Category: NYC

  • The House of Marley Presents: Boomshots Unplugged Inna Style & Fashion

    The House of Marley Presents:
    Boomshots Unplugged Inna Style & Fashion

    Sister Carol, Screechy Dan, DJ Norie, Reshma B Chains, & Rockers NYC Take Over Negril Village

    Spring has sprung, and there’s definitely something in the air. Is that the essence of ishens? Yep, must be 4/20. One week from today, the Boomshots posse will be taking over NYC’s original Jamaican restaurant, Negril Village, for an historic event: the first ever staging of our quarterly after-work get-together, a thing called Boomshots Unplugged inna Style & Fashion. Come shake off the winter blues with a live acoustic performance by BK foundation DJ Sister Carol alongside the man called Screechy Dan as you’ve never heard them before. Shock out with DJ Norie and BBC Hi-Fi. Admission? Buy out the bar. Powered by The House of Marley. Way Up & Stay Up. Details After The Jump… (more…)

  • Ghetto Youths International Posse Tour the U.S. In Support of Set Up Shop Vol. 2

    Ghetto Youths International Posse Tour the U.S. In Support of Set Up Shop Vol. 2

    Cham, Wayne Marshall, Jo Mersa, Christopher Ellis & Black-Am-I Touch The Road

    There is a famous saying “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” and for the heirs of reggae legend Bob Marley, Damian, Stephen and Julian Marley, their actions prove just that. Just as their father founded the Tuff Gong imprint, his youths see big things looming for their fresh record label Ghetto Youths International (GYI). For lovers of the perfect mixture of blues, calypso and rock and roll, Jamaica’s own reggae, GYI has a tour in the works next week. With the Marley imprint behind this initiative one can expect nothing less than a star-studded lineup of acts including Cham,Wayne Marshall, Black-Am-I, Jo Mersa, and Christopher Ellis. Said GYI participants are of course featured on the Billboard chart-topper, Set Up Shop Volume 2, a compilation that represents a full spectrum of music, from reggae to dancehall and futuristic fusion. With such a stellar selection of artists on tour, backed by the Lawless band, who wouldn’t be excited? Tour Schedule After The Jump…
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  • Deep Space Dub Night Marks 12th Anniversary in NYC

    Deep Space Dub Night Marks 12th Anniversary in NYC

    Easy Star Sound System & Friends To Make NYC Debut Alongside Francois K April 6

    “Deep Space’s mission is to explore how dub has influenced so many forms of music,” says the night’s produer Erica Newell. “Not only as an aesthetic, but as an approach to producing and mixing music both in the recording studio and on the dance floor.” A Monday-night fixture at Cielo nightclub in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District for the past twelve years, Deep Space makes excellent use of Cielo’s award-winning Funkion One sound system (oft cited as the best in NYC) as it explores earthshaking frequencies of subsonic bass vibrations. Deep Space’s resident DJ Francois K was recently named “Resident Dj of the Year” by the 2015 Nightclub Awards. To mark their 12-year anniversary, Deep Space will welcome Easy Star Sound System with foundation artists Carlton Livingston, Lady Anne, and Ranking Joe pon the microphone center. Details After The Jump… (more…)

  • Anything Goes at DJ Norie’s Anniversary Bash

    Anything Goes at DJ Norie’s Anniversary Bash

    Live Sets From Wayne Wonder, Red Rat, Tarrus Riley & More

    DJ Norie has come a long way since his days on Brooklyn’s Wah Gwan Radio. His weekly show on New York’s top urban radio station, Power 105.1 FM, is one of the city’s leading platforms for reggae and dancehall music. So when he celebrated his anniversary late last week the stars came out. Check out Wayne Wonder breezing through his vast catalog of certified Boomshots—including the song that gave this annual showcase its name. And how long since we saw Red Rat blazing up his hits? He’s still got the girls screaming “Oh Noooo!” for tunes like “Dwayne” and “Tight Up Skirt”—and watch what happens when the Rat bucks up a fluffy gal from the front row. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: Ricky Blaze “Mighty”

    HEAR THIS: Ricky Blaze “Mighty”

    FME Capo On Some Next Flex—Again. Try & Keep Up!

    Sparking his spliff at the top of his latest track, Rick Bleezy re-introduces himself: “My name is Ricky Blaze—baddest bumbaclaat producer.” Not that he requires any intro. You already know this is the man responsible for dancehall bangers like Ding Dong’s “Badman Forward” and Gyptian’s “Hold Yuh,” the first reggae/dancehall cut to be certified gold since Jr. Gong’s “Welcome to Jamrock.” This is the guy who sang “Just You & I” on the same riddim, the youth who gave us “I Feel Free.” Restlessly innovating as he pushes the music forward, his new tune “Mighty” finds Blaze dropping gems: “Don’t confuse it, caw me fuse it… If you have a privilege don’t abuse it / Timing is everything, use it.” The sound is dark, dreamy, brooding—oh, and the whole thing ends with an ill guitar solo. R U ready? Let’s go.  Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • Jahdan Blakkamoore “Order of Distinction” Album Art and Tracklist

    Jahdan Blakkamoore “Order of Distinction” Album Art and Tracklist

    BK Field Marshall Reveals Details On His Third Studio Album
    The Guyanese-born, Brooklyn-bred, Grammy-nominated songwriter Jahdan Blakkamoore has just revealed all the details about his third studio album. Order of Distinction is set to be released on the Lustre Kings Productions label on March 25th. The album features guest spots by Lutan Fyah, Pressure Busspipe, Kabaka Pyramid, and Illuminati Congo, to name a few.  Following the high-energy track “Ting Tun Up,” the official first single will be a lovers rock selection, “Smooth Black Skin.” The follow-up to Mr. Blakkamoore’s 2010 Lustre Kings release, Babylon Nightmare, Distinction features mainly production by Paper Stars, the production and writing duo forged between Jahdan Blakkamoore and Andrew Moon Bain (Lustre Kings) after years of prolific practice in the studio and receiving a Grammy nod in 2013 for Major’s Lazer’s & Snoop Dogg’s, Snoop Lion Reincarnated. Dre Skull also steps in to produce “Sky’s the Limit”. Details After The Jump… (more…)
  • Royalty In NYC: Jesse Royal and The King Suns at SOBs

    Royalty In NYC: Jesse Royal and The King Suns at SOBs

    The Palace Pickney Delivers An Emancipation Message During Bob Marley EarthStrong Weekend

    Not many artists can fill SOBs on a snowy winter night with temperatures in the twenties. But Jesse Royal is not just any artist. So this past Monday night, his first time performing at the legendary night club he had a toe-to-toe, overflowing crowd out early. The crowd got warm and cozy with some blazing hits by Lionface (Lion King), Max Glazer & Kenny Meez (Federation Sound), DJ Gravy & Micro Don (Rice N’ Peas), Rob Kenner, SeeBorn, and Charlie Brown (BBC Hi-Fi). The temperature kept rising throughout Jah Bami and Knight Blade’s live session—heightened by a rousing performance of their viral hit “I Got That Weed”—before the special surprise guest was announced by the Host, Rob Kenner.  More After The Jump…

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  • HEAR THIS: Munga “Stainless”

    HEAR THIS: Munga “Stainless”

    Ricky Blaze And The Gangsta Ras Connect

    When Munga Honorable first stampeded through the dancehall circuit, some people had a hard time with his “Gangsta Ras” persona. “Buss it make the earth shake,” he bragged on one early tune, “it’s like an earthquake.” Oddly enough, boasting about the size of one’s gun through gold fronts was not the behavior folks expected from Rasta youth. Luckily Flatbush Brooklyn has plenty of experience with the whole gangsta ras phenomenon. So Munga dropped by Ricky Blaze’s basement studio and they made another one of those out-the-box records that changes everything. Now Munga’s free to extol the shininess of his own hardware to his heart’s content. What a wonderful world. Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: Spragga Benz ft. Bobby Shmurda & Red Square Crew “Switch It Up”

    HEAR THIS: Spragga Benz ft. Bobby Shmurda & Red Square Crew “Switch It Up”

    When It Comes To Bad Man Ting, Real Recognize Real

    This tune arrived in our inbox with the following message from the Red Square crew, which we are reprinting here verbatim: “ITS HARD TO BE FROM THE INNERCITY AND SING ABOUT LAYING IN SUNRAYS ON DAFFODIL FIELDS”….EVERYTHING DO HAPPEN ACCORDING TO THE SUPREME DESIGN…. ‘AT THE HEIGHTS OF HIS HIP HOP CAREER AND IT WAS AT THIS TIME THAT “BOBBY SHMURDA” SHOWED DANCEHALL MUSIC REAL LOVE BY COLLABORATING WITH SPRAGGA BENZ AND UPCOMING RED SQUARE TALENT… AND…ON AN AUTHENTIC DANCEHALL RIDDIM AS WELL… I HOPE THAT WE CAN STAND IN SOLIDARITY NOW THAT HE IS IN A DARK MOMENT AND PRAY THAT JAH GUIDE THROUGH HIS ORDEAL…MEANTIME FULLJOY THE MUSICAL VIBE AS RED SQUARE PRODUCTIONS PRESENT THE “BACK BITE” RIDDIM WITH THE FIRST SINGLE.. “SWITCH IT UP”..ft..BITTAH SOSICKA..+..BRIGGY BENZ..+..KWALIT-E REDSQUARE..+..BOBBY SHMURDA..+..SPRAGGA BENZ Not much more to say, but let the music play. Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • Reggae King Cyber Monday Sale Will Swag You Out

    Reggae King Cyber Monday Sale Will Swag You Out

    40 Percent Off Until Midnight Monday Night

    Our people at Reggae King have the reggae swag game on lock. From caps to T-shirts to jewelry to heaphones to lava lamps and more… If you’ve got a reggae lover on your holiday list Reggae King has got them covered. They are having a Cyber Monday sale with 40 percent off, so now would be a good time to head on over to Reggae King and get your e-commerce on. Details After The Jump. .. (more…)

  • Mr. Vegas “Reggae Euphoria” Album Preview

    Mr. Vegas “Reggae Euphoria” Album Preview

    A Track-By-Track Breakdown of The Dancehall Hitmaker’s Latest Release

    Few artists in the Jamaican music fraternity can rival the track record established by Mr. Vegas since he exploded on the dancehall scene with his 1998 debut album Heads High. Just last September the year-to-year hitmaker delivered Bruk It Down 2.0, a blazing set of high-energy cuts that rode the wave of his international smash “Bruk It Down,” whose accompanying dance move was a favorite of Nicki Minaj among others. While his new album Reggae Euphoria contains plenty of dancehall energy, it presents the full range of his artistry—with elements of roots reggae, mento, rock steady, R&B, hip-hop and gospel and inspirations ranging from Delroy Wilson to Leonard Cohen to Miley Cyrus. No matter what style of music, Vegas is quite simply a master hitmaker with a rare gift for crafting compelling melodies that stick in the brain year after year. The term “Euphoria” refers to a state of extreme happiness familiar to all dancehall fans who’ve had the pleasure of catching Vegas live in concert. It was origianlly a medical term for “the condition of feeling healthy and comfortable (especially when sick),” and derives from the Greek euphoros meaning “power of enduring easily,” or literally “bearing well.” Whatever may be ailing the listener—whether heartsickness, lack of inspiration, or a chronic case of musical mediocrity, Reggae Euphoria is the perfect prescription. Today Mr. Vegas will be launching the album at Miss Lilys, so if you’re in NYC it’s time to head on down to Houston and Sullivan Streets. But if you can’t make it in person don’t worry we’ve got you covered!  Live Stream Link After The Jump…

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  • Reasoning with Monty Alexander: “The Party Don’t Stop”

    Reasoning with Monty Alexander: “The Party Don’t Stop”

    The Jamaican-Born World-Renowned Jazz Pianist Celebrates His Reggae Roots

    In the jazz world, Monty Alexander is recognized as a master pianist. In the reggae world, he is respected as a pioneer of Jamaican music, having played keys on countless crucial selections alongside such masters as Tommy McCook, Roland Alphonso, and Ernest Ranglin. Whenever he takes the stage, Monty loves to blend the best of all his musical traditions into a sublime blend of sounds and styles—and always staying open to working with new upcoming talents and what’s happening now. Just before opening “Jazz Around the West Indies,” his five-night stand at Dizzy’s Place inside Jazz at Lincoln Center NYC, Monty Alexander took time out to reason with the Reggae Grl About Town, reminiscing about his formative years as a session musician for the pioneers of Jamaican music, and explains why he considers Bob Marley to be a jazz man. Videos After The Jump… (more…)