JAN 2021 #08.01

M A G A Z I N E featuring ROOTS. MAD CHRONICLE PROFESSOR ROCK. RESPECT. BLACK ARTISTS FUND

EVAFLOW RELEASES. NICENESS RAS ATTITUDE NICK SEFAKIS REMIX. DAVID CAIROL DUBMATIX NGA HAN & THE HI-FLYERS WAR, PEACE & DUB IRIEMAG.COM MERCH. The ‘I’fficial IRIE Hoodie

Available at https://www.iriemag.com/apparel/ ISSUE #08.01 / JANUARY 2021 “ Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Nicholas ‘Nico’ Da Silva aka ZOOLOOK Founder/Editor in Chief, IRIE

IRIEMAG.COM IRIE. EDITOR’S NOTE WELCOME JANUARY 2021 Yes, I! Our January 2021 edition of IRIE™ is here celebrating Volume 8 + Number 1 40 years of Dub with the one and only, ! FOLLOW Use your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch In our RESPECT feature, we welcome artists Niceness, @IrieMag to follow IRIE on Apple News. Evaflow, David Carol, Nick Sefakis, Nga Han & The Hi-Flyers, EDITOR + ART DIRECTOR + PUBLISHER and Junior Kelly. Nicholas Da Silva Our ROOTS feature previews Dread & Alive: Duppy Conqueror, [email protected]

the one-shot comic book series from ZOOLOOK, which is now ADVERTISING + MARKETING + IRIE PR available for pre-order, while our ROCK feature introduces Michelle Monreal Black Artists Fund (BAF), whose goal is to close the gap that [email protected] Black artists face in beginning and sustaining their art careers. CUSTOMER SERVICE Our RELEASES feature presents Ras Attitude and his latest IRIE™ Magazine single, ‘Warrior Status’, while our REMIX feature presents an P.O. Box 640806 IRIE collaboration with Dubmatix... ‘War, Peace and Dub’... the San Francisco, CA 94164 REMIX Contest! +1 415 729 4709 [email protected] As always, we thank you for supporting Reggae music! IRIE PR IRIE iriemag.com/irie-pr PUBLISHER SUBMISSIONS www.zoolook.com ON THE COVER: PHOTOGRAPHY BY: iriemag.com/submissions

MAD PROFESSOR Richard Aldred SUBSCRIPTIONS IRIEMAG.COM 40 YEARS OF DUB @richardaldred iriemag.com/subscribe

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ROOTS. ROCK. REGGAE.

Dread & Alive Black Artists Fund Mad Professor

Duppy Conqueror Amplifying Black Artists 40 Years of Dub

RESPECT. RELEASES. REMIX.

Kindah IRIE on Spotify - January 2021 Dubmatix

Niceness Ras Attitude - Warrior Status War, Peace & Dub IRIEMAG.COM JAM

ROOTS. DREAD & ALIVE DUPPY CONQUEROR ROOTS. DREAD & ALIVE DUPPY CONQUEROR

On February 6, 2021, ZOOLOOK will officially release the long-awaited Dread & Alive: Duppy Conqueror, a one-shot comic book issue to the masses. Originally written as a short story, the one-shot comic book FOLLOW chronicles Philip’s life as a Duppy Conqueror. ZOOLOOK A direct descendant of the Jamaican Maroons, Philip’s lineage traces back to the Ashanti people of the Gold Coast of Africa, present-day Ghana.

Featured Single The Cultural Anthropologist is a local legend in the rural areas on ’s island. When darkness falls, he is often called upon to perform a Duppy Conqueror’s duties and cast out evil spirits. The locals refer to him as ‘fo-yeyed’ (four-eyed).

Like his son, Drew, Philip McIntosh was gifted with second sight. When he came into the world, he was born with a caul over his face.

Many people believe that a child born this way possesses the extraordinary power to see into the spirit world. Such a child not only can see spirits but can also converse with them. Trod January 6, 2019 Philip’s gift (and curse) earned him the name Duppy Conqueror. For Philip, benevolent and malevolent

WEBSITE spirits, including the spirits of the dead, continuously inhabited his world. dreadandalive.com Philip’s use of Myal focused on the connection between humans and the spirit world. But like the Obeah Man, he also operated in the same sphere of spiritual and herbal knowledge.

IRIEMAG.COM SYNOPSIS

Seven-year-old Drew McIntosh is awaken by a late-night call to his famous father, local legend and Duppy Conqueror, Philip McIntosh.

A young girl named Brandy is being FOLLOW held captive by a malicious duppy and ZOOLOOK Philip McIntosh is the only one who can save her.

Release Date: February 6, 2021 Imprint: ComiXstand Format: Full Color, 32 pages; One Shot (includes mp3 and 18 x 12 Foldout Poster) Genre: Supernatural Horror ISBN: 978-0-9830637-8-0

Cover Price: $10.00

IRIE invites you to pre-order your copy of Dread & Alive: Duppy Conqueror from our MERCH store today. WEBSITE dreadandalive.com

IRIEMAG.COM USA

ROCK. BLACK ARTISTS FUND AMPLIFYING BLACK ARTISTS IRIEMAG.COM ROCK. BLACK ARTISTS FUND AMPLIFYING BLACK ARTISTS

The Black Artists Fund was started by Sacramento Black creatives to address inequity in arts funding. Through micro and small grant-giving, Black Artists Fund’s goal is to close the gap that Black artists face DONATE in beginning and sustaining their art careers. Black Artists Fund With funding, Black artists can expound on their creative practice with new ideas, larger-scale works, innovative experimentation, community projects, and overall, an increased capacity to produce culturally relevant work.

Donations are collected from patrons of the arts, organizations, philanthropists, collectors, and anyone else that understands the value in establishing and sustaining an environment for Black creative production.

Black Artists Fund was launched by Faith McKinnie, a local independent art collector and curator on June 11, 2020 with an initial goal of $10,000. Within a few days, the fund exceeded its goal and has received over $25,000 in donations from over 250 individuals.

As the founding director of Black Artists Fund, Faith’s work is rooted in the prioritization and centering of artists from the margins. As a community engagement coordinator at Crocker Art Museum, an art consultant, independent curator, and patron, she believes in the transformative power of diverse, WEBSITE equitable, accessible, and inclusive art. blackartistsfund.org On December 4, 2020, Black Artists Fund awarded $22,000 to 26 Black artists in its second round of funding. See the full list of Winter 2020 Grantees: https://www.blackartistsfund.org/winter2020grantees

IRIEMAG.COM LIST OF GRANTS

Sower $2,000+ aims to support Sacramento-based Black artists whose work exhibits exceptional power and potential and help further their artistic practice, including developing new ideas, starting a new project, and/or completing an existing project.

Cultivation $750-$1,000 aims to support Sacramento-based Black artists who demonstrate exceptional FOLLOW creative ability and potential with marketing/publicity costs, supplies/materials needed for the execution Black Artists Fund of a project and direct administrative expenses.

Branch $500 aims to support Black artists based outside Sacramento who demonstrate exceptional creative ability and potential with marketing/publicity costs, supplies/materials needed for the execution of a project and direct administrative expenses.

Seed (up to $500) aims to support Sacramento-based Black artists at an early stage of their career development and continue their important work.

Germination $100 aims to support Sacramento-based Black youth artists under the age of 18 develop new work or complete an existing art project.

IRIE Magazine supports Black Artists Fund and encourages fine, applied, and creative artists using all mediums to apply. IRIE also invites you to support Black Artists Fund with a donation by visiting their GoFundMe page at: https://www.gofundme.com/f/blackartistsfund

WEBSITE blackartistsfund.org FOLLOW BLACK ARTISTS FUND

IRIEMAG.COM MERCH. ‘I’fficial Dread & Alive Logo Tee

Available at https://www.iriemag.com/dread-and-alive/ GBR

REGGAE. MAD PROFESSOR 40 YEARS OF DUB IRIEMAG.COM REGGAE. MAD PROFESSOR 40 YEARS OF DUB Photography by: Richard Aldred So, just how sane is the Mad Professor? On the content of his character and the results of his recordings, he is one of the sanest record producers. To understand the sanity of Mad Professor, we have to go back to FOLLOW his early childhood. Mad Professor

Neil Joseph Stephen Fraser (1955) was born in , a small country in the northern part of South America. As a child, there wasn’t’ much technology around. The only thing in his house with technology Featured Album was a light bulb and a radio.

One day Neil asked his mother, “how does the light bulb work?” She said she didn’t know and that he should go to the library and get a book, which he did. Neil went to the library and got a book. He then asked her what is the man doing inside the radio? She said there’s no man inside the radio. Neil replied, yes, there is. Sometimes he talks, and sometimes he sings. She said, “Look, there’s no man in the radio.”

So one day, when she went to work, Neil took a screwdriver and went to the back of the radio and opened it up and said, “Oh, she was right. There’s no man in the radio.” Instead, there were resistors, capacitors and 40 Years of Dub dials, and all sorts of things. When she returned home, the back was still off the radio, so she told him to go October 15, 2020 to the library and learn about the radio. So Neil went to the library and got a book, and he taught himself WEBSITE electronics and built a radio before the age of 11. ariwa.com Neil would earn his nickname, Mad Professor, from his friends at school, amazed by the experiments he carried out as a youth. You could say that his curiosity as a child set him on a path to Dub Madness! IRIEMAG.COM Having built a radio and telephone system at the age of 10 years, it was no surprise that his interest and subsequent career in electronics, along with a love of Motown, Philadelphia International, Treasure Isle, and music of all types, propelled him onward.

At the age of thirteen, Mad Professor moved to England to live with his father. He discovered that his father had a fancy for electronics that he didn’t know when he was in Guyana.

FOLLOW His father had various books on electronics. Mad Professor was able to build more complicated things and Mad Professor approach electronics more professionally.

In the early Eighties, Mad Professor built his own mixing desk and launched Mad Professor along with the Ariwa Studio/ label from his front room in Thornton Heath. Featured Album Mad Professor had no idea he was going to become anything in Dub. He was interested in music and interested in recording. Dub, he thought, was the future. He thought it was futuristic. There was nothing like Dub. In his words:

“If you go back to 1970, there was basically a handful of musical genres. Literally a handful. On one side, you had soul music, which would have encompass Motown, your James Brown kind of thing. You had the word funk just coming in, which was like a more kind of dancing version of soul, you know. On the reggae side you just had reggae, which evolved basically from , then it became rock steady in the late 60’s. Dub Me Crazy December 31, 1981 Then it became reggae by 1969.

WEBSITE So basically, reggae was the cover name that most of us as Caribbean kids in England were into. Reggae in those days, the popular artists were Maytals, the Melodians, and John Holt. Just about that time, the talk- ariwa.com ers came about… people like U-Roy. U Roy ended up with like three hit songs in Jamaica. And in those days, whatever hit in Jamaica would naturally reflect and become popular in England. By the end of the 1970s,

IRIEMAG.COM you had U-Roy with hits like ‘Version Galore,’ Wear you to the Ball,’ and “We can never get away.’ “These were the first records where the art- ists were actually talking. Like U-Roy would be saying, ‘Version Galore’. And he would be chatting as opposed to singing. The guys in the background like John Holt and the Para- gons or the Melodians would be singing like, “You will never getaway. You will never get- FOLLOW away, I hear them say you don’t love, you don’t Mad Professor care for me, not anymore. And then U-Roy would come in saying, “Well right on!, huh!”

This was the new exciting thing for us kids at Featured Album this time. This was all we wanted to here. That was the genre.”

“So what happen next was the people who made the records, the producer, would have the song on the A-side and then on the B side, there would be a version with just instru- ments; the A-side without vocals. What hap- Dubbing with Anansi pen after that, they took it one step further. November 16, 2014 Instead of just having an instrument version, WEBSITE the started to drop out part of the version. And this is the beginning of Dub. Where they ariwa.com had the going. What we use to call bass and drums.” IRIEMAG.COM “And it’s just literally bass and drum. That’s what it was. No rhythm guitar. No horns, nothing. And then, obviously when Tubby started to play, he started to put some echo in. And this is how dub began. By 1971, this was the new exciting format. You never heard anything like that before. And in a dance, it would give you a lot of excitement and I was drawn to that.”

Mad Professor’s early works included sessions with Ruts DC, Reggae Regulars, Merger, Jimmy Lindsay, , Johnny Clarke, and many more international artists. FOLLOW Mad Professor DUB ME CRAZY, the first in a 12 part series of albums, became his beacon for the label. With an episode releasing every year, the titles all told a different story.

Beyond the Realms of dub – Dub me crazy Pt2, The African Connection – Dub me crazy Pt3, and Dub me Featured Album crazy Pt 7 – Adventures of a dub sampler.

Mad Professor’s use of distinct variation and surprising sound effects were unique for this time. His Dub creations, and the cool sound and clarity of his mixing, encouraged many artists to the growing label.

By the mid - Eighties, the studio / label moved from Peckham’s launch base to Whitehorse Lane, South Norwood, where it is still located. There, he incorporated remix projects for , 400 Blows, Beats International (Lindy Layton), Sade, and Brilliant.

No Protection A heavy schedule of touring Germany, Holland, France, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, Austria, Italy, February 17, 1995 Yugoslavia, USA, Canada, and Japan, while still managing to produce the various artists’ projects, was an enormous workload. The label by then had a healthy 104 albums with more in the infancy stage WEBSITE of planning. ariwa.com By the mid-Nineties, Mad Professor’s profile increased to legendary status, after remixing ’s second album, ‘Protection’. ‘No Protection’ was instantly received by all corners of the globe, IRIEMAG.COM benefiting from Virgin / EMI international launch pad. Professor’s Dub tours increased to be a significant part of his schedule, along with further remixes which include: Clementine, Tracy Spencer, The Boom, Danny Red, , , Rancid, KLF, , Cidade Negra, (Jane’s Addiction) along with the Massive Attack dub extravaganza all benefiting from the Mad Professor touch.

Production work for various major labels included: Sony Music, EMI, Arista, Warner Brothers, Capitol Record, and Virgin Records. FOLLOW In 1998 the Ariwa record catalog contained over 155 titles, including over 30 dub albums from Mad Mad Professor Professor, three albums from U-Roy including the classic True Born African, seven albums from the Upsetter, Lee Scratch Perry, and many classic albums, including Country Life - Sandra Cross,

If I gave my heart - John Mclean, Black with Sugar – Kofi. Featured Album By the end of the Nineties, Mad Professor’s Ariwa label gained international notoriety in many territories throughout the world. Mainly known for its Dub, roots, and Techno/drum and bass catalog.

The turn of the century saw new releases from Lee Scratch Perry – Techno Party, – Global Messenger, Mad Professor – Trix in the mix.

In 2004 Mad Professor worked with Sly & Robbie at Ariwa, where the Taxi gang laid down their versions of Ariwa rhythms; over 100 rhythms were recorded. An album titled ‘The Dub Revolutionary’, was released by The Dub Revolutionary Sanctuary Records owned Trojan Label. February 23, 2004

Some of those rhythms also formed the backbone for the next album from From the Roots. WEBSITE Also released by Trojan, this is Horace’s third album for Ariwa Sounds. ariwa.com Around this time, Mad Prof collaborated with Mafia & Fluxy to produce Dub and 2 Sci-Fi Dub albums. From Mars with Dub followed by A new galaxy of Dub. IRIEMAG.COM By 2005 the Ariwa catalog passed the 200 figure, bumped up by new albums from Max Romeo, U-Roy, and young protégée Joe Ariwa.

Fresh demand for the dub show has taken the Ariwa Sound to many far-flung places. In 2003 Mad Profes- sor was invited to play at the Greenpeace festival in Manáus, Brazil.

Since then, Mad Professor has become an annual visitor to South America, playing Argentina, Chile, and FOLLOW Venezuela. He’s also performed in Australia, New Zealand, Estonia, and Portugal. Mad Professor In 2005 the dub show played Seoul in Korea, driving several hundreds of fans crazy to the warbler sounds. Bangkok in Thailand in 2006 and Goa in India in 2007, courtesy of the Big Chill. The Mad Traveler also played Dakar, courtesy of the Senegalese govt. Mad Professor is also involved in the Back to Africa Festival, an annual celebration in the Gambia, committed to the positive movement of descendants of Africans back to Africa.

40 years later and Mad Professor is still one of the leading figures in Dub. A true pioneer and technician in the art of Dub, his contribution has inspired the development of Dub for the next generation. When asked about Analog Dub versus Digital Dub, Mad Professor had this to say:

“I’m a person of the old school. My studio is pretty much an Analog studio, but we do have a digital room to record digitally. I’m from the old analog school. I still have tape machines. I’m not that bothered about people who want to use the latest things because it’s not the matter of the latest technology; it’s how creative the thing is used. I think to do Dub, it is in its most creative form when done analogically.” WEBSITE Maaad Love & Respect! ariwa.com

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT.

Niceness Evaflow David Cairol

United States Jamaica France

Nick Sefakis Nga Han & The Hi-Flyers Junior Kelly

United States Belgium Jamaica IRIEMAG.COM NICENESS USA

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. NICENESS REALIZE Photography by: Aurelie Sledgers Hailing from Telluride, Colorado, Niceness is rooted in island reggae’s traditional sounds, seamlessly integrating elements of soul, funk, Latin, and hip-hop while staying true to their authentic reggae vibes. FOLLOW A familial gathering of vibrantly diverse personalities rallying around personal, socio-political, and Niceness environmental issues. Its ranks include activists, an organic farmer, a permaculture designer, a Buddhist bodybuilder champ, a masseuse, a music teacher, adventurers, herb connoisseurs, an arborist entrepreneur, and a Doctor of Psychology. Featured Album The Niceness band consists of frontwoman and songwriter Koral Delatierra; drummer and vocalist Michael ‘Mikey G.’ Gomberg; guitarist and vocalist Dustin Wilson; keyboardist and vocalist David ‘Bassie’ Christeson; bassists Mike Enriquez; percussionist Jonathon ‘Johnny B’ Barfield; alto sax player John White and tenor sax player Danny D’Alessandro. Together, this collective is more than a band; it’s a state of mind. Mikey G., who coined the group’s moniker, explains: “Niceness is a colloquial outburst that translates to ‘Right On!,’ ‘Sweet!’ or, as Jamaicans exclaim, ‘Irie!’. The name is a proclamation of jubilance.”

For their new record, REALIZE, the band made a trip to Prairie Sun Studios in California to record to 2" tape. Realize Flying in master reggae engineer Jim Fox from Lion and Fox Recording in DC, they spent ten days record- February 12, 2021 ing their upcoming album. The analog warmth and the magic of the live capture in the studio give a truly WEBSITE authentic and rich sound. REALIZE, set to be released on all streaming platforms on February 12th, 2021, nicenessband.com features gems like the empowering and reflective Jewels‘ ;’ ‘Better Than You Know’, which features dazzling horn and vocal harmonies, and ‘La Hora’, a rousing reggae tribute to Koral’s love of Latin culture. Of the latter, Koral says: “The hour has arrived when we will rise to say enough is enough, we will be the change.” IRIEMAG.COM EVAFLOW JAM

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. EVAFLOW R.O.A.R - RISE OF A RENAISSANCE

Evaflow is a recording artist and music producer from the bustling town of Santa Cruz, Jamaica. As Jamaican music continues to evolve, Evaflow plays an instrumental role in pushing the boundaries of BUY/STREAM what’s traditionally expected from the island’s music industry. He refers to his eclectic fusion of Reggae, Evaflow Hip-Hop, and Dancehall music as Dub-Hop and has been hailed by Reggae superstar Protoje as “one of the illest lyricists I ever hear in my life”.

Evaflow’s latest production is the innovative 3-track project, R.O.A.R. - Rise Of A Renaissance - Sky Tape Featured EP (Vol. 1). Released on his independent label SkyStarter Creative, R.O.A.R. introduces Evaflow’s talents as a producer, specifically on the Afrohall anthem Goodaz (co-produced by Paris La Mont) and the psychedelically funky Gorilla Glue.

Goodaz became a fan favorite before its release after multiple previews and performances of the track Live on Instagram, which received rave reviews and a constant request for its release. In addition to Gorilla Glue and Goodaz is Wake Up, an introspective lofi chill-hop jam, produced by J.U.N.O. award-winning producer Jay Hodgson (part of the Dazed Beathead Collective), which reveals the project’s most R.O.A.R. sentimental moments. December 7, 2020

“I am really excited about sharing this project. I feel like it shows three different sides to me and can give WEBSITE the audience a great idea about where I’m coming from, what I’ve been through, and where I’m going. evaflowmusic.com Because of the heaviness and vulnerability in Gorilla Glue and Wake Up, I wanted to balance that energy out with something people can dance to and just fulljoy themselves, hence, Good. Rise Of A Renaissance is the rise of the full manifestation of my creative legacy. It’s definitely, to be continued.” IRIEMAG.COM DAVID CAIROL FRA

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. DAVID CAIROL MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE IRIE is blessed to welcome back reggae artist David Cairol. As you may have seen on social media, David Cairol has just unveiled the second part of the cultural exchange program he set up between Jamaican and BUY/STREAM French schools, with the music video of ‘Message in a bottle’ (Bouteille à la Mer in french). David Cairol The concept of this program is simple. Two colleges choose one theme together, write a song, compose the melody, and interpret the title. French students write their parts in English, and the Jamaican students write in French. This year, Campion College in Kingston, Jamaica, and Lucie Aubrac College in Linxe, France, took Featured Video up the challenge.

After ‘One People’ and its humanist message last year (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5eKIen6Hdw), it is by throwing this ‘Bouteille à la Mer’ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ8K_Rfbkek) that the students tell us about ecology and the preservation of nature.

This sensitive subject is carried loud and clear by children aged 13 and 15 who will constitute the future and tomorrow’s people. Future talking for the future... Message In A Bottle The song was recorded at Tuff Gong Studio in Kingston and the famous french studio Le Manoir in Leon, both December 23, 2020 partners to this project. WEBSITE Some great artists also joined the project: Grammy award winner Matthieu Bost (who produced Skanking davidcairol.com sweet for Chronixx and many other hits from , etc...) and talented french percussion- ist Nicodrum. Ricky Chaplin also offered one of his nice freestyles to the students (behind the scene).”

IRIEMAG.COM NICK SEFAKIS USA

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. NICK SEFAKIS NICK SEFAKIS MEETS ELLIOT MARTIN

Nick Sefakis is known for his role as guitarist and vocalist as part of the reggae band Iya Terra.

Nick joined Iya Terra in 2014 and, as they gained popularity, he quickly became known as a unique FOLLOW presence in the modern reggae world with his powerful voice and tasty guitar arrangements. Nick Sefakis

He also honed in on his skills as a multi-instrumentalist in the production realm, as he has self-produced all his works thus far. Featured EP The year 2020 has been rough for most of the world; however, Nick Sefakis has managed to keep himself busy with his love, music.

On February 20, 2020, Nick Sefakis released his first full-length album as a solo-artist titled ‘Foundation.’ The 10-track release was two years in the making for this accomplished roots reggae artist. This ambitious release featured three unique song collaborations; ‘Lion Order’ featuring Elliot Martin of John Brown’s Body; ‘Don’t Want Conscious’ featuring Rik Jam from Kingston, Jamaica; and ‘Live Free’ featuring David Yun of Eureka Sound. Nick Sefakis Meets Elliot Martin October 27, 2020 Nick followed up his debut album release with ‘Foundation in Dub’ on August 6, 2020.

His latest music project is the EP titled ‘Nick Sefakis meets Elliot Martin,’ featuring six solid roots reggae WEBSITE tracks. The EP is simply IRIE, and the chemistry between Nick Sefakis and Elliot Martin makes you crave nicksefakismusic.com more. Simply put, ‘Nick Sefakis meets Elliot Martin’ is proof that Nick Sefakis is not only a wordsmith but a serious roots-reggae musician on a mission to uplift us all with his music in our time of need. Respect! IRIEMAG.COM NGA HAN & THE HI-FLYERS BEL

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. NGA HAN & THE HI-FLYERS EMERGENCE

Meet Nga Han & The Hi Flyers... Nga Han is a true roots revivalist born in St. Ann, in the Green Hill district of Jamaica. Inspired by stories such as Canterbury Tales, his love for writing poetry from a young FOLLOW age translated into songwriting. Kingston Echo is a Belgian producer who has been in love with Jamaican Nga Han & The Hi-Flyers music ever since he was a kid. This music project is the result of toying about with the recording gear he had gathered to record his bands with. In Kingston Echo’s words, “I’ve tried to stay true to the raw feel of the vintage Jamaican recordings I love so much. This means that these recordings are fully analog and far from perfect. I have tried to put as much heart in there as I could, though.” Featured Album

Their album, ‘Emergence’, was made the old fashioned way in more than one respect. It was the result of Nga Han living with Kingston Echo for three months during the summer of 2019. After initially collaborating on the single ‘Way Out’, they both liked the result so much that plans for a full length album were made. Kingston Echo and Nga Han performed at 2019 together, which is Europe’s oldest (and one of the biggest) reggae festival.

Subsequently, work on the ‘Emergence’ album started with the in-house studio band ‘The Hi-Flyers’. This Emergence record was the result of the producer, musicians and singer spending lots of time together hanging out, October 19, 2020 sharing dinner, jamming, reasoning, joking and writing. This obviously results in a completely different WEBSITE vibe than the long-distance way a lot of collaborations take shape nowadays. Often, you have producers and musicians building and vocalists sending in their vocals by email, in some cases without ever kingstonecho.bandcamp.com meeting each other.

IRIEMAG.COM JUNIOR KELLY JAM

IRIEMAG.COM RESPECT. JUNIOR KELLY EVERYTHING Junior Kelly was born Keith Morgan on September 23, 1970, the youngest of five children, and grew up in the Waltham Park area of Kingston, Jamaica. Kelly was part of a musical family; both his father and FOLLOW grandfather played banjo, and his mother sang at their local church. Junior Kelly Although the family was of limited means, Kelly later recalled that the family’s deep love for one another kept them going through hard times. Kelly explained that despite frequently having to do without, the family stayed happy “because we knew we had each other to lean on.” Featured Single Big Feet Records is proud to present ‘Everything’, the newest hit song from the great Jamaican artist, Ju- nior Kelly. ‘Everything’ is truly a global song with an international message.

The was composed in NorCal, Junior Kelly sang vocals in Kingston, Jamaica, and Bommi Tommi mixed it in Helsinki, Finland.

‘Everything’ has traveled over 8600 miles to get written, recorded, and mixed. This song has more mileage points than most of us have. Everything IRIE invites you to enjoy ‘Everything’ and come listen to the many fine artists at bigfeetrecords.com. January 15, 2021

WEBSITE

bigfeetrecords.com

IRIEMAG.COM VIR

RELEASES. IRIE ON SPOTIFY - JANUARY 2021 RAS ATTITUDE - WARRIOR STATUS IRIEMAG.COM RELEASES. IRIE SPOTIFY PLAYLIST IRIE’s January 2021 edition of RELEASES is here featuring new reggae music from Ras Attitude (cover) along with trax from Mad Professor, Christos DC, Niceness, Evaflow, Nga Han + The Hi-Flyers, David Cairol, Junior Kelly, Nick Sefakis + Elliot Martin (John Brown’s Body), Dubmatix, Taiwan MC, and Dubalizer + Pamelloza.

FOLLOW IRIE Playlist

Featured Release Niceness Evaflow Nga Han + The Hi-Flyers

Ras Attitude David Cairol Junior Kelly Nick Sefakis + Elliot Martin RAS ATTITUDE January 2021

FOLLOW

IRIE on Spotify

Mad Professor Christos DC Dubmatix Taiwan MC Pamelloza + Dubalizer

IRIEMAG.COM CAN

REMIX. DUBMATIX WAR, PEACE & DUB IRIEMAG.COM REMIX. DUBMATIX WAR, PEACE & DUB FT RASTA REUBEN (2021)

IRIE is proud to welcome back our family member, Dubmatix, the award-winning Canadian composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and seven-time JUNO Award winner and nominee. The Toronto-born FOLLOW Dubmatix is a recording machine. From his debut release Champion Sound Clash in 2004, Dubmatix Dubmatix has produced and recorded over 500 releases (Albums, EPs, Dubs, Remixes).

Over the years, Dubmatix has managed to carve out a massive following on the international stage. He’s also worked with the Who’s Who of reggae legends, including: , Freddie McGregor, Pinchers, Featured Remix , Willi Williams, , , Turbulence, Eek-A-Mouse, Horace Andy, Linval Thompson, Mykal Rose, Wayne Smith, Luciano, U Roy, Cornell Campbell, The Mighty Diamonds, Dennis Alcapone, Prince Alla, Lone Ranger and dozens more.

For 2021, Dubmatix has teamed up with IRIE to present his REMIX Contest… War, Peace & Dub ft Rasta Reuben (2021).

“This track goes back to my very first song on his first release,Champion ‘ Sound Clash’ in 2004. I’m making the original stems plus a few newly added ones available for the first time for you to remix, dub, mashup, War, Peace & Dub ft Rasta Reuben (2021) and twist up. IRIE and I will be selecting the top tracks to form a release to share with my subscribers on

Reggae-Loops.com , Dubmatix.com, and my network of radio, soundsystems, djs and media around the WEBSITE world.” - DUBMATIX dubmatix.com

IRIE invites you to head on over to Reggae Loops at https://reggae-loops.com/remix today to download the STEMS. The deadline for submissions is Jan 31, 2021. Tracks will be selected by Feb 14, 2021. IRIEMAG.COM

We hope you enjoyed this issue of IRIE. On behalf of everyone at IRIE, we want to thank you, our loyal readers, who come to our site to read/ download IRIE every month. We thank you for your continual support. Make sure to stay connected with IRIE by following us (@iriemag) on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, and Snapchat!

One Love, Always! IRIE

IRIEMAG.COM