“It Won’t Be Any Fun,” The Reggae Star Reasons, Plus “People Will Smoke Coke Harder”
Ever since voters in Colorado and Washington State voted to leglalize marijuana in those two states, ganja fans have been celebrating. Well, most of them. One noted herb booster isn’t so sure the new laws are a good thing. We spoke with Gyptian, who has a few concerns that might surprise you. Interview After The Jump… (more…)
Legalize It And I Will Advertise It
Why is Peter Tosh smiling? The ongoing struggle to repeal the prohibition of marijuana has inspired countless great records—and earlier this month it inspired a historic moment at the ballot box. Starting December 6 in the state of Washington and January 1 in Colorado, the dream of legal ganja will become a reality. Many questions remain: Will California be the next American state to free up the herbs? Will the Federal government sit back and let west coasters puff in peace? Will Jamaica ever embrace its number-one cash crop? While we ponder those issues, let’s take a look back at some of the greatest reggae songs ever sung in defense of ganja decriminalization. Audio After The Jump… (more…)
Techniques And Truck Back Connect For A Pretty Song About How Love’s Not Always Pretty
Love is lovely, and war is kinda ugly. But what about the space in between? “Till You Do Me Right” explores that no man’s land with sensitive vocals from a quartet of voices. But we can’t stop asking ourselves—what if all these guys are singing about the same girl? That would explain why there’s so vexed! Audio After The Jump…
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Earlier this month, Buju Banton’s defense team gathered supporters of the imprisoned reggae star for a press conference in Washington D.C. to discuss the latest details of his case. The speakers included Buju’s defense attorney Chokwe Lumumba, Dr. Carolyn Cooper, and Banton’s friend and musical collaborator Gramps Morgan. We’ve just obtained the exclusive footage. Video after the jump… (more…)
Diggy Drops The Visual Interpretation of His Hard-Hitting New Single
The first time we heard Protoje’s new single from the forthcoming LP The 8 Year Affair, we knew it was something special. Now that we’ve seen the official video—directed by Mikey Tumbleweed—all our suspicions have been confirmed: Diggy deh pon some next-level meds right now. I mean, how many singles come with a link to download the lyrics, the artwork and a short story—by the original Dutty Bookman no less? But we digress. Pree the video and you’ll understand what the excitement is about. Video after the jump…
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The Werlboss Won’t Have His Day In Court Until Next Year
“No time for no jail time that a waste time,” Kartel sang back in 2009 so you can bet that spending over a year awaiting a trial date is not Adidja Palmer’s first choice of activities. But unfortunately, Kartel doesn’t have much say over his current predicament. On trial for not one but two murders, Kartel learned yesterday that he will have to wait until 2013 for his day in court. Read More After the Jump (more…)
The Rootical Singer Spices Up”OnStageTv”
Most people got to know Richie Spice when he dropped his hit single “Youth Dem Cold,” but like most “overnight successes” Spice has been grinding for years before he made it big. His first certified boomshot, “Earth A Run Red” came out back in 1999 and since then he has been nothing less than a true inspiration and positive reinforcement in the Reggae music industry. He has released 9 albums including his latest, Richie Spice Acoustic – Soothing Sounds. On top of being a top-selling Reggae artist, Spice has been an opening act for Rita Marley, runs a label with his brothers and has had a single featured on Grand Theft Auto. But with so many accomplishments, it seems that Spice never takes a break. His ultimate goal is to keep his fans happy with new music—so he took a visit to OnStageTv and presented his new album, video and blessed the place with a live performance. Video after the jump…
Paying Respects To Bob Marley’s Former Manager And “Godfather” 
The New York Times called the late Danny Sims “one of the people most responsible for Bob Marley’s success who has gotten the least amount of notice for it.” Sims himself described his relationship with Marley thus: “I guess I was his Godfather—that is in the street sense—I looked out for him.” Of course the Tuff Gong could take care of himself, but Sims definitely helped Marley reach new audiences through his connections in the R&B world. In his Marley biography, Catch A Fire, Timothy White writes that “Sims was the man who would put Bob’s unique sound on the airwaves. Yet he was always trying to dissuade Bob from actually recording reggae—and ‘message’ reggae at that. The chief way he saw Bob Marley being a money-maker was, in his own words, ‘in a rhythm-and-blues, Top Forty style.’ As Sims himself boasted to a reporter from the Village Voice: ‘I discouraged Bob from doing the revolutionary stuff. I’m a commercial guy. I want to sell songs to thirteen-year-old girls, not to guys throwing spears.’” Whatever else you may think of him, cllearly Danny Sims was not afraid to speak his mind. Born in Mississippi and raised in Chicago, Sims’ entry into the music business came with the opening of Sapphire, the first black club in Manhattan. He formed a promotions company, Hemisphere, at the behest of Johnny Nash. The companywas responsible for all the top stars of the day – Sammy Davis, Brook Benton, Ben E. King, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding – he worked with everyone from Mohammed Ali to Malcolm X. Hemisphere later absorbed Dinah Washington’s Queens label creating one of the biggest African-American agencies of the time. In the 1960s Danny formed a label with Nash called JODA, later to become JAD, and it was to this label that both the Wailers and Bob Marley signed. The Wailers would often stay at Danny’s house in Jamaica while he was away. Fellow performers such as Gloria Gaynor, Lloyd Price, Betty Wright and English musician Rabbit (Marley, Free, the Who) also found a home on JAD. Sims died last month at the age of 75, and his contributions to music are still not fully understood. Here’s a quick overview of the man’s musical legacy. Audio After The Jump…
Richie Stephens & Gentleman Talk International Collaboration with Winford Williams at “OnStageTV”
Sometimes the best collaborations just happen when you least expect it. In the case of Richie Stephens and Gentleman, it began with a tragedy. Richie Stephens’ son, Demar Graham, also known as Copper Cat, was shot down in front of his house and passed away. As a way to help ease the singer’s pain, the German reggae star Gentleman invited Stephens to come tour with him for a bit and they created the very popular single, “Live Your Life.” The single received such positive feedback that Stephens and Gentleman decided to get to work and make an album together. Finally ready to share with everyone their highly anticipated album, Stephens and Gentleman decided to head to OnStageTV to share the good news. Video after the jump…
Mayor Holds A Press Conference To Confession His Dirty Secret: Dub
If you thought Ras Trent was annoying… If Andy Milonakis inna dancehall style gets on your nerves… If you’re perturbed by this French dude Bigga Ranks… Then you’ll probably appreciate this VICE essay. But if that looks way too long to read, get a load of this awkward highlight from the IFC comedy series Portlandia. Video After The Jump…
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VICE Defends Reggae To White People Who Don’t Like Reggae
So you’ve decided you don’t like reggae. I can respect this decision. There’s some good thinking involved in this decision. Whenever I talk to a fellow white person who has decided they don’t like reggae, they usually make the following points: 1. I don’t really smoke weed, so it doesn’t really do anything for me; 2. I find it repetitive and unvarying, two qualities I don’t appreciate in music because see point 1; 3. I am white; 4. people who are “really into reggae,” especially white people who are “really into reggae,” are annoying little dipshits, and based on social programming, I wish to avoid being seen as an annoying little dipshit; 5. Bob Marley Legends is the fucking WORST. Actually the title is Legend, but whatever; More after the jump…
Singer Hails The King of Kings
Sadiki is one of those best-kept-secret-type singers. He may not have the biggest name in the game, but if you’ve been paying attention you know his records speak for themselves. Blending a staccato singjay attack and soaring melodies, Sadiki’s got what it takes to rock the mike right. His “Gal Them Everytime” was one of the standout tracks on Tony Kelly’s hit-packed Buyout Riddim, and his Japanese-only Sound Killarchy CD is one the strongest soundboy-killing albums of recent years. So it was a treat to find this tasty new spiritual cut in our inbox. A few more tunes like this and Sadiki will be a secret no more. Audio After The Jump…
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