Over three thousand loyal reggae fans braved -15F conditions in Toronto, Canada, last Friday to experience first-hand, Morgan Heritage live in performance at the upscale Sound Academy.
Amid the frigid temperature, music lovers found a warm oasis, Continue reading
FIFTEEN years is a lot of time to be absent from the music business. However, Canadian dancehall artiste Snow is not perturbed. He is in Jamaica for two weeks to kick-start his career and promote his single Shame.
“Everywhere I went in the Jamaican communities in Toronto, people were saying ‘Snow, you got come down’. So I just said ‘lemme get focused and get serious’. So I’m here, I hope to do some recordings… I would love to work with Ninja Man. I’m here to catch a vibe again,” he said.
Snow, 45, arrived in the island on Monday. His first stop was the Jamaica Observer office on Beechwood Avenue in St Andrew. Accompanying him was veteran deejay Ninja Man.
Released in the last quarter of 2014, Shame is a collab effort with former Black Uhuru singer Mykal Rose. The track is produced by Florida-based Kent Jones and Cool & Dre.
“Shame is about where I was in my life emotionally,” he said.
Snow (given name Darrin Kenneth O’Brien) said his disappearance from the ‘game’ was due to personal challenges.
“I was in trouble with the law. They threw me out of a lot of countries… they threw me out of America. They threw me out of Japan. I was also mourning the loss of my wife who passed away with cancer,” he said.
He said not being able to travel to America since 1993 negatively affected his career.
“The Internet was not as big as it was today and America was the biggest market for dancehall. They were not playing my songs as they would have if I was touring. That really hurt my career,” he said.
With all that behind him and now armed with a US visa, Snow said he is ready to reclaim his place among dancehall greats.
In 1993, he scored big with Informer. The single peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. A second single, Girl I’ve Been Hurt, reached Number 19 on the Hot 100. Two years later, he also scored big with Anything For You, which featured several local acts including Nadine Sutherland, Buju Banton, Beenie Man and Terror Fabulous.
Snow said he is pleased with the growth of reggae acts in Canada, especially the group Magic!
“Magic! is great. I love them. It doesn’t matter where you’re from. If you do it from the heart, it’s good enough for me,” he said.
The Toronto-based group Magic! scored big last year with their debut single Rude. The group earned a spot on the annual Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival held at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium late last month. Snow said he is a fan of reggae singers Gyptian and Jah Cure.
“I’m back. Just listen out,” he said.
The Skin by HAMAFilms will make history this week by becoming the first feature film from Antigua and Barbuda to be screened in the United Kingdom, when it premieres on Thursday.
Filmed on location in Antigua and Barbuda, The Skin, Continue reading
Many persons have no clue about what they want to do with their lives when they enter that first class, on that first day of University. As a matter of fact, most persons would agree that the field that they spent 3-6 years Continue reading
Rupert Clarke (born September 10, 1975), best known by his stage name Rupee, is a soca musician from Barbados.He was born in military barracks in Germany to a German mother and a Bajan father, who was serving in the British armed forces at the time. He later migrated to Barbados.
Rupee emerged on the local soca scene after being invited to join the then popular Bajan band, Coalishun, along with singers like Terencia Coward-“TC” and Adrian Clarke in 1997. Though initially more dancehall oriented, Rupee would find Continue reading
We celebrated another Grenada Day on August 23, 2014, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; similar to how Grenadians in New York have their own celebration. However, even though there is no calypso and soca monarch competitions for Grenadian artistes based in Toronto, they are aware of the fact that they are getting the recognition and respect from the organisers of the event. On the other, it is unfair for the organisers to be labeling them as local artistes.
It is very important for the organisers to know that they are disrespecting those Grenadians artistes in Toronto. The organisers must come to their senses and suppose to know that our artistes in Toronto are not begging them to perform in this cultural annual event, as they tend to believe they are doing those artistes a favour. If Grenada Day in Toronto is a pure Grenada cultural event, therefore, Toronto-based Grenadian artistes must be Continue reading
Caribbean Airlines has launched its “Spring into Vacation” campaign and WINAIR is offering airfare specials to Dominica for Jazz ‘n Creole 2014.Passengers that travel on Caribbean Airlines Mondays through Thursdays from May 9 through June15 can benefit from 10% discount to any of their favourite destinations. Frequent flyers of Caribbean Miles and 7th Heaven rewards who book their flights to Fort Lauderdale between Trinidad and Jamaica earn double miles on each sector of their trip, plus use 30% fewer miles from Trinidad or Kingston to Toronto, Fort Lauderdale and London between May 9 and June 8.
“Whether it’s for a holiday, getaway or well-deserved break, travelling outside of the traditional summer period has its benefits. Some customers prefer the cooler weather or simply have said it’s the most convenient time to pamper themselves and take a break. With this in mind, we are offering an Endless Summer for 2014 that takes the hassle out of travel,” said Alicia Cabrera, Caribbean Airlines senior marketing manager.
Meanwhile, jazz and Creole music enthusiasts from St Maarten, Guadeloupe and the rest of with Caribbean within the WINAIR network can now take advantage of airfare specials for Dominica’s Jazz ‘n Creole 2014.
WINAIR has partnered with Discover Dominica Authority as the carrier of choice for this year’s star-studded production, which runs from Sunday June 1 through the main stage production on Sunday June 8.
WINAIR flies to Dominica on four days weekly — Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Source: Regional airlines launch fare sales
Dominican, Jennifer Titre, has captured the Nail Technician of the Year Award in Toronto, Canada at a ceremony held on April 5.The Annual Mirror Award is held each year in Toronto for professionals in the hairstyling, makeup and nails industry.Additionally, Titre took home the Certificate of Honour for Excellence in her field and for creative intelligence and pursuit of professional development. She said as a woman of color she is elated to be honoured in a professional and sophisticated award gala. “I was so elated and at the same time shocked, Continue reading
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