WATCH THIS: Lutan Fyah “Sweet Trichomes” Official Music Video
Brand New Visuals Fi Di Ganja Man Dem Born in Spanish Town, Jamaica Lutan Fyah studied architecture and played professional football before launching into a music career in 1999. Cutting early records for Buju Banton’s Gargamel label, he would go on to collab with such culturally inclined artists as Lucinano and Turbulence. On his latest […]
WATCH THIS: Kabaka Pyramid “Kabaka vs. Pyramid” Official Music Video
Accurate Lyricist Drops Battle-Rap-Themed Video Kabaka Pyramid continues the trend of Rastafarian artists rapping over boom bap hip-hop beats. In this video, aptly titled “Kabaka vs. Pyramid,” the artist pays homage to battle rap and stages a rap battle with himself. Hip hop has a long history of alter-egos, from Tupac/Makavelli to Eminem/Slim Shady, and […]
How Gentleman Buss As A Reggae Artist
The Tunes That Turned This Teenager From Köln, Germany Into A Certified Jamaican Star In late 2014 MTV invited Gentleman to record an “Unplugged” album, marking the first time any reggae artist had joined that respected series which has included the likes of Jay Z, Nirvana, and Lauryn Hill. With guest appearances by Shaggy, Ky-Mani […]
HEAR THIS: Derrick Morgan “Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)”
Big Big Request To The Greatest Forget what you heard. Muhammad Ali will never die. Ali may be one of the few larger-than-life icons to challenge even Bob Marley for nearly universal respect. We’ve all seen photos of The Greatest with Elvis, The Beatles, and Bob Dylan—he was even Prince’s hero—but what’s his connection to […]
WATCH THIS: Adahzeh “Island Girl” Official Music Video
Rocking With Jamaica’s First All-Female Reggae Ensemble From the Maroon heroine Nanny to Louise Bennett and Grace Jones, Jamaican history is filled with powerful women. Still, the reggae music industry has remained a largely male-dominated field—which may explain why keyboardist and vocalist Karissa Palmer always wanted to be part of a reggae band made up […]
HEAR THIS: Prince “Blue Light”
Yep, Prince Did Reggae Too A master of diverse musical styles from rock to funk, soul to jazz to dance, rap, and rhythm & blues, Prince’s genius was so profound that his work has left an indelible mark on the next generation of musicians. We’re still getting used to the idea that “The Kid” is […]
WATCH THIS: Kelissa “Best Kept Secret” Official Music Video
Kelissa McDonald “Best Kept Secret” Video Celebrates Her Earthstrong and Women’s History Month Big up to Kelissa, one of the Caribbean’s favorite rising talents of the reggae revival. You may remember this lovely young empress from her Vogue feature on Jamaica’s resurgence of conscious music. Lately, this African queen has taken a break from touring […]
Real Talk With Tanya Stephens: “I’m Telling The Truth—That’s The Only Thing I Know”
Maybe You Can Handle The Ride—But Can You Handle The Truth? It may be true that women are far and few between in the reggae industry. But there’s no disputing the fact that Tanya Stephen is one of the best in the business. And not the good for a female—she’s one of the greatest songwriters […]
HEAR THIS: Chronixx x Federation Sound “Roots & Chalice”
Steam Ministah Links Federation Fam To Give Us The Fullness Chronixx and the Federation family had a musical meeting of the minds to create this amalgamation of wicked instrumentals past & present. The 60-minute mix includes well known tracks “Like A Whistle,” “Alpha & Omega,” and “Tenement Yard” to warm up your ears to a familiar […]
WATCH THIS: Nesbeth “My Dream” Official Music Video
From Trenchtown, A Next Star Arise Released last month, “My Dream” features the veteran reggae singer reflecting on the struggles he’s faced in Jamaica and focusing on not giving up. A superb track from start to finish, it’s a progressive take on roots reggae with a dash of picked pop guitar and a catchy bounce. […]
HEAR THIS: Jacob Miller & Ray I “Natty Christmas” LP
Sounds Called Bruk Pocket Day We Never Feel No Way There’s nothing quite like Christmas in Jamaica, but no matter where you are celebrating this day, you can do it inna rub-a-dub style. And there’s no better way to do that than with the rockers master Jacob Miller alongside the Inner Circle Rhythm Section plus […]
Album Review: Iba Mahr’s “Diamond Sox” LP Inspires Hope For Reggae’s Future
Sighting the Greatness of Iba Mahr From Afar I consider myself spoiled by the reggae age in which I was raised. Bob Marley & The Wailers LPs, Peter Tosh LPs, 45s on the Volcano and Joe Gibbs labels set a pretty high bar with the way their music perfected the reggae sound. The excellence of […]