It’s been just over five years since I last connected with HIRIE, one of the leading female artists in the modern American reggae scene, but with last week’s release of Mood Swing, her fourth full-length studio album, it seemed like a good time to catch up.… album-showcase-hirie-mood-swing/" class="read-more">Read More
Editor’s Note: This interview was conducted and article written in January 2022 but Rootfire decided to publish it in celebration of the one year anniversary of the release of Ease & Grace.
According to Spotify, my primary streaming platform of choice, my most listened-to artist of 2021 was Iya Terra, due mainly to last summer’s release, album/2GRcrOn9cCDwyALTy4bcup?si=Vs_T4rYpQcWeVQeVR7WwBA">Ease & Grace, which naturally followed suit as my most streamed album of the year.… album-showcase-iya-terra-ease-grace/" class="read-more">Read More
Editor’s Note: This article was reprinted with permission from author Stephen A. Cooper and the artist, Keith & Tex.
No Jamaican singing duo has enjoyed a comparably resilient, prolific, and successful partnership as Keith Rowe and Phillip “Tex” Dixon.
Known worldwide for their 1967 signature hit “Stop That Train” (a cover of the Spanishtonians 1965 ska song) and other original mega-popular anthems from the rocksteady era like “Tonight,” Keith & Tex, who befriended each other as teenagers, have been using the last two decades to make up for lost time—a near thirty-year stretch during which they were apart—separated due to divergent twists of fate including Keith’s immigration to the United States, and later, Tex’s to Canada.… album-showcase-keith-tex-freedom/" class="read-more">Read More
Can we please, in the USA, watch and dance to Clinton Fearon music in front of tens of thousands of people?! They do it in France. They do it in Brazil. Let’s go Cali Roots, Reggae Rise Up, Reggae Vibes!… album-showcase-clinton-fearon-breaking-news/" class="read-more">Read More
In celebration of International Womens’ Month, and of the High Priestess of Soul, Nina Simone, Stephen Marley shared Celebrating Nina: A Reggae Tribute to Nina Simone with the world on March 18, 2022. The album features seven different artists, all of them women, performing well-known Nina Simone songs with a reggae spin on them.… album-showcase-various-artists-celebrating-nina-a-reggae-tribute-to-nina-simone/" class="read-more">Read More
There is something that intrigues me about analog tape recording in the modern era. Perhaps I’m fascinated that we are still hung up on the sounds of yesterday, or maybe by the fact that artists are still finding ways to wow us with old technology. … album-showcase-flying-vipers-green-copper-the-first-two-tapes/" class="read-more">Read More
South Florida’s Artikal Sound System has been grinding out a name for themselves in the surf-roots scene for close to a decade. 2022 finds them taking a huge leap forward with the release of their debut LP via Controlled Substance Sound Labs, the independent music label run by Silverback Artist Management, home to, among others, Slightly Stoopid and Fortunate Youth.… album-showcase-artikal-sound-system-welcome-to-florida/" class="read-more">Read More
Editor’s Note:
Just over a year ago, Rootfire premiered the debut release from Blanc du Blanc, a dub project created and performed by a collective of highly regarded musicians spearheaded by the widely-lauded, genre-melding Chris Harford. Several months later, in January of 2021, James Searl, of Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, penned this premier for Blanc du Blanc’s subsequent release, an EP featuring several reggae versions of The Scorpions timeless anthem, “Wind of Change.”… album-showcase-blanc-du-blanc-reggatta-du-blanc/" class="read-more">Read More