Come along take a ride on the Fantastic Voyage
Welcome to our August 2017 REGGAEMANIA EVENTS — We present to you a look through the lens of past August 2017 Reggae-Dancehall Events that took place the Toronto and surrounding areas. See event Flyers, Reviews, Videos and Pics, and listen/download our Audio Podcasts.
See Hot Pics — Stone Love Caribana Boat Cruise + Soca Rave @ Whitehaus 08.04.17
See our ReggaeMania.com Hot Pics from the STONE LOVE Blue & White Carnival Boat Ride aboard the Empress of Canada Friday August 4th 2017, and from Soca Rave – De People’s Fete – Stonelove and Big Soca Superstars Live Sunday August 6th inside Whitehaus! Pics by Ron Nelson.
The STONE LOVE Blue & White Carnival Boat Ride aboard the Empress of Canada was a sell-off Friday August 4th. The Boat left at 2:30 and returned at 5:30, and despite rain in the forecast, the cruise only saw intermittent periods of showers that didn’t stop anyone from partying. The crowd there enjoyed two floors and two sound systems (Stonelove played top deck) and essentially two simultaneous parties offering Soca and Reggae for the massive. What can I say, a great party and everyone had a good time, no complaints about the food, the boat, the ride, or the entertainment. Sorry for those who missed the boat, better luck next year when I’m sure these promoters will do it again!
The Soca Rave People’s Fete was also a sell-off event. The Whitehaus had a host of DJ’s who played in the main room as well as an outside lounge area fit with separate sound system and DJ entertainment. Now I’m not used to Soca Fetes so I’m not gonna review this event from a Soca point of view, except to say that for the majority of the night – Soca was running things and this was the music that kept the dance floor packed for the majority of the party.
When it came to the Reggae though, I will give Stone Love credit for playing one of the best sets I’ve ever heard them play – this coming from someone who’ve seen Stone Love play in Canada for over 30 years straight now. Big up Bill Cosby who tore it up and pleased a hungry Soca Fete crowd who’d been left starving for a good set of Reggae during the night (the Regggae played earlier by some of the featured sounds didn’t even come close to cutting it).
On a final matter – I will say that I was truly disappointed that Tony Matterhorn did not show up. There were issues with his Police Record paperwork being filed late in Jamaica, so in the end, he was not permitted to enter Canada – information that both he and the promoters found out one day before he was supposed to fly into town. Because of this late notice, there was nothing the promoters could do to remedy the situation even though they were trying up until the last minutes.
Tony Matterhorn had been contracted to play, airline tickets purchased, hotels booked, work permit gotten and paid for – but sometimes this is how the business goes, and in the end, Matterhorn, despite his best last minute attempts, didn’t make it to Soca Rave or into Canada for that matter.
I’ll be dropping the Video I took of Stone Love at Whitehaus in the next few weeks. For now – have a look at our Photo Gallery and you’ll see Pics from both the Boat Cruise and the Soca Fete. These Pics speak for themselves, big up Soca Boys for a truly enjoyable experience.
Pics by Ron Nelson | All Rights Reserved 2017
See Hot Pics — Fresh Fest ft Alkaline + Mavado + Jahmiel @ Woodbine Mall 08.19.17
Fresh Fest 2017 set records for Toronto dancehall stage show attendance when close to 14,000 fans turned out at Woodbine Mall in Rexdale (Toronto) to see Alkaline, Mavado and Jahmiel. It was a crazy evening from all points of view, and now that time has passed, promoters can finally breathe a sign of relief that it is all behind them with relatively little damage caused by the chaos and disorganization that came with the responsibility of producing such a high-caliber event. If you were there early, the show may have seemed worth it in the end, but while there were 14,000 people inside, many were left locked out (advance ticket holders included) due to over capacity and and an inability by promoters, security and police to handle a crowd of that magnitude.
In the end, after hours of having to wait patiently, the show would go on, Jahmiel first, followed by Alkaline, with Mavado passing through. When it came to showtime, promoters, staff, and security, despite their efforts, could not get the 200 people who thought they were VIPs, dignitaries and royalty, to move off the artists stage. It was a security risk for Alkaline and Mavado to perform under those circumstances, but they did it anyway, and in the space what seemed like no more than 30 minutes, the edited version of Fresh Fest had ended (Jahmiel went on way earlier and was able to do a full and proper show) leaving some satisfied, but others questioning if they had indeed gotten their money’s worth.
Some (young) people who are built to endure these type of crazy events may tell you the Fresh Fest experience was completely awesome, others with viewpoints on the complete opposite end of the spectrum, may tell you the show fell short on delivery and was not worth the price of admission. Still, you can’t please all of the dancehall people all of the dancehall time. Big up Rodeo Promo for the effort, and for pulling off the show in the end. Things could’ve gone smoother yes, but in the end all three headline artists performed, nobody got hurt, and up to 17,000 Black people were able to gather outdoors in on of Toronto’s so-called bad-man zones and not even one shot let off! That’s a stat to be proud of, especially when you’re Black! Enjoy our short video. Pics and Video by Ron Nelson.
