What a pleasure it is to be a reggae fan at the time of a great Jamaican roots reggae revival. Today women-in-reggae-jah9/">Jah9 is back with “Heaven (Ready Fi Di Feeling),” a track that’s as equally conscious as it is bangin’, released on women-in-reggae-patricia-chin-aka-miss-pat-of-vp-records/">VP Records. … ing/" class="read-more">Read More
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif – Mike Garmany’s just hit the lottery. Well, sort of.
It’s only a few hours before the final show of The Holdup’s “ing-tour-pt-1-across-california-with-the-holdup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Or Die Trying Tour,” and himself and drummer Eric Bumb have just finished feeding a small sheaf of crumpled one-dollar bills into a brightly lit CVS scratch-off kiosk.… ing-tour-pt-2-interview-with-mike-garmany-of-the-holdup/" class="read-more">Read More
photo credit: Chance Nkosi Gomez
I had a minor freakout when I received word that I’d be interviewing Protoje. I mean THE Protoje, the powerful performer who is an absolute champion of authentic Jamaican reggae. Protoje, who has over a decade of experience under his belt, who is a role model for up-and-coming musicians, who gets invited to play all over the world.… interview-with-protoje/" class="read-more">Read More
Keeping the spirit of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer alive is Al Anderson, the longtime guitarist for both Bob Marley and the Wailers and Peter Tosh. Anderson currently leads The Original Wailers, paying homage to not only the music of these patron saints of reggae, but also to the attitude of creativity and growth placed as a foundation by Robert Nesta Marley.… inal-wailers-us-winter-tour/" class="read-more">Read More
I’m sitting on a plane on my way back to the Midwest. I’m coming from the bright West Coast where I attended California Roots Festival in Monterey, California, for the fourth year in a row. The sunburn is finally starting to fade from my cheeks and chest, but I have memories of this blissful weekend that have not yet faded (although some are a bit hazy—largely due to the herb smoke that came at me from every direction over the course of three days, which was great if you ask me).… Read More
Cali reggae has taken the world by storm. It has re-energized what was once thought of as a tired and boxed-in genre into new mainstream classics of a generation. What is the draw? What are the elements that have granted groups like Tribal Seeds a top spot in modern roots reggae playlists worldwide?… Read More
Reggae music was born near the ocean and it understands it. When Rootfire’s Semaj Surreal says it gives you backbone, I know what he means. In the mornings over the vacation, I practiced my t’ai chi on the shore. The surface of the water gives you a focus that is unfocused. The shifting sand under your feet establishes the needle of balance. There is so much power in fluidity, a hard thing to remember in the rigid course of life today.
On my 30th birthday, a friend of mine gave me a black t-shirt with a picture of Bob Marley playing soccer on the front and the slogan “Free Bob!” printed over top of it. He had written a story for Slate with that title, but I didn’t know that when he showed up at my house in Boston and, besides, the gift was a symbol of something between us.… Read More