed Carnival in St. Mark's Square on January 31 . Venice Carnival took place January 28-February 8.

Abijah and Zema shot a video together. To view click here (31 mb) or here (13 mb).

1Xtra's Robbo Ranks reports back from Sting 2004 in Jamaica, with clips and more. Click here to listen.

"Version City Rockers" the CD produced by King Django, showcases some wicked talent like Sugar Minott, Yabby You, Rankin' Joe and Sister Nancy.

To celebrate Linton Kwesi Johnson’s 25th anniversary as a reggae recording artist, LKJ Records released the DVD LKJ Live in Paris with the Dennis Bovell Dub Band. A live CD with the same title was released as well. The DVD includes a live concert recorded at the Zenith in Paris with a sell-out crowd, an interview with LKJ, him performing some a cappella poetry and a photo gallery from the concert. Since its initial release in July the DVD has come out in the USA, Brazil, South Africa, Japan and other parts of Europe. This is the first ever visual recording of LKJ.

Canadian urban singer Carl Henry has been nominated for a Juno Award for his dancehall anthem “Bare As She Dare” featuring Cecile. He has received a nod in the Best Reggae Recording category. The Juno Awards are Canada's equivalent to The Grammys. This prestigious honour, follows on the heels of his recent nomination for a Canadian Radio Music Award.

Warrior King who hit the scene four years ago with "Virtuous Woman," "Never Go Where Pagans Go" and "Breath of Fresh Air," will release his sophomore album in March on VP Records.

Singer Anthony Cruz looks hit bound with his faithful reading of Aerosmith’s "Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing."

Greensleeves has snapped up Mario C’s new project--the Bomb A Drop rhythm.

Singing Melody is singing a different tune--a gospel one. The lovers' rock singer turned born again Christian says he plans to do a lot more music videos this year to get his music to reach a wider audience. He is presently working on his third album for VP Records.

"Baby Song" by Kip Rich on Christopher Birch’s Military rhythm has been making strides on the charts of late. This is the first major chart entry for Kip Rich since he was a featured artist on the number one hit "Bad Man Nuh Pet Gal" five years ago. Kip Rich has had a handful of hits since he emerged on the scene in the late 1990’s that include "Leggo Di Bwoy," "Imagine This," and "Cut Him Off." These days Kip Rich is busy readying his debut album for the Big Yard label and will shortly travel outside of Jamaica for a series of shows.

Jamaican drummer Odel Johnson, most recognized for his work with the Fully Fullwood Band, has created a webpage in anticipation of his March CD release "Mind & Body, Sold."

Mr. Easy has launched a website, www.mreasy.net. It features audio, video, photos, tour dates, and more. Mr. Easy is currently preparing to shoot a video for his track on the Military Rhythm.

Shang Records has signed a new UK girl band, Face-T. Their roots are Jamaican, Indian and Nigerian, they live in Britain and they are all teenagers. They are Face-T, the new British trio of young singers whose debut single "Shy" is creating a buzz in sections of the UK and just made its entrance to the American music scene.

Wisdom Records now has the EastFest 2004 DVD in stock. It is a 2-part show--part 1 features Luciano, Morgan Heritage, LMS, Fantan Mojah, Natty King, Bushman, and more. Part 2 features Sizzla, Beenie Man, Elephant Man, Richie Spice, Chuck Fender, Turbulence, Luciano, and more. For more info about the store, their location, and hours, visit www.wisdomrecordssf.com.

The Young Elderz Band just released their debut CD, "Children of Rastafari," which is available at CDBaby.com.

Hip hop producer, Tristan Giallani, is giving away his entire collection of newly produced hip-hop beats to the world. Giallani is making his productions available to the public by way of on line distribution as free downloads from http://www.beatsforfree.com in hopes of shaking the hip hop industry and motivating a new generation of hip hop, spoken word, and artists of all genres shapes and sizes to experiment in becoming active on the world hip hop stage.

MISC.

Jamaican Ecards is making it easy to send your Valentine a message. Visit their wide selection of free Valentine ecards here.

Judith O’Loughlin, chef and part owner of The Caribbean Cove announced in late January that renovations have begun at her new restaurant location in Berkeley, California. Judith was the owner and operator of a long-time Caribbean cuisine destination in Oakland’s Dimond district, until she was evicted when the building she leased space in was closed for seismic upgrades. The Caribbean Cove is a woman-of-color owned independent food service business serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The Caribbean Cove serves up authentic Caribbean cuisine for a wide range of special occasions including corporate events, wedding receptions, theme parties, backstage cooking for music events and more. For more information visit www.thecaribbeancove.com.

Ras Astor Black, President for the Jamaica Alliance Movement launched his candidacy for the West Kingston constituency in late January. He says, "Rastafari need now to speak as a representative of the people of Jamaica in the Jamaican Parliament and I am asking all the residents of West Kingston to give I, Ras Astor Black, a Rastafari committed to spread the One Love that Bob Marley sang about, a chance."

New York City has a new addition--Deadly Dragon Sound--a vintage reggae store. Located on Forsyth Street (between Broome & Grand) in NYC's Chinatown, Deadly Dragon Sound advertises to be a selector's paradise. They feature over 40,000+ pieces of original JA, UK, and US pressings (7", 10", 12", even some Mento 78s!) from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and encompasing all genres of Jamaican music ranging from ska, rocksteady, early reggae, deep roots, rockers, 70s djs, 80s digital through classic 90s dancehall, "We have nuff wicked ganja tunes, sound tunes, gun tunes, reggae breaks, reggae soul covers. Plus we have a limited selection of imported cds from Japan including sounds such as Mighty Crown, Red Spider and legendary groups as Mute Beat and The Determinations," says founders Selector JD and Scratch Famous.

CHARTS

Elephant Man's "Chaka Chaka Dance" made it to #1 on Richie B's Top 20 Jamaican singles for the week of February 11th. Richie B is the host of "Hot Mix" on Hot 102FM, and compiled the list from a number of local sound systems, record shops, and clubs.

In South Florida, Freddie McGregor lead the Top 20 Singles chart with "Lock It Down." In New York, I Wayne topped the charts again with "Living In Love." Clinton Lindsay compiles the South Florida and New York charts from sale reports submitted by the areas' leading retail record stores.

EVENTS

The Black Rock Coalition, in residence for its fourth year at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's BAM Cafe, will present its annual band showcase on
Fridays throughout February during Black History Month. This year's lineup includes Jeffrey Gaines, David Ryan Harris, Imani Coppola, Kudu, Daniel Bernard Roumain and others. BAM is located in Brooklyn, New York. For more information on this series visit www.blackrockcoalition.org.

The Sierra Nevada World Music Festival announced the dates of this summer's event-- June 17-19, 2005. Once again, the festival will be at Frogtown, two miles south of Angels Camp along Highway 49 in Calaveras County, California. The line-up has not been announced as yet, but they have photos and message boards on their website which just got a recent "face-lift"--www.snwmf.com.

During the month of February the Jamaican and American Students Associating through Cultural Awareness (JASAC) is having a Book Drive for children and young adults in Jamaica. The drop off locations are in Sacramento, California. For more information visit www.jasac.net.

Bob Marley historian and archivist Roger Steffens will be on the east coast for 10 days in the month of February. The first show will be at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, MA on February 15, 2005. Other dates are in the works for Hartford, CT, Springfield, MA and New York.

TOURS

Residents of Maryland, look out! Both Jahworks Band and Bambu Station will be in your area in February.

Tanya Stephens and The Easy Star All Stars will be spending some time in California from February 18 through the 26. For events, click here.

Good Vibez Entertainment out of Santa Cruz, California is planning a U.S. tour with Don Carlos (Black Uhuru) and Apple Gabriel (Israel Vibration). The tour which is set to start in mid-April will be hitting Canada, both U.S. coasts and in between.

IMPORTANT NET SITES

Nokwaré was born in 2001 out of the need to express, share, and promote the deep heritage behind the African culture through its arts and crafts. Their web site, www.nokware.com, carries a range of distinctive and unique items for the home and office: masks, statuettes, wall decorations, canes, candles, leather and other natural products. Their products are 100% handmade items imported from Africa.

REGGAE ON THE INTERNET

Sirius Satellite Radio paid tribute to Bob Marley all day on February 6th, what was to be Marley's 60th birthday. Their reggae channel, "Reggae Rhythms" plays the entire spectrum of reggae music, from its roots to today's dancehall sounds. For more information visit www.sirius.com.

The Reggae Capital, a source of Caribbean culture and Reggae music, is on air every day, all day at www.kingsmancamp.com.

Laura Gardner is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of http://www.jahworks.org. In addition to her journalistic contributions to various online and print publications, she is a graduate student of somatic psychology, and has worked alongside the Monterey Bay Reggae Fest, San Francisco's Reggae in the Park, and other music festivals in the Northern California area.