Jamaican based, Reggae/Dancehall recording artist, Karamanti is enjoying success in a few African countries with songs that are being well received in their respective territories.

For several months now, her song entitled “West Africa” has been somewhat of an anthem for certain communities in parts of West Africa. The song, which has received well over 15,000 you tube hits and counting, speaks of her love for, and connection with the people of West Africa.

Recently, Karamanti was asked by Ghanaian based producer, and radio personality, Strike Dee, to record a song for his production company, S-Dee Music. The outcome was a single called “African song” that was officially released in Ghana at the beginning of March and already is getting heavy radio rotation on several commercial stations in the region. Karamanti and her team are also in talks with promoters in Ghana about the possibility of a tour before the year is out. 

Other African countries that are rapidly connecting with Karamanti’s music are Malawi, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

Persons can check out the “African song” here: http://soundcloud.com/sdeemusicpromotion/karamanti-african-song-love-2

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On Thursday March 1^st, Bess FM’s only prime time entertainment program will be broadcasting live from Barons Plaza (located at 61 Constant Spring Road, next to the market place). This is the third installment of a year long agreement which states that host Maria Jackson and DJ DC are to present their show from that location on the first Thursday of every month.

Even though there will be quite a few artists performing live and a sizable crowd, all the stores in the plaza will remain open and so it will be business as usual. To add to the excitement this Thursday there will be an extensive interview with dancehall star D’Angel and the folks from Turner Publishing House regarding D’Angel’s new book entitled Love Triangle.

The program starts at 1pm and goes until 4:30pm. For those who are unable to make it down to the plaza, all performances and interviews will be broadcast live throughout Jamaica on 100.5 fm and via the Internet at www.bessfm.com

Other artists that will be performing live are Mikey General, Noddy Virtue, Asante Amen, Turban X, Scratchylus and that is only to name a few. Persons wanting more information should contact program host, Maria Jackson at mariajacksonent@gmail.com

Much like the rest of the world, Jamaicans have become addicted to instant messaging. Gadgets such as I-phone, blackberry and Android are just as popular on the small island as it is in North America and Europe. That being said, technical constraints have limited some of the features on both the Android and the I-phone in parts of the Caribbean. And as such, persons in Jamaica tend to gravitate more towards the blackberry, as all its features work perfectly.

Blackberry phones have become so popular in Jamaica that even the entertainers are capitalizing on its success. Macka Milli, a member of the Innocent Kru, recently joined forces with fellow artists Javi Jav and Casie Hype to record and release a single entitled “pinging”. The song talks about the blackberry craze that has been sweeping the island for some time now. The song was officially released in January with the video following shortly after. Immediately upon its release, both the song and the video began getting solid rotation on both radio and television stations nationwide.

The men have been on a non-stop media tour since early February, making appearances on several radio and TV shows across the country, with their most recent stop being on Hype TV and Bess Fm Radio where they were interviewed and performed live.

In addition to promoting their new single, they’re also promoting a movie that they produced and starred in called “welcome to my world”. The movie has Casie Hype playing the role of an upcoming dancehall artist who struggles to make it in life and tries his best to push himself in Jamaica’s music industry. The movie can be viewed on pay per view in Jamaica by going to channel 1000. Anyone wishing to license the movie for his or her respective territory may contact Maria Jackson at mariajacksonent@gmail.com, who will then put them in touch with the producers.

Persons can check out the official “pinging” video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NrEQ885HY

The “pinging” song can be downloaded here: http://www.mediafire.com/?k9wxnw223ac592g

Digital Sham the young go-getter from Jacks Hill is at it again! Towards the end of last year he dropped part one of the Wat’s Poppin Riddim, and approximately two months later, he is now putting out part two of the same project.

Sham recently entered into a distribution deal with New York based, digital distributor, 21 Hapilos. The Wat’s Poppin Riddim is the first release since the two-joined force. Part one features Uncle Mucks, Harry Toddler, Stylish, Digital Sham, Merciless, Skii and Kos. While part two features Flexxx, Janice Watson, Kanatana, Karamanti, Suhverto and Unicorn.

Persons can listen to all songs on the “Wats Poppin Riddim” here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEW38V6nPjA

 BUY PART ONE: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/wats-poppin-riddim/id489710418

BUY PART TWO: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/wats-poppin-riddim-pt.2-ep/id500390891

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In the middle of what is arguable a crisis in the reggae industry, Rebel Salute 2012 was a breathe of fresh air.

Patrick Barrett better known as Tony Rebel and his team at Flames Production did a great job of displaying the fact that reggae does indeed still reside in Jamaica. His annual stage show, which coincides with his birthday, Rebel Salute, took place at the Port Kaiser Sports Complex in St. Elizabeth on January 14^th. The show featured a stellar line up of reggae veterans as well as current hit makers. The event started promptly at 7:30 pm the night of the 14^th and finished up at approximately 8am on the 15^th (Tony Rebel’s birthday).

Unlike other stage shows, Rebel Salute’s early juggling included some very note worthy acts. In the early part of the show he had artists such as Jah Cutta, a man many calls Canada’s Bob Marley, Cali P, Guadeloupe’s reggae ambassador, Ivatar, Tony Rebel’s son and many others. Needless to say the patrons were well entertained from the very beginning.

The line up got more captivating as the night went on as Cen C Love, who is currently enjoying the number one spot on several charts across the island took center stage. By the time the veterans started to work the audience was already going crazy. Eric Donaldson, Max Romeo, Edi Fitzroy, Leroy Gibbons, Errol Dunkley, Admiral Bailey and General Trees all had the people dancing and singing along to their favorite retro reggae.  

The artist turned promoter, Tony Rebel, was surprised with a cake on stage along with all his twelve kids singing him happy birthday. While they sang, candles fifty candles were released into the sky marking Jamaica’s 50^th anniversary as well as Tony Rebel’s 50^th birthday.

Other performers that stood out were Queen Ifrica, Stephen and Junior Marley, Tarrus Riley, Luciano, Romain Virgo and Capleton.

Rebel Salute happens every year in the month of January. It is one reggae show not to be missed!

Reggae artiste, Luciano, while confirming that there was a bottle-throwing incident at a concert in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, is emphasizing that it was “out of the ordinary” and definitely does not reflect his normal reception in the Motherland, Africa.

Luciano, known as the Messenjah, has been unwavering in his support of Africa and all things African. He has consistently done conscious lyrics and has a huge fan base in certain parts of Africa, a continent he has toured many times.

“A lot of people may not know that I have a house in The Gambia and the people there accept me as one of their own. I have travelled to Ghana, where thousands come to meet me and attend by concerts. Up until now, my Africa experience has been among my greatest,” Luciano declared.

Reports out of Port Harcourt stated that “Jamaican reggae icon, Luciano, was on Saturday night (December 17) pelted with empty water bottles by some youths that attended the closing of the 2011 Rivers State Carnival popularly known as CARNIRIV at the Liberation Stadium.”

The original article labeled the youths’ behaviour as “hostile”, while comments under the article denounced the incident and noted that certain disruptive elements of that society will behave like that, especially at free events.

There were suggestions that the organizers should have known better than to put Luciano so far down on the programme, especially since there were many big name African acts on the line-up and Port Harcourt is somewhat behind in their appreciation of reggae acts like Luciano. Port Harcourt is also notorious for being unwelcoming to foreign acts.

One person commented that, “Port-Harcourt is the worst place for foreign artists to visit. It’s the same Port Harcourt that someone jumped on stage and snatched Usher Raymond’s bling from his neck. The last time Port-Harcourt receive a foreign artist with love was when Wyclef visited.”

As Luciano recalled, “A one man fling a one bottle and a one woman fling a phone to show their displeasure and we know how that kind of behaviour is catching. However, when I started to talk to them they calmed down a bit and I sang One Way Ticket and they became receptive.”

He pointed out that he felt that not enough thought was put into the running order by the organizers. Asked if this experience has given him a negative feelings towards Africa, Luciano was quick to respond, “Of course not.”

He added, “I believe that everything happens for a purpose and out of evil cometh good. Perhaps this will be a musical re-awakening for the people in Port Harcourt and will usher in an era of greater appreciation of foundation, roots reggae. I certainly don’t take it personal, in addition, the wonderful experiences I have of performing in Africa will overshadow this every time.”

The carnival in Port Harcourt, Nigeria took place on December 17, 2011, after which Luciano returned to Jamaica and gave an awesome performance on Thursday, December 22 at the Tarrus Riley and Friends free concert held at Emancipation Park in New Kingston.

The Reggae Business Suffers As A Result of Exploitation, Bad Business Ethics, and Dishonesty.  Reggae artists, promoters, and business people play a role in stifling the industry’s progression.  Everyone wants to do things on their own, the team concept of empowering each other is thrown out the window majority of the times.  Artists receive funds and sign contracts for shows and don’t turn up, the 15 million dollar suit against Vybz Kartel is a strong example of the lack of discipline in the industry. Promoters sometimes even send money to imposters posing as the artist, a recent promoter from Columbia experienced this when he sent a $10,000 US deposit to a fake.  

What about the instances when the artist performs and the promoter doesn’t have the money to pay the artist?  How can the reggae industry grow with this type of unethical behavior continually looming throughout the business.  This reflects badly on the business and the reputation of Jamaica at large. This type of behavior prevents the type of growth and development that is needed.  Instead of Reggae moving forward, it is moving backwards.  Millions and millions of dollars have already been lost in the past few years.  This is money that could have helped the economy and provide jobs for the jobless.

An upcoming booking agent and entertainment publicist tells us about her experience.  “I have been in the business for a while so I decided to do some bookings. I registered my business and over the years, here and there, things started to go through so I decided to get serious with it,” explains Olimatta Taal. “I was introduced to a promoter from Zimbabwe Nhamo Chitimbe and he told me about this Lion Lager Festival in Zimbabwe and needed some artists.  I pitched a few artists to him and he decided he wanted Fanton Moja. Caveman was also helping to book artists for Mr. Chitimbe.  There was a little misunderstanding with the booking which was caused by Mr. Chitimbe, however after all the papers were signed, Fanton Mojah agreed to pay me for my services, said Taal. 

Very upset a disgruntled Taal continues, “I have yet to receive a dollar and he did three shows in Africa, his first time performing there and comes back to Jamaica all in the press about his experience and the person that made it happen hasn’t benefited in any way.  Fanton Mojah claims to be for the poor and love Africa yet exploits Africa’s daughter.  Mr. Chitimbe was also shady and didn’t honour aspects of the agreements and signed several contracts with other artist and media personalities who were supposed to be a part of the Festival and never delivered. This caused some of the artists to lose money for local shows they had cancelled for the shows in Africa.  Even Caveman ended up being exploited by Nhamo Chitimbe from Zimbabwe,” ended Taal.

These examples are just a drop in the bucket when it comes to people violating the principles of the business of Reggae music. It has to be more fluid, ethical, and have protocol, that is if the Reggae Industry wants to see any form of growth and development.  Too many people have suffered and sacrificed for the business to be where it is today.  Generations of reggae artists, musicians, and business people have worked too hard to build it to where it is now for greedy and selfish people to tear it down.  This behavior is hurting us all and hurting the future of the music and it needs to stop. What will this generation of Reggae artists leave for the next generations coming?  Will there be a real industry or will it die like the veterans that we seem to lose day by day?  Let’s be ethical, principled, and unified on all fronts so there is a future for Reggae Music.

Courtesy of Irie