REGGAE & DANCEHALL NEWS 2007-II
all items of the second trimester of 2007 (April, May & June)
Old News
The awards show will be held on July 7th in New York and broadcast to twenty-two nations. Nominees include Sean Paul and Beenie Man and a host of hiphop and r&b performers. Read the full Jamaica Observer article here.
Former Beatle Paul McCartney has recruited a handfull of legendary dancehall artists for a remix-single of "Nod Your Head", one of the tracks from his latest album Memory Almost Full. Read the full Jamaica Observer article here.
This may be old news for some but the energy god's new album will be released on Diddy's Bad Boy label. Elephant's newest will be released sometime this August and will feature Mya, Rihanna, Diddiy himself and a host of other internationally renowned artists.
Stephen Marley has cancelled his peformance at the Amsterdam Two 7's Splash festival due to tourtechnical reasons. Turbulence, D'Ville and A.R. have been added to the program, a true replacement for Stephen Marley is being looked for.
Capleton, Sizzla and Beenie Man have signed the international anti-homophobia Reggae Compassionate Act. After many protests and worldwide show cancellations these three top artists have now vowed to never again (re-)release or perform homophobic music or make homphobic statements. Other reggae artists whom have experienced the wrath of the gay communities like Elephant Man, T.O.K., Bounty Killer, Vybz Kartell and Buju Banton have refused to sign the act and will thus still be protested against. Read the full UK Gay News article here.
The already impressive line-up of Yellowman, Bitty McLean, Macka B, Derrick Morgan, Ranking Joe, Brigadeer Jerry, the Lone Ranger and JamRock, has been expanded by additional names like; Mighty Pirates, Lt Stitchie, Perfect, Jr Kelly, Vibronics, Mannasseh and Abassi High Power. The Reggae Geel festival will take place on 3 and 4 August in Geel (Belgium).
Dutch super reggae outfit Poor Man Friend has recorded a single for Child Right. This Nobel prize winning organisation's main focuss is to stop the exploitation of children worldwide. The revenue of Poor Man Friend's three track CD-single will aid Child Right to achieve their goals. Read the full story and order your copy (at only €4,90 a piece) at the Poor Man Friend website.
Journalist Tom Jordan has finished his UB40 documentary. Watch trailers and visit the Keep On Moving: The Story Of UB40 site here.
Shaggy's new album is to be released this summer on VP records in collaboration with Big Yard productions. No longer with international record label MCA, Shaggy will return to his original dancehall roots with much more Jamaican rididms. Read the full The Voice article here.
Barbara Makeda Blake Hannah's novel "Joseph: A Rasta Reggae Fable" will be published internationannly and will be made into a feature film. Read the full Jamaica Observer article here.
Legendary harmony group the Maytones are back with a new CD and a tour. Read the full Jamaica Observer article here.
Dutch reggae band Luie Hond will join Burning Spear for a few Music Beats Poverty concerts. Read the full Telegraaf article here.
Brazillian director Bruno Natal is close to completing his Dub Echoes documentary. Visit YouTube for the trailer.
Yellowman, Bitty McLean, Macka B, Derrick Morgan, Ranking Joe, Brigadeer Jerry and the Lone Ranger. Amsterdam will be represented by JamRock ft Waxfiend and Shyrock. The Reggae Geel festival will take place on 3 and 4 August in Geel (Belgium).
On May 5th the annual International Reggae & World Music Awards (also see: IRAWMA) show was held at the New York Apollo theater. Sean Paul was the biggest winner taking home six awards including Entertainer of the Year, Recording Artist of the Year, Best Song for "Temperature", Most Popular Hip Hop Entertainer and Songwriter of the Year. Luciano won the awards for Best Male Vocalist and Most Cultural Entertainer while Damian Marley took home the Selassie I Award for Spiritual Service through Music. The Outstanding Contribution to World Music award went to Ziggy Marley. Let's hope that the organisation publishes the full list of winners soon...
Israel Vibration and Beef are to perform at the free Parkpop festival in The Hague on June 24th.
After five years of weekly thursday nights it's time for something new. Thursday nights will now be called Propaganda and will focuss more on music styles of the Balkan. Que Pasa will return as a monthly event in the Melkweg and can also be found on other nights at other venues. The last weekly Que Pasa party will be on the 17th of May and as a goodbye gesture the entry fee will only be one euro.
Mento enthousiast Stanley Beckford, also known for his huge 1975 hitrecord 'Soldering', has passed away on March 30, aged 65. Read the Jamaica Gleaner article here.
