News

Grammy nominated singer, songwriter, and producer Beres Hammond’s “For The Love Of It” 2010 Tour kicked off in Florida last week and will continue throughout the U.S. and Canada making stops in 35 cities including Atlanta (July 30), Washington, DC (August 1), New York (August 6,7 & 8), San Francisco (August 27), Los Angeles (August 29) and wrapping back in Florida’s West Palm Beach (Sept 12). Joining Hammond on the tour will be Kenyatta Hill & Culture and Inner Circle. Known to many as the originator of “lover’s rock,” Hammond has been writing, producing and pouring out his smoky-sweet voice over every kind of riddim track for over three decades. He continues to top the charts, most recently with the 2008 release A MOMENT IN TIME...

Adijah "Vybz Kartel" Palmer was freed last night, ending a two-week incarceration for the entertainer under special provisions under the State of Emergency that allow Jamaica Police to detain individuals for lengthy periods without charging them. Vybz Kartel is set to perform on Thursday night July 22, 2010 at the annual Reggae Sumfest show at Catherine Hall in Montego Bay.

The department's Special Enforcement Team, with the assistance of the police, and as part of their ongoing operations to clamp down on delinquent taxpayers, carried out the raid at O’Neil " Elephant Man" Bryan house in 3 Hillcrest Avenue, off Hope Road. Kingston. Earlier, the tax department started its operation in Haven Dale St Andrew at a house owned by Elephant Man but investigators said they found nothing of value. The tax officials along with the police then went to the Hillcrest Avenue house belonging to Elephant Man where the motorcar was seized. The Tax Department, however, declined to confirm how much money was owed by Elephant Man, but said assets are seized when individuals are 'chronically delinquent' in tax payments.

Inga "Foxy Brown" Marchand was arrested on Thursday, July 22, 2010, in Brooklyn for violating an order of protection put in place by a neighbor, Arlene Raymond. Brown apparently got into a shouting match with Raymond, in Brown’s driveway, because Raymond stared at Brown, and complained about loud music coming from Brown’s house. Brown is said to have used profanity toward Raymond and exposed herself to Raymond. When police arrived, Brown was immediately taken into custody and charged with one count of criminal contempt, for violating the order of protection dating back to a 2007 incident with Raymond. Foxy Brown was later released on $50,000 bail. The order of protection stems from an encounter Arlene Raymond had with rapper...

Merlene Joyce Ottey born May 10, 1960 in Hanover, Jamaica. She is a Jamaican-born, Slovenian track athlete. Ottey began her career representing Jamaica, but since 2002, has represented Slovenia, where she now resides. Fifty-year-old Merlene Ottey could become the oldest athlete to compete at the European Championships after Slovenia named the sprinter to its 4x100 relay team. Ottey, a naturalized Slovenian of Jamaican origin, would make her Barcelona debut in the July 31 heats. Ottey has won 29 medals at major competitions, including seven Olympics starting with Moscow in 1980. Ottey, who first raced for Slovenia in the championships four years ago, has already clocked 11.84 seconds over 100 meters this season. She was second in...

The Japanese have been making reggae almost as long as Jamaicans have been exporting it. This phenomenon could have started as early as the mid-’70s, when the film “The Harder They Come” grafted the crime drama to Kingston’s reggae scene and became an international cult classic. Or, more likely, it began sometime around 1979, when Bob Marley landed for the first time in the Land of the Rising Sun. Since then, the reggae scene in Japan has cycled through several styles and sub-subcultures, but only in recent years has one crucial aspect of its identity fully emerged: Finally, Japanese reggae stars are singing in Japanese. These days, the Japanese reggae scene is more rude boy than rasta. A vibrant roots reggae scene flourished in...

The 21st Central American and Caribbean Games is taking place in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, from July 18, 2010 to August 1, 2010. ALIA Atkinson gave Jamaica its first medal of the 2010 Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games after clocking a games record 2:30.99 minutes to claim gold in the girls 200m freestyle swimming on the opening day of the Games in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico yesterday. The 21-year-old, swimming from lane four, was almost 500th of a second faster than second place Byanca Rodriguez of Mexico (2:35.82) and Alegria Medina, also of Mexico, in 2:36.67.

Over 300 people thrilled to the sound of Sean Paul, during the opening show of the Big Brother All Africa Stars, who sung three songs.Sean Paul turned the show that was dedicated to the 14 participants in the program into a night of stars, thus fulfilling the aim of the organization. The night was also marked with homage paid to former South African president Nelson Mandela who turned 92 on July 18, and Ghana national soccer squad.

Geto Boys member Bushwick Bill is facing deportation to Jamaica. Bushwick Bill's visa status came into question when he failed to appear or even comment on the 2010 VH1 Hip Hop Honors. The 2010 Hip Hop Honors payed homage to the south and Rap-A-Lot, Geto Boys and Bushwick's label, was the main honoree. Willie D and Scarface are the other two members of the legendary Geto Boys. Willie D performed at the Hip Hip Honors and Scarface made headlines with his highly publicized boycott of the event. Bushwick is a native of Jamaica and was taken into Atlanta Immigration Court Thursday July 15, 2010 for a deportation hearing. There are no details as to when he was seized by immigration officials of exactly what charges Bushwick is facing.

Paris (AP) Paris Hilton was briefly detained in Corsica after sniffer dogs detected a "quite small" quantity of marijuana in her bag, a French newspaper reported Saturday. Corse Matin newspaper said officers at the airport in Figari found about one gram's worth of marijuana. Hilton, who was transiting the French Mediterranean island in a private jet on Friday, was hauled in for questioning and released about 30 minutes later, the report said.

The “I AM JAMAICA” Campaign will premiere simultaneously in Jamaica, USA, Canada, UK and other locations around the world with the international premier of the theme song, music video and Declaration signing on Saturday, July 17, 2010 through to Sunday, August 14, 2010. The “I AM JAMAICA” campaign, an initiative of the Jamaican Diaspora, calls on all Jamaicans, at home and abroad, celebrities, community leaders, artists, entertainers, entrepreneurs and others, to encourage a sense of personal responsibility, to inspire each other in embracing our talents and resources as a burgeoning global community for the upliftment and prosperity of our youth, and to evoke an emotional connection of hope, positive vibes, prosperity, oneness, and...

Lincoln "Sugar Minott" Barrington Minott, born May 25, 1956, died July 10, 2010 in Jamaica. He was a reggae singer, producer and sound-system owner operator. ReggaeMe send it's condolences out to Sugar Minott family and friends. After working as a selector on the Sound of Silence Keystone sound system, and then his own Gathering of Youthman Promotion system, he began his singing career as part of The African Brothers in 1969, along with Tony Tuff and Derrick Howard. After the group broke up 1974, Sugar Minott then teamed up with the producer Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, as studio apprentice at Dodd's Studio One, working as a singer, guitarist and percussionist, and soon began recording his own singles. After a number of moderately...

Jamaica (AP)-- Jamaica has dissolved the board of directors of its Anti-Doping Commission after a review found potential conflicts of interest. Jamaica Olympic Association President Mike Fennell said Monday that all 15 members were fired by the Caribbean nation's sports minister, Olivia Grange. "This is to facilitate a restructuring of the organization," Fennell said. A delegation from the World Anti-Doping Agency that visited Jamaica in May raised concerns about conflicts of interest for panel members who also lead sports associations on the Caribbean island, Fennell said. Jamaica's government established the anti-doping commission in 2005, recruiting some of the country's leading sports officials to lead testing of athletes...

U.S. District Court in the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division decided to reject a request from Buju Banton to be tried separately from his two co-accused. Buju Banton Applied to have his trial separated from Ian Thomas and James 'Spencer Clarke' Mack on the basis that this could be the reason the trial was being delayed. The court denied the request while siding with the prosecution, which had argued that the general rule was that defendants who are jointly indicted should be tried together, particularly in conspiracy cases. The trial is now set to begin in early September with the start date to be set at a status conference on August 4.

Jamaica Government plan to encourage more Jamaicans to become proficient in Spanish is fast becoming a reality with the help of some 43 Cuban teachers, who have been teaching the language at primary, secondary and tertiary institutions in the island. Over the past 13 years there have been some 238 Cuban teachers in almost every parish offering their services for a period of two to three years, under an ongoing education cooperation agreement signed between the Governments of Jamaica and Cuba. Currently, there are 18 Cuban teachers working at primary schools and 23 at high schools and for the first time, three lecturers at tertiary institutions. These are the Shortwood Teachers' College in St. Andrew; Church Teachers' College in...

Martin Lawrence and Shamicka Gibbs, his longtime girlfriend, were married in an intimate wedding on Saturday at the actor's home in Beverly Hills. Lawrence, 45, and Gibbs, 35, exchanged Christian vows in the back yard in front of 120 guests, including Eddie Murphy and Denzel Washington. The couple has been together more than a decade. Their daughters Amara, 9, and Iyana, 7, and Lawrence's older daughter Jasmine, 14, from a previous marriage, were all flower girls at the wedding.

Vybz Kartel has been detained for a 30 additional days, a week after he turned himself in to the Greater Portmore Police Station. Vybz Kartel's five-day detention order came to an end yesterday Friday July 09, 2010, but was extended a day earlier, on Thursday July 08 2010, when he was served papers informing of his further detention. Due to the extension of his detention, Vybz Kartel will now miss several bookings, both local and overseas, including the annual summer show Reggae Sumfest that is schedule to start on July 17.

Jamaican sprinter 23-year-old Shelly-Ann Fraser has tested positive for a prohibited substance Oxycodone at the Diamond League in Shanghai meeting on May 23, 2010. Shelly Ann Fraser reportedly had taken the narcotic given to her by her coach, Stephen Francis to offset the pain from three tooth fillings she had performed prior to the Shanghai meeting. Oxycodone is listed as a banned substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency, but is not known to have any performance-enhancing qualities.

Royalties resulting from the playing of Jamaican music in the UK will now be sent to producers and label owners locally, following a new agreement between collecting societies aimed at increasing Jamaica's music earnings. The agreement which was reached "a few weeks ago" involves Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) and the UK based Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) and is part of an effort of the local body to grow its annual royalties to $10 million by 2012. The agreement also involves JAMMS managing the rights of PPL's vast repertoire in Jamaica. PPL currently manages performance rights for many independent record labels, many of which own popular titles which enjoy airplay in Jamaica. Source: Jamaica Observer

A judge sentenced Lindsay Lohan on Tuesday to 90 days in jail and an inpatient rehab program after finding the actress had violated her probation in a 2007 drug case by failing to attend alcohol education classes. Lohan was not immediately taken into custody and will be permitted to surrender on July 20. She will have to wear an ankle alcohol monitor until then. Lohan will now have a probation officer who will monitor her progress more closely. Lohan was previously on informal probation and supervised by a judge. She will also have to enter inpatient rehab for 90 days.