Jamaica’s legendary trio, The Meditations, is confirmed to perform at Moe’s Alley (1535 Commercial Way) in Santa Cruz, California, on Friday, September 27th. The spiritually conscious roots reggae group will be joined by local selector DJ Spleece as well as some special guests.

Ansel Cridland, Danny Clarke, and Winston Watson, collectively known as The Meditations, recorded their first hit single “Woman is Like a Shadow” in 1974 at Channel One Recording Studio. They made their mark and sealed their place as reggae legends with the release of their first two albums, “Message From The Meditations” and “Wake Up.” Known the world over as Jamaica’s legendary harmony trio, The Meditations captured the hearts of reggae fans around the world.

Steelie Bashment‘s Memories On The Boardwalk will take place on Sunday, September 15 at Coney Island (Riegelmann Boardwalk) in Brooklyn, New York. The all white affair will feature a live performance by British-Jamaican reggae singer J.C. Lodge who gave us hits like “Someone Loves You Honey,” “Telephone Love,” and others.

In addition to the live set, additional music will be provided by Massive B, DJ Big Reef, Yung Dredy, Solid Gold, King Mix, Prince Royal D.C, and Marlon Famous CT. The event will be hosted by Deejay Roy from Irie Jam. Click here to buy tickets.

The stage is set for the 2024 Aarhus Reggae Festival, which will take place on September 28 at Volume Village in Aarhus, Denmark. As they’ve done since its inception, the organizers are working assiduously to ensure that this year’s event is not only entertaining but also informative and engaging.

To that end, they will have a reggae food court headed by chefs from Jamaica; famed Danish visual artist Annette Vogel of Vogel Art will have her reggae pieces on display; Jamaican blue mountain coffee will be available, courtesy of Marley Coffee; Rastaman Vibration arts, crafts, and mementos will be on sale; and finally, there will be an official Reggae Market Place that will sell t-shirts, hats, and souvenirs. 

The artist lineup includes Exco Levi, Norris Man (backed by the Hafiz Crew), Kass Smith, Katinka, Kamla Marie, and Unstoppable Fyah. Musical juggling will be provided by selectors Riddim Fex, Tiger Moth, Phatgal, King Kenny, XZYL, Big Foot Sound, and Kali-Ma Sound. The MCs are Henzel K. Clarke, the chairman of Jam Link International, and Henrik Bæk, a journalist who specializes in reggae music. 

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

Jamaican-American singer Alaine Laughton has just shared the visuals for her single “Pile Up.” The song was released at the beginning of May (2024) on the Sweet 7 Riddim, which was produced and published by Usain Bolt‘s A-Team Lifestyle imprint.

The stunning clip was uploaded to Alaine‘s YouTube channel on August 23rd. If you have not yet seen it, click here or on the image above to check it out, and remember to like, comment, and share.

The 2024 staging of Kansas City’s Annual Reggae Music & Jerk Festival returns on September 13, 14, and 15 at the Berkley River Front Park, a beautiful green space along the Missouri River (1298 Riverfront Drive). Powered by Friends of Reggae International, a Missouri-based non-profit corporation, this year promises traditional Jerk food cook-offs, arts, crafts, poetry, cultural drummers, dancers, and of course live music.

There will be two stages and over twenty reggae and world music bands live in action! Headlined by international reggae star Luciano, the event will also feature Kenyatta Hill, Empress Akua, The Meditations, and that is just to name a few.

Sounds & Pressure: Reggae in a Foreign Land is a five-part documentary series that follows the journeys of Leroy Sibbles, Johnny Osbourne, Jerry Brown, Nana McLean, and Roy & Yvonne at the height of the golden age of reggae. Through rare archives, it takes viewers from Kingston to Kensington Market and shows how reggae music made roots in Canada against all odds.

Sounds & Pressure: Reggae in a Foreign Land will premiere at Paradise Theatre (1006 Bloor Street West) in Toronto, Ontario, on Thursday, August 22nd, starting at 8:00 p.m. The series will then be available for streaming on nfb.ca as of August 23rd.