ENTERTAINMENT
Jamaican Reggae artist Dre Island. Dre Island
Caribbean Life, June 26-July 2, 2020 27
By Nelson A. King
Jamaican Reggae artist Dre
Island has released his debut album,
“Now I Rise,” collaborating with the
Kingston Hills Entertainment label
and the New York-based DubShot
Records.
“Themes of equal rights and justice,
rebellion, love, faith, change,
and comfort in the face of struggle
abound in the interconnected
songs on the 13-track album,” said
CaribbeanNationalWeekly (CNW).
“Armed with life’s struggles and
successes, tribulations, and victories,
Dre Island’s musical journey
is ready to be shared and leave its
own legacy in the history of reggae
music.
Despite heavily embracing the
spirit of reggae and Rastafari, CNW
said Dre Island, who is also a deejay,
songwriter, producer and pianist,
“tries to remain genre-agnostic,
exploring his creativity and not
allowing his art to be contained nor
confined.
“Through a steady stream of hit
singles, Dre Island has captured
the attention of fans from around
the world who are drawn to his
inescapable authenticity and stonecherished
voice,” it said. “His superb
musicianship and strong vocals
have been shaking sound system
speakers for many years now, and
growing anticipation has paved the
way for his debut album.”
For the past five years, CNW said
Dre Island has built “an organic following
amongst reggae fans and his
Continued on Page 28
Superblue.
By Nelson A. King
Trinidadian calypsonian, soca musician,
icon and lyricist Austin Lyons, renowned
as Superblue, Super Blue and Blueboy,
turned 64 on May 25.
Born on May 25, 1956 in Point Fortin,
Trinidad and Tobago, to a Grenadian
mother and Trinidadian father, Superblue
became famous from his first foray
into the calypso tent world in 1980 with
“Soca Baptist,” a song he penned in 1979,
according to his biography.
Continued on Page 28
By Nelson A. King
Jamaican-born, Grammy-nominated
Reggae phenom, Etana last Friday
released her highly-anticipated “Gemini”
album that debuted at Complex and
was met with high acclaim from social
media.
“The vibrancy of her soul and the
colorful discography was the perfect
gift for music lovers on Juneteeth,
which celebrated African American
freedom worldwide,” said Marie Driven,
the Brooklyn-based Haitian American
managing partner of the entertainment
company, PlaybookMG.
Headed by lead and hit singles “Bubble”
and “Truly,” Driven told Caribbean
Life on Tuesday that “Etana tells
stories of love with her latest project
that prompted feelings of pure bliss in
Continued on Page 28
FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT, GO TO CARIBBEANLIFENEWS.COM/ENTERTAINMENT
Superblue
turns 64
Etana drops
‘Gemini’
Dre Island releases debut album
/ENTERTAINMENT