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A massive 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on Saturday morning, killing hundreds of people and shaking buildings from the neighboring Dominican Republic to Jamaica and Cuba. Saturday's quake was stronger, though centered farther from the capital, than the devastating 2010 temblor that killed more than 220,000, prompting foreign governments and aid agencies to prepare for large numbers of dead, wounded and homeless. Officials and witnesses reported heavy damage and fatalities dozens of miles from the epicenter, 7.4 miles northeast of Saint-Louis du Sud, where the quake struck at 8:29 a.m. The disaster struck about a month after the assassination of the president, leaving a hobbled interim government in charge of a country so...

When Robyn Fenty, known to the world as Rihanna, launched Fenty Beauty in 2017, I doubt she knew the beauty line would help her enter one of the world’s most exclusive ranks: Billionaire. Rihanna is now worth $1.7 billion, Forbes estimates—making her the wealthiest female musician in the world and second only to Oprah Winfrey as the richest female entertainer. But it’s not her music that’s made her so wealthy. The bulk of her fortune (an estimated $1.4 billion) comes from the value of Fenty Beauty, of which Forbes can now confirm she owns 50%. Much of the rest lies in her stake in her lingerie company, Savage x Fenty, worth an estimated $270 million, and her earnings from her career as a chart-topping musician and actress.

Jamaica has put a price tag on slavery and has sent the British government the bill. State officials of the Caribbean nation said they’re asking Great Britain to pay $10.6 billion (USD) in reparations. The former British colony served as the center of the slave trade with Africans kidnapped, enslaved and forced to work on plantations which produced sugar cane, bananas and other products. That free and inhumane labor greatly enriched the slave owners. According to the National Library of Jamaica, about 600,000 Africans landed in Jamaica during the slave trade. Britain prohibited trade in slaves in its empire in 1807 but did not formally abolish the practice of slavery until 1834. To compensate slave owners, the British government took...

Elaine Thompson-Herah defended her 2016 gold medal with an Olympic record and personal best of 10.61 seconds, and assumed the title of world's fastest woman alive. Thompson-Herah's teammates joined her on the podium, with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce taking silver with her time of 10.74 seconds and Shericka Jackson the bronze with 10.76 seconds.

On Wednesday, Jada Kingdom’s boyfriend Verse Simmonds shared the news on his Instagram, which showed Jada Kingdom inking the deal to rounds of applause and surrounded by friends and label executives at Republic Records. Simmonds, 40, has been dating the 22-year-old Kingdom for the past two years. Simmonds himself is a producer and rapper with Puerto Rican heritage.

Usain Bolt and partner Kasi Bennett have announced the birth of their twins on fathers day via twitter, Saint Leo Bolt and Thunder Bolt

Ziona Chana lived with his family in a vast, four-story pink structure with around 100 rooms in a remote village that became a tourist attraction. The sect named Chana was founded by Chana's grandfather in 1942 and counts hundreds of families as members. Chana married his first wife when he was 17 and claimed he once married 10 wives in a single year.

Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is now the fastest woman alive. The two-time Olympic champion ran the 100 meters in 10.63 seconds at a national trials warmup event in Kingston, Jamaica, on Saturday 06/05/21. Only one woman, American sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner, has ever clocked a faster time: 10.49 seconds. Flo-Jo, who died in 1998, ran the three fastest times ever in the 100 meters in 1988: 10.49, 10.61 and 10.62. Fraser-Pryce’s latest run makes her the second-fastest woman of all time. Fraser-Pryce set her previous personal best time at 10.70 seconds in 2012 and could make history at the upcoming 2021 Olympics by becoming the first woman to win one individual Olympic track and field event three times.

Miss Jamaica Miqueal-Symone Williams has safely secured a spot in the top ten at the Miss Universe 2021 pageant. Williams, who wowed the judged with her confidence and smile has advanced to top ten after completing the swimsuit portion of the competition. The upcoming semifinal round will be dedicated to the evening gown parade. From a total of 74 contestants, Williams eased into her top ten spot with charm and beauty. Miqueal-Symone Williams, aged 24, has a degree in marketing and has worked as a model for brands including Valentino, Loreal, and Armani. She recently created The Bloom Initiative, which provides internet access to Jamaican children who otherwise would not be able to attend their online school classes.

La Soufriere volcano fired an enormous amount of ash and hot gas early Monday in the biggest explosive eruption yet since volcanic activity began on the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent late last week, with officials worried about the lives of those who have refused to evacuate. There were no immediate reports of injuries or death, but government officials were scrambling to respond to the latest eruption, which was even bigger than the first eruption that occurred Friday morning. Roughly 16,000 people who live in communities close to the volcano had been evacuated under government orders on Thursday, but an unknown number have remained behind and refused to move. The latest explosion is equivalent to the one that occurred in...

Six months after reggae group Maytals frontman, Frederick 'Toots' Hibbert, died from complications relating to the coronavirus (COVID-19), Toots and The Maytals won the 63rd Annual Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album with 'Got to be Tough' on Sunday March 14, 2021. Toots Hibbert who led The Maytals for over 55 years, died in Jamaica in September at age 77. The album Got to be Tough produced by Zak Starkey for his Trojan Jamaica label was released in August by Trojan BMG Records.

Officials in Jamaica say citizens and visitors to the island must now present a negative COVID-19 test result no greater than three days before their travel date this week. Right now, visitors to Jamaica have 10 days to submit a negative COVID-19 result to enter the island. The new initiative, which takes effect Thursday, is part of the government’s effort to curtail a surge in cases. The prime minister said funerals already scheduled through March 7 can proceed as planned, with a maximum of 15 people, including the funeral service staff. The capacity at weddings is being reduced by half from 50 to 25 people. Jamaica also extended the ban on direct flights from United Kingdom to March 22. Jamaica also put a ban on funerals and...

Legendary reggae singer Bunny Wailer is dead. Hailing from Trench Town, Bunny Wailer’s given name is Neville Livingston was 73 years old. He died in the Medical Associates Hospital in Kingston, Jamaica this morning. Bunny Wailer had been in and out of hospital since his second stroke in July 2020. He is a founding member of The Wailers, which included Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. Marley died of cancer in May 11, 1981, while Tosh was killed at his St Andrew home on September 11, 1987. In 2017, the Jamaican Government awarded Bunny Wailer an Order of Merit, the country's fourth highest honor. The Government again recognized his contribution to Jamaican music in February 2019 with a Reggae Gold Award. Bunny Wailer’s albums include...

Shenseea can now add another impressive accolade to her promising career as she has been named BET’s Amplified Artist of the Month. The American television channel describes the award as a “stamp of approval on the next big thing in music and each month a new emerging artiste will be highlighted through feature stories, videos and more”. BET will push Shenseea to their audiences globally through their brands BET Jams, BET Her, BET Soul, and BET International channels in Africa, UK, France and South Korea. Artists are selected for BET Amplified based on criteria including their unique sound, social media presence, and projected impact on the music industry and entertainment industry at-large.

Nadisha Beckford, 33, is charged with the February 20 murder of Lakeisha Mackey. Police say they were called to the scene of a stabbing incident on West Bay Street shortly after 11 p.m. where a woman was stabbed and later detained in hospital. Preliminary reports revealed that two women got into an argument in a parking lot resulting in one being stabbed multiple times. She was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Corrections until June 16

Since news of Spotify making its way to an additional 83 countries globally last week with Jamaica making the list for the Caribbean, Alkaline, is now the face of its first Jamaican-focused playlist ‘Back A Yard’. Dubbed ‘the latest and biggest tracks from Jamaica’s Dancehall scene’. The playlist currently consists of fifty-one (51) authentic dancehall tracks. Tracks from the genre’s leading headliners highlighting the user-demand for these specific tracks via their streaming numbers. Powering the streams are his loyal fans. The listening time on the “Back a Yard” Spotify playlist is approximately 2hrs and 51 minutes.

The Government is to receive a donation of AstraZeneca vaccines from the Government of the Republic of India, to fight COVID-19. The vaccines are scheduled to arrive next week, says Indian High Commissioner to Jamaica, His Excellency Ambassador Masakui Rungsung. He was speaking at the handover of pharmaceutical and medical supplies donated by the Government of the Republic of India, at the Ministry of Health and Wellness, New Kingston, on Friday February 26, 2021. In his address, Health and Wellness Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, thanked the Indian Government for the generous donation, even as it continues to grapple with its own public health crises caused by the pandemic.

Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake said he would rather miss the Tokyo Games than get the COVID-19 vaccine, although getting vaccinated will not be required of the athletes competing in Japan this summer. “My mind still stays strong, I don’t want any vaccine, I’d rather miss the Olympics than take the vaccine, I am not taking it,” he was quoted as saying in Jamaican newspaper The Gleaner. Blake, a one-time rival of Jamaican great Usain Bolt, will likely still be able to participate in what is expected to be the 31-year-old’s third and final games even if he does not get the vaccine. The International Olympic Committee has said getting the vaccine is “encouraged” but not compulsory for athletes. The Olympics, which were pushed back by a...

The legendary toaster U-Roy has died at age 78. He was in the hospital for kidney failure and had an heart attack. He burst onto the scene during the heyday of Clement ‘Sir Coxsone’ Dodd’s Studio One sound system and record label at a period when reggae music and its now hugely popular offspring dancehall was frowned upon by the wider society and was seen as the music of the uneducated and uncultured. U Roy is also credited for opening the door to allow rap and dancehall artistes to realize huge profits from an idiom he, along with Count Machukie and King Stitt, created and perfected. He was also the owner of the Stur Gav sound system which honed the careers of veteran deejays Charlie Chaplin, Josey Wales and Super Cat among others...

A memoir on the life and work of reggae icon Patricia "Miss Pat" Chin, with quotes and remembrances from luminaries including former Jamaican Prime Minister, the late Edward Seaga, Chris Blackwell, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Marcia Griffiths, and the late producer Bunny “Striker” Lee among others. Presented with many never seen, artist and family photos and original illustrations by the late Michael Thompson and Maria Papaefstathiou, the book’s designer. My Reggae Music Journey spans six decades of music history, from the rise and development of Randy's Record Mart, the famed music shop and recording studio in downtown Kingston, Jamaica, founded with her late husband Vincent 'Randy' Chin in 1958, to the family's migration to New York City...