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The 29th annual Ragga Muffins Music Festival returns to Southern California February 20-21 bringing a weekend of reggae music to the Long Beach Arena. The two-day Music and Arts Festival continues the tradition of honoring Bob Marley, one of the greatest champions of human rights and world peace, by spreading his vision of One World, One Love through music and community. Ragga Muffins Performances on Saturday, February 20: Shaggy Don Carlos Frankie Paul Yellowman Big Youth Gramps Morgan Ken Boothe Lloyd Brown Bajah &the Dry Eye Crew Mystic Roots Band Yellow Wall Dub Squad plus more artists to be announced * The line-up is subject to change. Ragga Muffins Performances on Sunday, February 21: Barrington Levy...

1.Busy Signal - One More Night VP Last Week: 2 | Weeks On Chart: 11 2.Queen Ifrica - Lioness On The Rise VP Last Week: 12 | Weeks On Chart: 49 3.Mavado - Hope & Pray ZJ Chrome Last Week: 1 | Weeks On Chart: 28 4.Serani - No Games Phase One / Universal Republic Last Week: 22 | Weeks On Chart: 80 5.Mr. Vegas - Gallis VP Last Week: 5 | Weeks On Chart: 12 6.Mr. Vegas - I Am Blessed VP Last Week: 7 | Weeks On Chart: 51 7.Beres Hammond - Feel Good VP Last Week: 3 | Weeks On Chart: 78 8.Mavado - So Special VP Last Week: 9 | Weeks On Chart: 84 9.Alborosie w/ David Hines - Stepping Out Greensleeves Last Week: - | Weeks On Chart: 1 10.Konshens & Delus - Chalice Load Russian / Head Concussion Last...

Ther nominees for best reggae album were Buju Banton - Rasta Got Soul (Gargamel Music, Inc.) Gregory Isaacs - Brand New Me (Tad's Record) Julian Marley - Awake (Ghetto Youths/Tuff Gong/Universal Republic) Sean Paul - Imperial Blaze. (VP/Atlantic) Stephen Marley - Mind Control Acoustic (Ghetto Youths/Tuff Gong/Universal Republic) Stephen Marley won the Grammy for best reggae album the fourth time a member of the Marley family has won in the past five years. In 2006 Damian Marley won for Welcome to Jamrock, the single of which was a blockbuster hit. Ziggy's Love Is My Religion got the Grammy nod in 2007, while Stephen's Mind Control picked up the Grammy in 2008. Congrats to Stephen and all the other nominees in the...

Miguel Collins popularly known as "Sizzla Kalonji" was arrested Wednesday night by the August Town Police after they received reports that men were firing guns in the August Town area. A senior officer at the Half-Way-Tree Police Station told RJR News that the artiste's hands have been swabbed and samples sent to the government laboratory to determine whether he had fired a weapon Sizzla was not charge with anything and was later released on Saturday Jan 30 2010.

Chart based on electronically monitored airplay of radio stations listed here: 1.Mavado - Hope & Pray ZJ Chrome Last Week: 2 | Weeks On Chart: 27 <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/flashaudioplayer.swf" width="400" height="35"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/flashaudioplayer.swf"/> <param name="FlashVars" value="audio=http://www.reggaeme.com/vbtube/upload/mp3/60624673.mp3&autoplay=false"/> </object> 2.Busy Signal - One More Night VP Last Week: 1 | Weeks On Chart: 10 <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/flashaudioplayer.swf" width="400" height="35"> <param name="movie"...

After nearly a year of intense scrutiny, political posturing and consumer outcry, it's time for the music business to come to grips with its new superpower: Live Nation Entertainment. At a time when live entertainment remains one of the healthier sectors of the troubled music industry, the combined Live Nation and Ticketmaster stands to dominate each part of that sector: touring, management and ticketing. Live Nation is the largest promoter and venue operator in the world, owning the majority of North American amphitheaters and promoting most of the world's top-grossing tours, including U2 and Madonna in 2009. Ticketmaster's Front Line Management, which has for the past few years aggressively acquired rival management...

The Virtuoso Alborosie is shaking up California in February with his ESCAPE FROM BABYLON TO THE KINGDOM OF ZION tour. This tour is the presentation and representation of Alborosie’s sound, giving people the chance to catch this rising reggae star in person. He will be visiting numerous venues performing his various hits, this tour is a must see. Introducing Alborosie <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/player.swf" width="425" height="362"><param name="movie" value="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/player.swf" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000" /><param name="FlashVars"...

Lawyers for Buju Banton claim that the government set up Buju Banton, by using a paid informant. According to court documents filed on Tuesday January 26, 2010 Buju Banton’s defense attorneys David Markus Marc and David Seitles claimed that the government entrapped the singer, because the informant pressured Buju to purchase the cocaine. According to the document filed in the court: "The informant was clearly an active participant in the entire chain of events." Defense attorneys David Markus is pushing to have the informants identity revealed, because his credibility or lack thereof, could send Buju Banton to jail for the rest of his life. The singer allegedly met the informant on a flight from Madrid, Spain to...

Multiple Grammy winning artist Ziggy Marley, and Tuff Gong Worldwide present "Dancehall Originators Vol 1," the first in a new series of dancehall reggae albums designed to pay homage to the groundbreaking original artists that paved the way for dancehall artists today. The album, which will be released on February 2, 2010. In 1992, producer/songwriter Phillip Smart, founder of Long Island's HC&F Studios, created the scorching "Hot This Year" riddim, whose bouncy keyboard riffs and resounding bass were considered ground breaking at the time. From its initial release, "Hot This Year" inspired numerous other artists, including Shaggy, Yellow Man, Buju Banton, and Chaka Demus, to use it as a basis for their own songs. It...

British up and coming reggae artist Gappy Ranks has just signed a hot new record deal with the Greensleeves Records. Ranks first climbed up the reggae ranks on the strength of his hit 'Heaven in Her Eyes,' a single that earned him the Crystal Blue Best Artist of the Year Award. In a statement, Greensleeves representatives announced that Gappy's first feature length album will hit stores "in early 2010," and in addition to 'Heaven in Her Eyes,' his debut will include the smash hit track 'Stinkin' Rich,' and will feature appearances from Spice and Million Stylez, among others.

Shaggy has recorded a new song with a diverse group of Caribbean artiste to raise money for earthquake survivors in Haiti. The 7.0-magnitude quake on Jan. 12 killed an estimated 200,000 or more people in Haiti. It features Shaggy, fellow Jamaican Sean Paul, Haitian musician Belo and soca singers Alison Hinds of Barbados and Destra Garcia from Trinidad and Tobago. The song is called "Rise Again" and was written by Shaggy. Shaggy Sean Paul Belo Alison Hinds Destra - Rise Again (2010 Birchilll) <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/flashaudioplayer.swf" width="400" height="35"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.reggaeme.com/mediaplayer/flashaudioplayer.swf"/> <param...

Picture by Johnny Wonder Johnny Wonder From 21st Production took Aidonia, Charly Black, Ishawna, Demarco and Bugle to Hot 97 Massive B Fire Sundays for a promotional live radio stage show Sun Jan. 24 2010. YouTube - HOT 97 - MASSIVE B - FIRE SUNDAYS - "STAGE SHOW "PT.1 YouTube - HOT 97 - MASSIVE B - FIRE SUNDAYS - "STAGE SHOW " PT.2 YouTube - HOT 97 - MASSIVE B - FIRE SUNDAYS - "STAGE SHOW " PT.3

The International Artiste Night show will not be staged this Dominica Festivals carnival season due to financial limitations. Dominica Festivals Committee (DFC) Events Director Val Cuffy said too much expenses are incurred to organize that event. The first International Artiste Night was held in 2008 with Jamaican dancehall artiste Mr. Vegas as the headline act. In 2009, Jamaican reggae and dancehall artiste Wayne Marshall was the featured performance. Source: Dominica Online

Reggaeme- On Friday, January 29, 2010, the Riu Hotel in Montego Bay, Jamaica, will host Third World Band's 35th Anniversary press conference. The Reggae Ambassadors, in celebrating over three decades of hit singles and albums, will announce their plans for a year- long tour - which will see the group performing in Europe, Asia, Africa, Canada, the United States and the Caribbean, and the release of their upcoming album "Patriot." Following the press conference, on Saturday, January 30, 2010, Third World will perform on the main stage at Jamaica Jazz and Blues. Patrons can expect to see the band perform hit songs such as "Now That We've Found Love," "96 Degrees in the Shade," "Try Jah Love," and "Sense of Purpose."

Lynn Taitt (June 22, 1934 – January 20, 2010) was a reggae guitarist born in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, closely associated with Jamaican rocksteady music. Lynn Taitt, the rocksteady guitarist who played with nearly every reggae legend and the man widely credited with creating the very first rocksteady bassline, has died in Canada at the age of 70. A Trinidadian by birth, Taitt had no problem making Jamaica his home, where his musical career eventually came into full bloom. In addition to playing with major ska and early reggae groups like the Skatalites and the Sheikhs, he founded his own group, Lynn Taitt and the Comets, in the mid 1960s. Though many will certainly remember him for his uniquely virtuosic guitar...

After placing 11th in the World Cup skicross race in France, it has become official. Errol Kerr has qualified for the Winter Olympics. Eric Holmer, aka Homey, Kerr's tech, trainer, and part-time psychiatrist, broke the word saying, "Its official Errol Kerr of Jamaica qualifies for the Olympic Skier X in Vancouver."

A medical team from the Ministry of Health left Jamaica on Friday (January 22), to relieve colleagues in Haiti who have been helping with relief efforts, following the January 12 earthquake. Jamaica currently has a 26-member health team stationed in Port-au-Prince, comprised of doctors, emergency medical technicians, public health inspectors, nurses and a health educator. Since arriving in Haiti, the team has been working from two facilities and has seen about 150 new patients within the first three days of arriving. They have also performed surgical operations. Minister of Health, Hon Rudyard Spencer, publicly thanked the medical team for the work they have been doing to help Haitians affected by the earthquake.

New York, January 22, 2009 -- Greensleeves Publishing, the world’s leading reggae music publisher, signed exclusive agreements with leading singer/songwriters Gappy Ranks, Chino, Laden, Chukki Starr, Goofy, and Keith Hudson. Those deals will see Greensleeves Publishing represent and market the songs of these six in-demand reggae singers and songwriters worldwide. Rising British Reggae star, Gappy Ranks, signed an exclusive publishing agreement with Greensleeves Publishing, quickly followed by a record deal with Greensleeves Records. Gappy‘s most recent hit “Heaven In Her Eyes” is included on VP Records’ Strictly The Best Vol. 40 and on Greensleeves Records’ The Biggest Reggae One-Drop Anthems 2009. The son of Reggae...

Heeding annual criticism that reggae's finest releases are oftentimes overlooked as nominees in the Grammy's best reggae album category, Cristy Barber, VP of marketing and promotions at New York-based reggae label VP Records, is spearheading a drive to educate her industry about the role of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Barber, a 2005 Grammy nominated producer for the various artists compilation "Def Jamaica" (Island/Def Jam) and the former president of the Marley family's Tuff Gong/Ghetto Youths labels, will commence an informational media campaign in Jamaica, Jan. 21-25, where she will meet with key industry personnel. Her efforts will also extend beyond the island's shores as she aims to...

Reggaeme - New Zealand Raggamuffin festival, The country's largest reggae music festival is continuing to defy beliefs, with organisers saying it just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Performers at Raggamuffin this year include Lauryn Hill, Shaggy, Sly & Robbie, Julian Marley and Katchafire. Wyclef Jean was billed to headline Saturday's reggae festival at the Rotorua International Stadium, but will miss it to focus on Haiti. Raggamuffin is expected to draw in a 30,000 strong crowd this Saturday in Rotorua, New Zealand .Organiser Leesa Tilley says the festival has exploded in size since it's inception in 2008. She says they never expected the event to get so big so fast. This year the event has almost doubled in size...