Wayne Marshall Creates A Worship Song That Mirrors His Spirituality
Widespread fans are connecting with the lyrics of a gospel infused dancehall track, entitled, “Glory to God” by Wayne Marshall featuring Songtress and Winner of The Voice, Season 5 Tessanne Chin and Gospel Singer and Reverend of Pure Heart Ministries, Ryan Mark. We spoke to Wayne about the inspiration behind this influential song. Interview After The Jump…
Lava Splash! Fire Dash! Everything Burn To Ash
Sunday September 4th marked Irie Jam’s 23rd Anniversary concert spotlighting Sizzla Kalonji’s return-to-New-York performance after eight long years of absence. The supporting superstar line-up to the sizzling stage show included an artist who personifies lines from Kalonji’s “King in the Jungle.” Seated up so high, yet so humble, I-Wayne brought his celestial presence and the hard/soft balance of his cool and deadly style to the Irie Jam Radio massive in the leafy green confines of Roy Wilkins Park. Mainstream airwaves aren’t the lane for I-Wayne. As the Prophet Capleton once put it, he is on a mission, not in a competition. To see him truly manifest is to catch him live in the flesh. After a seething set that made knowledge born that his musical ministry is service to the people—not about bulleting Billboard or gaining Grammys—we linked up with the Loyal Soliders Promotion crew backstage. I-Wayne broke it down with Boomshots as to what the Irie Jam performance meant to him, burning a righteous fire, and shedding light on the livity of a lava lyricist. Video After The Jump… (more…)
Throwback Q&A with The Prophet • New York City 2000 A.D.
I had been listening to Capleton for years before I got the chance to interview him at Def Jam Records offices on Varick Street in Manhattan. He sat smoking beedies and a spliff with his manager Stuart Brown a.k.a. African Star in the record label conference room. Capleton’s first album for Def Jam, Prophecy, consisted of pretty much straight hardcore tracks from Jamaica, although the new one, I Testament, was a bit more “smooved out” shall we say, showing more influence from label A&Rs. But King Shango’s mental state was the same irresistible force it has ever been. He was named after a well-known local barrister, the lawyer Capleton, and the DJ’s reasoning is always forceful, like a prosecutor giving the closing argument on the biggest case of his life. Interview After The Jump… (more…)
If The Stars Align This Weekend In Miami, Anything Can Happen
The 9 Mile Music Festival was established in 1993 as the brainchild of Cedella Marley Booker in honor of her son, Robert Nesta Marley. Formerly known as Marley Fest and The Caribbean Music Festival, the event has been renamed 9 Mile after Bob’s birthplace as well as his final resting place—the little village in St. Ann Parish that lies at the heart of the Marley legacy. More than a concert, the 9 Mile Music Festival provides millions of canned goods to local homeless shelters and domestic centers throughout Miami; feeding families in need for months after the show is over. For 22 years, the concert has required canned goods in addition to the price of admission, and it always will. Given its strong ties to the Marley family, the show is always packed with reggae royalty, and this year is no exception, with Stephen “Ragga” Marley, Julian “JuJu Royal” Marley, and their nephew Skip Marley all scheduled to perform this Saturday, February 27th. In addition, both Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley and Nas are billed—and while each of these living legends will be performing his own set, anticipation is in the air that the two lyrical giants may join forces on stage to recreate the magic of their 2010 album Distant Relatives. Full Details After The Jump… (more…)
On November 2, 1930, the official crowning of a monarch occurred in Ethiopia
Peoples of African descent, come from a lineage of kings and queens, as referenced in the bible. On this day, November 2, in 1930, Emperor Haile Selassie I and his wife, Empress Menen Asfaw were formally crowned with regalia, together in Ethiopia.
More After The Jump…
Ragga Marley Brandishes Some Hardcore Visuals Pon BET
Ever since Stephen “Ragga” Marley dropped the “Rockstone” single off his highly anticipated album Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life, the song has been in heavy rotation on all conscious stations. But clearly Ragga is not just “preaching to the choir” so to speak. When it came time to premiere the video for the tune, he took it to the leading music show on TV, BET’s 106 & Park. When’s the last time you saw King Shango and Kalonji getting love pon BET? And this ain’t no pop tune. These visuals are on some Burning Spear vibes, as in “Do you remember the days of slavery?” Did somebody say “Play I on the BET—want all my people to see.” OK, nuff said. We’ve got a feeling that somewhere Gong is smiling right about now. Video After The Jump… (more…)
Ragga Links With The Fireman and Kalonji And They Proceed To Blaze A Hotta Fire
Brand new foundation selection off Stephen “Ragga” Marley’s highly anticipated Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life. It starts out like a tasty roots rock groove with Stephen singing a hook adapted from his dad’s “Talkin’ Blues” and inviting the Fireman and Kalonji in to blaze a hotta fire. Then Ragga steps to the mic and unleashes some ol’ Papa Levi stylee fast-chat flow while dubstep mayhem breaks out all bout. In short, a #CertifiedBoomshot. Time to leggo the album nuh man! Audio After The Jump… (more…)
The Struggle Is Always The Same
You ever had a bad day? You missed your train or misplaced your credit card and felt like screaming “FML!” for all to hear and just like that, in a few hours everything was back to normal. How do you feel after? Probably a little ridiculous that you allowed something so minuscule to take up so much of your precious time. Now, what if you had to get up every morning and scavenge for water, and we’re not talking about Poland Spring? Missing your train doesn’t seem so bad now doesn’t it. This is the message Teflon and Capleton are trying to get across, even though the days might change the struggle remains the same, the struggle to do what’s necessary to survive. Tune After The Jump… (more…)
“Our Music No Die,” says the Don Dada. “We A Rock of Ages and the Music Live In We Same Way”
The Wild Apache has been missing in action for a while but Boomshots was blessed to catch up with him in NYC during a rehearsal session for his big comeback shows. Tomorrow night at Amazura NYC Cat and Junior Demus will slip into some Clarks and white linen and take NYC back to the glory days of the Biltmore Ballroom. After that Cat will forward straight to Jamaica for the 30th Anniversary staging of Sting on December 26. “I never get to finish that show,” Cat says. “Because it was a clash between me and Ninja Man.” Cat says this time around there’s no clash planned, but he’s definitely looking to deal with some unfinished business. Sounds like a can’t-miss show. But if you can’t make it Jamrock, do not despair. Just hit up BringTheSting.com to learn how you can view the show via PayPerView or webstream. In part one off this exclusive interview Cat touches on the Maccabee Bible, the roots of sound system culture, and also speaks on his respect for Shaggy and how his old friend came to check him when he was having a rough time. “Man like you don’t stay down fe long,” Shaggy told him, they came up with a plan to bring Cat out as a surprise guest this past Labor Day—and the rest is history. The last time Super Cat worked Sting it was the biggest show in Jamaican history. This year promises to be a major event, and a fitting way to commeorate 30 years of Sting. Video After The Jump… (more…)
Turns Out The Ja-Fakin’ Mayoral Candidate Is a Big Capleton Fan
It’s not unusual to see politicians pandering at “ethnic” events like yesterday’s West Indian Day parade in Brooklyn NYC. What is more unusual is to see mayoral candidates shouting Bo! Bo! Bo! pon the Parkway (even without the gun-finger in the air). Or to hear them singing along to dancehall tunes that say “all sodomite dem fi dead.” But then again, when the mayoral candidate in question happens to be Anthony “Dick Pic” Weiner, can anyone say they are truly surprised? Still he keeps finding ways to redefine “reckless.” Video after the jump…
Shabba Ranks, Damian and Stephen Marley, I-Octane, Bunji Garlin, Fayann Lyons, and Alison Hinds Headline As Caribbean Fever Music Festival Celebrates Caribbean Music at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center This Labor Day
“This concert is a collaborative effort between Bobby Clarke, CEO of Irie Jam Media and Caribbean Fever” Dahveed Levy, CEO of Caribbean Fever, draped with Caribbean beauties wearing elaborate headpieces and vibrant body paint, confirmed at the press conference held at Milk River. He went on to describe the concert theme for each night. Friday, August 30 “International Night” will feature music predominately from the French Caribbean with artists such as Wyclef Jean, Kassav, Tabou Combo and Djakout #1. Saturday, August 31 “Carnival Mania Night” will have acts like Allison Hinds, Bunji Garlin and Fay-Ann Lyons, Edwin Yearwood, Iwer George and Tallpree “preparing the massive for Eastern Parkway and the true culture of Carnival.” Details After The Jump… (more…)
King Yellowman Heads Up The Ultimate Dancehall Posse Cut
When it comes to dancehall legends, it’s hard to top King Yellowman. The prolific albino DJ rose from the streets of Kingston to land an major label record deal and make records with Run-DMC and Afrika Bambaataa. After surviving a near-fatal brush with cancer and having much of his jawbone removed, he continues to tour the world spreading good vibes wherever he goes. In this brand new posse cut, King Yellow kicks things off and a dozen or so of his DJ bredrens finish the job. Here comes the musical ting called Champions in action. Audio After The Jump… (more…)