Contrary to the beliefs of many, Electronic Dance Music (EDM)’s roots started in a small Caribbean Island named Jamaica. On March 2016, the Island will host its first major EDM Festival in the parish of St. Ann. Named “Paradise Lost”, this is a 3 day Festival featuring performances from 6 of Billboard’s Top 20 DJs, and 19 of its Top 100 DJs. Produced by Caribbean TransMedia Limited and the creators of the popular “Electric Zoo”, the chosen venue for the Festival will be at the Grizzly Plantation Cove, Richmond Estate in St. Ann. With the venue spanning 135 Acres, the Festival expects to accommodate up to 75,000 patrons over the course of 3 days. With the “Spring break” season in effect, the Festival would be perfect for the Spring Break crowd locally and abroad, and fans of the EDM genre who need to be at the next major event.
According to the Event Organisers of Paradise Lost, the Festival will be able to provide more than 2,300 paying jobs and 200 Internships over the span of 7 months. In their vision of the event, it is expected to rake in over JMD 5 Billion dollars in year one, with consistent growth in the following years. With this being the first Festival of its kind in the Caribbean, they hope to achieve this prospective success and more. With the Island’s mission to reclaim EDM, the event promises to reintroduce fans to the genre, contribute to Jamaica’s economic growth, increase Tourism for the “Spring Break” season, and be the next big event in the Island for years to come.
Ras Xtr3me is celebrating his belief in the Rastafarian culture with his new single ‘Shaat Locks’ produced by Audiotraxx Productions on the ‘Shaat Lox Riddim’. The single speaks about the authentic levity of Rastafari and speaks to youths who have an interest in the movement. Ras Xtr3me sang, “Shaat Locks no tats no glass chain no Gold watch, Xtr3me roll the Rasta way, Natural bead head wrap” which is a clear indication that Ras Xtr3me is not here for the ‘fake Rastas’.
With strong beliefs, Ras Xtr3me said “I am a cultural Reggae artiste who believes all musicians should travel on a path of truth and righteousness. Our music should be a reflection of positivity and strength”. Reigning from Old Harbour, St Catherine, Ras Xtr3me grew up with the influence of music from veterans such as Flick Wilson, Peter Tosh, Bob Marley, Third World Band, Nina Simone, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaac, Garnet Silk, and Buju Banton. When asked about his proudest moment he shared “Mutabaruka is one of the radio personalities I admire and to hear him play my single, it was truly appreciated. I hope to influence a positive change through embracing roots and culture among our youths and he basically created the medium for me to do so”.
Ras Xtr3me is set to perform on several stages in Jamaica and is eager to start his promotional trail for the new single. The single can be found on Soundcloud.
With many Jamaicans awaiting the announcement for the next general elections, up and coming artiste Oska is speaking out through his new single ‘Please Prime Minister’. The single produced by 10 Star Records acts as a social commentary that pleads to the government to invest more into the music industry in particular Reggae and Dancehall music. He said “When I go to Germany and see the love I get there for my music I am so overwhelmed. I think music is a good thing and it can be a solution to a lot of the problems Jamaica is now facing”.
Oska described in his song the power of positive music and urges government to use it in campaigns to create change. He also expounds on the importance of Jamaicans embracing their musical culture and not be so concerned about the negatives often times affiliated with Dancehall but to encourage further change. In what seems to be a controversial single also has the upcoming artiste being vocal about the drop in the quality of the music produced by top producers and the hope that this will change.
Oska shared “The truth is a lot of producers have been solely concerned with just getting material out to the public because of monetary gain and not so much to create a legacy and to garner international awards and attention. As a young artiste, I would like to see more producers putting out quality music that can help break barriers for all Jamaicans”. The single on the ‘Stop Mash Up Jamaica Riddim’ has been garnering a lot of comments online and has become a strong topic with the present political unrest. The single is featured on recording artiste Marr’s mix tape ‘Rebellution’ and has been receiving air play in Germany, France, Zimbabwe and the UK.
Oska is set to commence his Jamaican media runs in December of this year. ‘Please Prime Minister’ can be heard on Soundcloud and is available for download on iTunes and Amazon.
When it hits you, you feel no pain. When it comes to music, we realize how powerful and healing it can be. Reggae Music has come a long way since Bob Marley’s global ascension and now it is becoming a thriving industry and genre throughout the world. One of the many places that has received its impact is Canada and there has been a string of musical explosions coming out of this North American country including the rise of Recording Artist Drake. The Reggae/Dancehall scene has also become very vibrant, and we are now seeing the likes of Dancehall Artist Popcaan aligning himself with Drake’s O.V.O. label and a new wave of young acts from Toronto creating their own buzz.
Adding himself to the new wave is Maxximus. Otherwise known as “Maxximus The Greatest”, he originally hails from Kingston 12 in Jamaica. Known for its alias “Mexico”, Maxximus was raised in the Inner City community of Arnette Gardens that has spawned stars like the late Dancer Bogle, Recording Artist Nesbeth, and DJ Squiddly. Jerome Brown aka Maxximus along with his parents migrated to Canada early in his life and with music as his passion, he started to focus on where and how to improve on it. Now in his twenties, Jerome Brown is looking to make a mark for himself and has teamed up with various producers to accomplish this. Working between Jamaica and Canada, his career is a work in progress. He has joined forces with production houses like Full Range Entertainment, Push A Yute, Building Block, and other popular labels.
Currently working on an EP set to drop in Spring 2016, Maxximus is prepared for life on the road and in the studio. After speaking with Sherene McQueen, Co owner of Push A Yute, she describes Maxximus as a “Hard working artist who is only interested in getting better”. With talent and youth on his side, look out for the lyrical artist.
With many creatives putting out great content in the world of Dancehall, there are times when styles are borrowed, or in other cases, stolen. Today, popular Dancer Shelly Xpressionz (Shelly-Ann Callum) of Dance Xpressionz spoke out about her dance “Shelly Bounce” which was stolen by two other dancers and now being called “Bruk Back“. Below is her statement via her Instagram page.
Let me as the creator of the dance “Shelly Bounce” now being called “Bruk Back” by Tamara n Chrissy address this issue…let the record clarify that I have nothing personal against these young ladies as they are very talented dancers, however the issue at hand is not their talent but their lying nature and deception. Nothing about the dance or the name is unique to any of you, because you both know that we (Dance Xpressionz) were asked to campaign a song called “Bruk Back” by (Dancehall Artist) Savage. He asked us to create a dance called “Bruk Back” to this song, we were planning to use the Shelly Bounce and call it bruk back but because savage had gone on to promoting another song we left that project, this is when you both decide to use the step to (Dancehall Artist) Razor B song “Weh Mek yu waa bruk fimi back” which fits perfectly, just one issue…it’s not your dance and you both know this, so why are you “Chrissy” trying to find stupid justifications for stealing my dance? We were on good terms when this happened, you could’ve asked me because I rate you guys so I could’ve given you all the dance to promote but when you come into my space n steal from me what kind of idiot would I be to let it slide…tell your friends the truth and stop allow them to gas you up. As for you speaking about us getting older, really…that’s your drawing card..Dwl, well if you’re getting younger more power to you, age has nothing to do with this, this is me and my family protecting our intellectual property and you can’t blame us or stop us. You are a bear face thief and trying to be rude. When we use bogle steps we say it’s bogle step and if a step was inspired by Bogle we say it. Also for your information we can’t steal from dancehall, dancehall is ours collectively, but you can’t steal someone’s step as you have clearly done. So please stop sounding stupid. I am defending my dance and there’s nothing you can say to stop me from doing so…so continue to get gas up from your friends…oh and if they’re really your friends they would tell you that you’re wrong because it’s as plain as day. Big up yuhself still you are both good dancers but unuh just lie n teef!
The highly anticipated event Culture Shock Expo and Concert was officially launched and the school promotions are on! Taylor Made Events and PR Management hosted a successful launch for the Culture Shock Expo and Concert slated for October 3, 2015 at Dinthill High School in Linstead, St. Catherine.
The launch was held at Bog Walk High School on Thursday and was attended by several teachers and administrators. The main organizer Talisa Taylor shared “The launch surpassed my expectations. I remember reaching out to quite a few sponsors and they weren’t so receptive at first but now persons are calling to rent booths and participate”. The event will cater to just over 1000 students from partnering schools and will feature several cultural practices of the Indians, Chinese, Africans, and Europeans in the form of an educational expo and concert
In her presentation at the launch, Taylor presented her display highlighting the features of the event including the Cultural Food Village with several cuisines, the Art and Craft Gallery, and the Cultural Fashion Village. She also pointed out to the involvement of Suncity 104.9FM, Hype TV, EPlus TV and entertainment news programme, The Release that are media sponsors for the event.
The guest speaker for the launch Mr. David Reid, the Eastern Regional Manager at JCDC, also delivered an impressive speech highlighting that Jamaican culture impacts other cultures all over the world and that all Jamaicans are trend setters. June Isaac (the wife of the late Gregory Isaacs) was also in attendance; she also highlighted her eagerness for this cultural event for which she pledges the full support of the Gregory Isaacs Foundation.
Opportunity for Young Talents
The event not only seeks to ‘edu-tain’ students but the organizers are also recruiting young talents that have incredible art and craft pieces that they want to showcase. Taylor shared “We believe in showcasing young talent and Jamaica is filled with artistic people so we do have a gallery that is open for artist to showcase their work and possible get sales. All they have to do is send us sample photos of their work and their contact information to info.taylormadepr@gmail.com”.
The event will also feature a Caribbean Fusion Concert which will feature cultural dances, dub poetry, instrumental performances and guest artistes. These performers include D’Angel, Prodi (formally Prodigal Son), Voicemail, Radijah, Guidance,A-Game, D’Medz, TheOutcome, dub poet group Colas, RR, Marr, Racquel Jones, Ras Extr3me, Aljermaine, Blass, Jah Jah & Asha, A-Shane and Sanity just to name a few.
Culture Shock is slated to begin at 10 am and end 6 pm and will be hosted on the Dinthill High School Grounds in Linstead, St. Catherine on the 3rd of October 2015.
Taylor Made Events and PR Management
876-443-5100/833-5444
talisataylorent@gmail.com
David Reid (Eastern Regional Manager JCDC), Peter Simpson and Steve Billings (Suncity Radio), and D’MedzJune Isaacs (Gregory Isaacs Foundation) presents David Reid (Eastern Regional Manager JCDC) with a gift basketQraig (Voicemail), June Isaacs (Gregory Isaacs Foundation), Kevyn V (Voicemail), Talisa Taylor (Taylor Made Events and PR Management), and D’Medz at the launch of Culture Shock
