Dread & Terrible Tour Frontman Talks About The State Of Reggae Music
While in NYC doing promo for his Dread & Terrible EP and Tour, Chronixx swung by Hot97 studios and paid a visit to the morning show. Hosts Ebro and Cypha Sounds sat down with the rising reggae star and picked his brain on topics like the current state of reggae music and its connection to Hip Hop. Video After The Jump… (more…)
Promoter Promises to “Learn From His Mistakes” at BOTB 2014: Reggae & Soca—but NO Hip-Hop
For the past eight years Best of the Best has been a fixture of Memorial Day Weekend in Miami, a big outdoor reggae and soca show that normally features top hip-hop acts as well. But this year, Reshma B caught up with Jabba who explained that this year he’s “learned from his mistakes” and made BOTB 2014 a 100% Caribbean festival. That’s right, for the first time the festival will feature reggae and dancehall and soca but NO hip-hop. “Me get back to my roots,” say Jabba. “This year we involve more soca into the show more than just keep mixing the hip-hop and the reggae, because it come in like oil and water. We notice it’s eight years going in. When I first begun I just, you know, coming from a big urban radio station, I feel like hip-hop is part of my culture as well. Because you done know is a Jamaican man who started hip-hop in the Bronx—Kool Herc big up yourself anywhere you deh. So I felt like I can take that mission to a next level and just know say, Hear wah gwan now, let me mix up hip-hop onto reggae on the next level like it’s never been done before. And big respect to all the rappers, but it come in like the worst idea we coulda ever do. But you learn from your mistakes. Because when you come to a Caribbean culture festival, nobody no wan’ hear say “Yo, turn the motherfuckin mic up!” and “Where’s my niggas at?” You understand?” Video After The Jump… (more…)
The “Sicka Than Them” DJ Discusses His Issues With Aidonia
That dude holding the baby crocodile? That’s Masicka. If you’re not up on dancehall’s next to bust, time to get familiar. As his name would suggest, he’s a born killa. Also his style is “sicka than then,” Hailing from a place called “Sin City” in Portmore Jamaica, Masicka has been making a name for himself with his dazzling displays of lyrical prowess. Last year he linked up with Subkonshus Records and dropped a crazy mixtape known as The Sikk Tape hosted by Konshens. Last month Masicka dropped a wicked tune called “The Truth,” a lyrical shot aimed at Aidonia and his JOP crew. Reshma B asked Masicka to explain the story behind their disagreement in this exclusive interview. Video After The Jump…
Jay Will Directs A Short Film Inspired By Notis & Iba Mahr’s Tribute To Classic Dancehall Fashion
Notis is a drum-and-bass production team comprised of Unga on drums and Welsh on bass. They were the team behind Ding Dong’s “Holiday” and many more recent dancehall/reggae hits. Earlier this year they dropped the track “Diamond Sox” with roots DJ Iba Mahr, and the song made a big splash right away. Riding a laid-back rootsy groove, Iba chats lyrics in praise of classic dancehall dress code items like the mesh “marina” (a ventilated tank top, preferably in red green and gold), the Arrow shirt that’s customarily worn over top, Wallabee Clarks, and of course, matching socks in Clarks’ trademark diamond print. Now Jay Will has directed a music video that’s really more of a short film. With a cast that includes reggae legend Max Romeo, Tuff representing the Nomadz crew, and of course the mighty Bass Odyssey sound. Shot on location in Iba Mahr’s home turf of Linstead and Bog Walk, this video is destined to become a classic time capsule of Jamaican culture. Boomshots TV is proud to premiere this one. Game Over. Video After The Jump… (more…)
April 3, 2014 was a melancholy day for dancehall fans, when Justice Lenoxx Campbell made his ruling in the murder case of Clive “Lizard” Williams. Adidja Palmer aka Vybz Kartel was sentenced to life, with the possibility of parole after 35 years. In this case, no body was ever found and the case was decided mostly on text message evidence from telephones seized from the accused. Attorneys Christian Tavares-Finson and his father Tom Tavares-Finson, both lawyers who defended the dancehall artist, are already working on an appeal. Vybz Kartel associates Shawn Campbell aka Shawn Storm and Kahira Jones also received life sentences with the possibility of parole after 25 years. Shane Williams, another associate was acquitted on all charges in this murder case but charged for another murder case. Vanessa Saddler aka Gaza Slim, Vybz Kartel’s protégé was charged with a lesser charge, obstruction of justice, for filing a false incident report about being robbed at knife-point by Clive “Lizard” Williams, just five days after Kartel was charged with murder, in an effort to pervert justice. As Kartel fans gathered outside of the Jamaican Supreme Court for the 58-day trial, Gaza Slim showed her presence and undying love for the World Boss. More After The Jump…
As A Hotthead Youth, There Are Certain Things Busy Nah Do
Star$truck entertainment’s Star$truck riddim, it had some big tunes on it from Beenie, Bling Dawg, Iyara, and more. But the standout was Busy Signal’s Hotthead anthem “Wet Spliff.” Not really a weed tune—the title is somewhat misleading—”Wet Spliff” here is used as an example of behavior that Busy frowns upon—wetting a spliff for another man—and that he won’t be doing any time soon. In fact, never. To be specific, he states: “I nah long out me tongue wet no spliff fi no man. No!” Which is fair enough. Who really does that anyway? (Nor will he watch gal fi nuh man, bust shot fi nuh man, etc.) The brand new video for the tune, directed by Icey Jace, doesn’t actually show anybody “longing out their tongue.” But it does show Busy and his crew taking over Kingston radio station Hot 102, which is pretty rad. Video After The Jump… (more…)
In preparing for an event, most women go through a ritual grooming process. This usually involves first making sure hair, nails and eyebrows are groomed and then selecting the outfit, accessories, make-up and fragrance fit for the occasion. However, after all is said and done, confidence is the accessory that stands out the most. This is perhaps why confident women who slightly deviate from the world standard of how a woman should look and act, are appealing to most audiences. “Woman is Boss,” is a concert promoted by Hi-Tech Promotions showcasing four fearsome boss ladies in reggae and soca. Featured Artists After The Jump…
OMG!!! I am f@cking lost for words. Muma Saw always takes it to the next level and she damn sure did it AGAIN! When this track turned up in my inbox my laptop was playing up. No storage space —so I left it and was like, ‘OK I will deal with this tomorrow.’ Three days later, after some file data transfer, I get to open it at the Mac store. Holy crap! how could I have been sleeping on this? You really have to salute this woman. She basically does whatever the hell she wan’. The Queen of the Dancehall—who gave us a song about her “Pretty P@$$y”—is back with something even madder than that. “Can You Be with me and no one else? Tell me now cause I can love myself…. My pretty fingers they do know me well” Oh gosh! Saw has always been that independent woman and people look up to her for keeping real. In this track she combines the two. What’s more independent than taking care of your own needs? If her man can’t handle the job those fingers are ready to step up! And it don’t get any more real than making a song about your personal masturbataion process—with a detailed account of what takes place. Whatever was going through her head at the time she decided to put this out I guess there’s a load of people going don’t stop now Saw. Audio After The Jump…
Who Run Di Dance?
It’s no accident that Chedda possess a special gift for dancehall domination. The youth born Tyrello Johnson is the son of dancehall artist Daddy Screw (the man who gave us big tunes like this), but rather than riding on his father’s name he’s been building his own reputation one blazing track at a time. His latest effort is a futuristic-sounding cut produced by The Wizard—a cutting-edge dancehall producer who has a famous father herself. It’s a lovingly crafted piece of audio art that should take its place among the artists’ and the producers’ best work to date. Audio After The Jump… (more…)
Dancehall Star Invites 20 Girls from Around the World to Compete for a Spot on His World Tour
Welcome to the Bruk It Down Reality TV Series, a showcase of 20 international dancers, hosted by Mr. Vegas. The dancehall hitmaker, known for songs like “Bruk It Down,” “Tek Weh Yourself,” and a crossover collab with Beyoncé, “Standing In The Sun,” has invited female dancers to show off their skills in dancing and overall fitness to see who will be ready to join him on a global tour to promote Dancehall culture. The ladies will be tested on their abilities to choreograph, perform, cook, and build character during the time spent on the sunshine island of Jamaica. Each dancer must demonstrate their passion for Caribbean culture as well as the advancement of Dancehall worldwide.
Throughout his career, Vegas has traveled the world and seen the excitement of audiences performing Jamaican dance moves to high-energy rhythms. Many YouTube users outside Jamaica upload their own rendition of the latest Dancehall dances. For example, since posting a choreographed video to Major Lazor’s “Watch Out For This (Bumaye)” last December, DHQ Fraules from Russia has over 13 Million views on her video alone! Websites like DanceJA in Jamaica are also providing opportunities for celebrity choreographers to teach in the United Kingdom, Europe, and Japan. Seeing the demand for Jamaican dancers, Mr. Vegas provided a platform for young ladies to live out their dreams as Dancehall Queens. The top prizes for winner include US $10,000.00 / being an official member of Mr. Vegas touring party / 6 months supply of MV (Mr. Vegas) Clothing and much more. Check out the reel for the tv show below. Video After The Jump.. (more…)
A Sneak Peak Of Mavado And Kiss’ Latest Single “Just Like Magic”
Musical Masquerade TV gives us a behind the scenes look at Mavado featuring Jadakiss’ upcoming video for the single “Just Like Magic.” Filmed at Miami’s G5 club both Mavado and Jada are vying for the attention of this particular dancer. Guess we’ll have to wait for the official video to see who ends up taking her home. Video After The Jump… (more…)
Bulletproof Vest, But We Nah Shoot Chest
Two of the most lyrical dancehall artists collide on one amazing track. Vybz Kartel and Shabba Ranks unleash a barrage of individual wordplay not rivaled by many, in fact you can probably count on one hand. Both artist trade verses/warnings to those who wa try test over the “Rolling Mad” Riddim and are quick to remind us how deep their arsenal really is. Tune After The Jump…