News

Roger Davis, the drug boss who was convicted in the United States (US) along with his brother, dancehall artiste 'Flippa Mafia', for leading an international narcotics syndicate, is among the 46 Jamaicans who were deported last week, law enforcement sources have revealed. Roger Davis and Flippa Mafia or Flippa Moggela, whose real name is Andrew Davis, along with another sibling, Kemar Davis, led a syndicate that used the US Postal Service and private courier services to ship large quantities of cocaine from the state of California for bulk distribution in New Jersey, according to prosecutors and court documents. Roger Davis and one of his co-convicts, Marsha Bernard, were responsible for handling the proceeds from the sale of the...

Minister of Health & Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton stated that 16 samples tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. This has brought the total number of confirmed cases in the island to 364. The 16 new cases are comprised of seven males and nine females, who range in age from three years to 75 years. Minister of Health & Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton has advised that 16 samples tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. This has brought the total number of confirmed cases in the island to 364. The 16 new cases are comprised of seven males and nine females, who range in age from three years to 75 years. Overall, Jamaica now has 34 imported cases; eight cases that are local transmission with no epidemiological link...

Koffee made history on Sunday January 26, 2020 when she became the first woman and youngest artist ever to take home a victory in the best reggae category and the Grammy Awards.

Miley Cyrus has settled a $300 million copyright infringement lawsuit by Flourgon who accused the pop star of stealing her 2013 smash "We Can't Stop" from a similar song he recorded a quarter century earlier. Flourgon sued Cyrus in March 2018, claiming that "We Can't Stop" closely resembled his 1988 song "We Run Things," which he called a reggae favorite since reaching No. 1 in Jamaica. Flourgon accused Cyrus and her label RCA Records, owned by Sony Corp, of misappropriating material including the phrase "We run things. Things no run we," which she sang as "We run things. Things don't run we." Flourgon, Cyrus, Sony and other defendants filed a joint stipulation in Manhattan federal court on Friday ending the lawsuit with prejudice...

Javian "Sikka Rymse" Chambers a known protege and family member of jailed dance hall artiste Vybz kartel is now undergoing surgery after being shot multiple times. The deejay was trailed after performing at an event in Sandy Park in the early morning of Sunday, December 1st. The shooting took place at 3:45 am at a stoplight in the vicinity of the Sovereign Shopping Center, the entertainer’s vehicle was shot up by unknown assailants. Sikka Rymes is now undergoing surgery at the Kingston Public Hospital.

Jamaican Tajay Gayle made history when became the first-ever Jamaican to score a gold medal in the long jump event at the World Championships. The 23-year-old set a new personal best with a jump of 8.69 metres. It is also a new national record, erasing the 8.62 metres which was held by James Beckford. Gayle, who entered the championship with a personal best of 8.24 metres, struggled during the qualifying round and made the final with the 12th best jump of 7.89 metres. He now joins Beckford, who won a silver medal at the 2003 World Championships in Paris, as the only Jamaicans to win a medal in the long jump at the world championships.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce became the world champion in the 100 meters for the fourth time since 2009 on Sunday. With a time of 10.71 seconds, she beat European champion Dina Asher-Smith in the women's final of the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar. The British athlete crossed the finish line in 10.83 seconds. Marie-Josee Ta Lou from the Ivory Coast took third place with 10.93 seconds. Fraser-Pryce won the title in 2009, 2013 and 2015. The 32-year-old is also a two-time Olympic champion.

Riu Hotels and Resorts has officially relaunched its Riu Ocho Rios all-inclusive resort, the company announced this week. The property, which first opened in 2005, has undergone a dramatic refurbishing project, one that included what Riu called a “complete overhaul of its facilities.” Riu has added what has become a staple of many of its resorts in the Caribbean, a new Splash Water World aquatic park. The reimagined poolscape means Riu Ocho Rios now boasts five pools at the property, including two pools with swim-up bars. Other changes to the resort include a complete renovation of all of the guest rooms; a completely new swimming pool area; the addition of the RiuLand kids park; and a new “RiuFit” area for fitness enthusiasts; and...

Grammy-award winning artist Louie Rankin -- famous for his role as Ox in the movie "Belly" and teddy brukshut in the movie "Shotta" died in a car crash in Canada. Louie died Monday in a fatal wreck in Ontario, Canada, the crash reportedly involved a transport truck and another vehicle.

Dancehall singjay I-Octane issued a challenge for his new song “Mine Yuh” for big money prize of US$1500. The challenge is to create a dance video to the song and post it to Instagram tagging I-Octane in the post. The contestant with the most likes will receive the prize money and according to Octane, a brand new air conditioner as well. The track which was produced by Zj Dymond and Dinesty King is now trending on Audiomack. It seems the challenge has boosted the popularity of this single. Go ahead and try out the #MineYuhChallenge. Don’t forget to tag @realioctane.

Shenseea plans to use beats from the Motherland on her debut project for American label Interscope Records, according to producer Tarik “Rvssian” Johnston. The yet-to-be titled album is slated for release late this year. Afrobeats, an increasingly popular sound, will be featured on the album. Rvssian said the deejay will also dabble in pop and country. Afrobeat is a growing genre, especially in the United States. Last year, Nigerian singer Davido's Fall soared to number 22 on the Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Chart.

Shenseea is now an signed artist to Interscope Records. The 22-year-old artist who has worked with artists such as Vybz Kartel and Shaggy, has been making waves with her infectious dance hall tunes, and with a debut album in the works Shenseea released her new single “Blessed” featuring Tyga. The bass-heavy track was produced by Rvssian, and is dripping with energy as the rising star oozes self-confidence from start to finish.

The Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority has said effective immediately, the Boeing 737-8 Max and 737-9 Max aircraft will be temporarily restricted in Jamaica. The directive follows a similar restriction from the United States following Sunday's deadly plane crash in Ethiopia. The crash in Addis Ababa killed 157 people. It was the second fatal Max 8 disaster in five months after one crashed over Indonesia in October, killing 189 people. The FAA said new evidence from the crash site in Ethiopia, together with newly refined satellite data which became available on Wednesday, led to the decision to ground the planes.

Dance hall artist Stonebwoy has been crowned the Reggae Dance hall artist of the year at the ongoing Vodafone Ghana music awards 2019. Stonebwoy was in the competition with Samini, Shatta Wale, Epixode and Ak Songtress. Looking at how well Stonebwoy has performed The Reggae Dancehall artist of the year is Stonebwoy’s first award so far at the awards night. His rival, Shatta Wale has already won two awards; Highlife song of the year and Reggae Dance hall song of the year.

The band One World Rebellion, owned by Soca Star Fay Ann Lyons, said it has halted its entry into Jamaica's Carnival this year. In a statement issued on Friday, the band said: "the decision is due to conflicting reports from the Jamaican organizers versus those from sponsors pertaining to receipt of funds over the last few months which requires further investigation for clarity." The band said the investigations have halted production and with Carnival fast approaching they are unable to deliver the type of quality product it knows it can deliver in a timely fashion. "All avenues to produce a good impact on the experience delivered to our supporters and sponsors this year have been explored. However, it has become prudent to postpone...

About 49 people were killed and dozens more were injured when at least one shooter opened fire at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Police confirm there are 49 people dead in the attack, 41 people were killed in the Deans Ave mosque, with seven killed at the Linwood mosque. Another person died in hospital. A 28-year-old man has been charged with murder and is due to appear in the Christchurch District Court tomorrow morning. Another person was arrested earlier today however that was not related to these events. The number of those being treated in hospital has been updated to 48 people.

Minister of Labour and Social Security Shahine Robinson has said senior executives of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL), the second-largest cruise company in the world, have advised that they are in need of more Jamaican workers. Robinson was part of a delegation, led by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, which hosted a high-level team from RCCL in Kingston last week. “In the meeting with the RCCL folks, there was a huge push for the development of Port Royal for cruise tourism. We also looked at the continued development of Falmouth as a preferred cruise destination and, of course, opportunities for our local business people, including our craft traders,” she noted. Senior adviser/strategist in the Ministry of Tourism, Delano...

Tourism Minister Hon. Edmund Bartlett says Jamaica has welcomed one million visitors to its shores in the first nine weeks of 2019. He said this has provided foreign exchange earnings of approximately US$800 million. “The industry is now at the peak of its growth, and the beauty about us in tourism is that we make new peaks… because we are in a constant state of growth and evolution. This peak has allowed Jamaica to be the first Caribbean destination in nine weeks to welcome one million visitors,” Minister Bartlett said. Mr. Bartlett said with the continued growth in the tourism industry, the Ministry is taking steps to further develop Jamaica’s Gastronomy Network, to ensure that “ordinary Jamaicans” benefit significantly from the...