Post by kaya on May 10, 2009 10:58:31 GMT -5
Magical moments at Life Fest
By Yasmine Peru, Entertainment editor peruy@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, May 08, 2009
It was magical. Sizzla, Stephen Marley, Wayne Wonder, Spragga Benz, Queen Ifrica, Jah Cure, I-Octane and Chino all on the same stage, giving their time and talent for a worthy cause. The cover charge was minimal and fans took advantage of this 'special' and converged into Backyard last Saturday night for what was certainly worthwhile in every way.
Von Wayne Charles covered 20 years of work in 25 minutes and had fans inside Backyard asking for more, even as he begged a little extra time from the organisers of Life Fest Peace and Love Concert. It could easily have been 'The Return of Wayne Wonder', an artiste who has not been seen on the local stage in a long time and one who surely made his presence felt.
Wayne, with his ever charming and suave stage persona, made that instant connect with the audience and rocked the yard with hits from his early Penthouse days straight to the present. With Ruff Kut on point, Wayne unleashed Saddest Day (his very first hit), Searching Dem Searching, No Letting Go (Got Somebody), Bounce Along, Joy Ride, Anything Goes, Love and Affection and Forever Young in which he put on a deejay cap and did Buju's part. Welcome back, Mr Wonder.
No less awesome was Queen Ifrica, who turned out to be the only female on the bill (Tanya Stephens was advertised but sent an apology via video). "My complexion is betta dan evaaa", Queen chanted and the crowd surged forward. She took the crowd along with her as she reeled off her hits. "Ride di riddim Mumma, She deh pon it, She a gwaan, Dem cyann hol' you!", were some of the comments as Ifrica unleashed 'nuff vibes on di dancefloor'.
But she never strayed far from the reason for this season of love and, in closing Ifrica dedicated a song to Carlyle, Spragga's late son in whose honour Life Fest was staged.
Life Fest turned out to be a stage on which the Rastafarian livity was in abundance and it was almost dizzying to watch them one after the other take the mic and perform. Stephen Marley was in good nick and sincerely apologised for the absence of brother Damian, who was a no-show. But it was on to the task of entertaining and he did just that, paying tribute to Carlyle, while mentioning that he was the father of six sons. He called up Sizzla who then decided to just do his thing with the Marley band instead of closing the show. But the crowd was already feeling "Dadda" so that was perhaps the best decision to make.
Two songs into his set, he was dripping with sweat and a member of his entourage handed him a towel. Having wiped away the sweat, Sizzla threw the wet towel into the crowd and after some scrambling, one "lucky" young lady emerged with the prize. Her glee was unbelievable.
Upon Sizzla's exit, Spragga, the host, performed for his fans, followed by Jah Cure, who closed the show.
Opening acts I-Octane and Chino did well, especially Octane, who has certainly matured as a performer. He scored top marks for song selection and order and gave one of his best performances in his relatively short career.
Organiser D Escoffery in an after-show interview expressed gratitude to those who turned out to support the event, which kickstarted the Carlyle Foundation, an organisation dedicated to helping needy students.
Source: Jamaica Observer.com
By Yasmine Peru, Entertainment editor peruy@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, May 08, 2009
It was magical. Sizzla, Stephen Marley, Wayne Wonder, Spragga Benz, Queen Ifrica, Jah Cure, I-Octane and Chino all on the same stage, giving their time and talent for a worthy cause. The cover charge was minimal and fans took advantage of this 'special' and converged into Backyard last Saturday night for what was certainly worthwhile in every way.
Von Wayne Charles covered 20 years of work in 25 minutes and had fans inside Backyard asking for more, even as he begged a little extra time from the organisers of Life Fest Peace and Love Concert. It could easily have been 'The Return of Wayne Wonder', an artiste who has not been seen on the local stage in a long time and one who surely made his presence felt.
Wayne, with his ever charming and suave stage persona, made that instant connect with the audience and rocked the yard with hits from his early Penthouse days straight to the present. With Ruff Kut on point, Wayne unleashed Saddest Day (his very first hit), Searching Dem Searching, No Letting Go (Got Somebody), Bounce Along, Joy Ride, Anything Goes, Love and Affection and Forever Young in which he put on a deejay cap and did Buju's part. Welcome back, Mr Wonder.
No less awesome was Queen Ifrica, who turned out to be the only female on the bill (Tanya Stephens was advertised but sent an apology via video). "My complexion is betta dan evaaa", Queen chanted and the crowd surged forward. She took the crowd along with her as she reeled off her hits. "Ride di riddim Mumma, She deh pon it, She a gwaan, Dem cyann hol' you!", were some of the comments as Ifrica unleashed 'nuff vibes on di dancefloor'.
But she never strayed far from the reason for this season of love and, in closing Ifrica dedicated a song to Carlyle, Spragga's late son in whose honour Life Fest was staged.
Life Fest turned out to be a stage on which the Rastafarian livity was in abundance and it was almost dizzying to watch them one after the other take the mic and perform. Stephen Marley was in good nick and sincerely apologised for the absence of brother Damian, who was a no-show. But it was on to the task of entertaining and he did just that, paying tribute to Carlyle, while mentioning that he was the father of six sons. He called up Sizzla who then decided to just do his thing with the Marley band instead of closing the show. But the crowd was already feeling "Dadda" so that was perhaps the best decision to make.
Two songs into his set, he was dripping with sweat and a member of his entourage handed him a towel. Having wiped away the sweat, Sizzla threw the wet towel into the crowd and after some scrambling, one "lucky" young lady emerged with the prize. Her glee was unbelievable.
Upon Sizzla's exit, Spragga, the host, performed for his fans, followed by Jah Cure, who closed the show.
Opening acts I-Octane and Chino did well, especially Octane, who has certainly matured as a performer. He scored top marks for song selection and order and gave one of his best performances in his relatively short career.
Organiser D Escoffery in an after-show interview expressed gratitude to those who turned out to support the event, which kickstarted the Carlyle Foundation, an organisation dedicated to helping needy students.
Source: Jamaica Observer.com