Jamaicans Celebrate Reggae Month in February!!!
Reggae music has had an impact the world over. It has evolved from being just the voice of the Rastaman hitting out against Babylon
to a recognized music genre. Many artistes of other genres have used or tried their hand at a reggae song or two. From Hip hop to R & B…
From the Fugees to Eric Clapton. Reggae music has a cult following in places like Japan to the point where I have seen
Japanese reggae aficionados come to Jamaica to purchase music. The music is powerful and infectious. With all that said I am just sharing three bits of interesting reggae news in this post today.
Celebrating Reggae month
February this year has been named Reggae Month here in Jamaica. ( Wake the town and tell the people) Prime Minister Bruce Golding recently announced this.The aim is to highlight reggae’s impact on Jamaica’s social, cultural and economic development.
I suspect we have started celebrations this year gearing up for even bigger things in 2009 which will mark fifty years since the birth of reggae. Many consider this a brilliant and perfectly timed with the birthday of Reggae Icon Bob Marley and Black History month.
Some of the the months events include :
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Bob Marley Birthday Dinner on February 6th,
Africa Unite/Smile Jamaica Youth Symposium
The University of the West Indies Global Reggae Conference
Reggae Film Festival
Football match between the Reggae Boyz and Costa Rica
Bob Marley Photographic Exhibition
A star-studded Reggae Academy Awards honouring outstanding music industry personalities and “Africa Unite - Smile Jamaica” concert being hosted by Rita Marley and the Bob Marley Foundation.
Plans are in the making to have Reggae Month and the Reggae Academy Awards celebrated and endorsed event by UNESCO.This positive move can only lead to bigger and better things. I am hoping that all this could be a platform or springboard to help to bring back more positive music to the airwaves and dancehalls.
Woman suffers seizures listening to Sean Paul’s Music.
I know this sounds like a very bad tabloid headline but I couldn’t resist.Stace Gayle a 25 year old customer service employed at a bank in Alberta, Canada suffered seizures as she listened to Reggae superstar Sean Paul’s Music. She suffered from as much as 18 seizures a day despite being treated for them.
Her suspicions were confirmed on a visit to the Long Island medical center last February, when she played Paul’s hit “Temperature” on her iPod for doctors. This triggered three seizures. So much for ” One good thing about music .. when it hits you feel no pain” Maybe she never heard Bob Marley’s Trench Town Rock.
Anyway this provided the perfect research opportunity for surgeons. The surgeons performed two operations which resulted in them removing the parts of her brain that caused the seizures.
Is that the good side of reggae or the bad side? Reminds me of a Danny Phantom cartoon where a ghost uses music to control humans. ( yeah I watch cartoons) Anyway I digress. Powerful music either way you take it.
I hope no one else ends up with her condition … that could be bad for the music’s reputation.
Amy Winehouse moving from Rehab to Jamrock?
Once again reggae music has sparked the interest of another mega star. Singer, Amy Winehouse has revealed that she might visit Jamaica before beginning her third album. (I find it interesting that a singer with surname Winehouse had a big hit with a song called REHAB. Hmmm very interesting)
She apparently is a huge fan of the late Bob Marley -and plans to travel to Jamaica to work with his Grammy award winning son (my favorite young Marley) the awesome Damian “Junior Gong”Marley on the follow-up to her critically acclaimed ‘Back to Black’ .I would love to hear how she goes from Rehab to “Jamrock“.
Well thats all for now .
Peace and Love
Duane 
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