SUMMERSTAGE
Caribbean L 24 ife, JULY 24-30, 2020
Contest received numerous
entries; each song’s music and
lyrics offers incredible tools for
living, raises awareness to stem
the spread of coronavirus in
New York City, and — most
importantly — inspires hope,”
the statement said.
“After much deliberation, our
Folk Arts Society selected six
finalists,” it added, disclosing
that, besides Primus, the other
artists selected were Ayusha
Sanzhiev, Reem Abdou, Suvdaa
Kheried, Tatiana Maslak, Daria
Primus and Fernando L. Garcia
Rodas.
Brooklyn Arts Council’s Folk
Arts program said it had asked
New York City traditional artists
to create original music
to inform the public amid the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Alton Aimable, the St.
Lucian-born president and
founder of Tropicalfete, told
Caribbean Life on Sunday that
Primus’s “’Social Distancing’
was “done on the traditional
calypso beat – the extempo
rhythm.”
Primus, one of Tropicalfete’s
teaching artists, responsible
for Tropicalfete’s Voices, also
told Caribbean Life that she
expresses herself best through
music.
“So, when presented with the
opportunity to spread awareness
about the coronavirus, I
had to take it,” said Primus,
who is also part of Tropicalfete’s
costume-designing team.
“I want to be a part of getting
the word out there that we need
to be mindful and stay safe.
“I’m truly grateful to be chosen
as a finalist,” added Primus,
who works at SUNY Downstate
Medical Center and University
Hospital of Brooklyn. “It tells
me that people can relate to the
song for which I am thankful.
“I am confident that I have
an engaging song,” Primus
continued. “Therefore, I would
definitely love to win, and I
believe I have a really good
chance.
“Equally, there are other
amazing artists in the competition
as well and, at this point,
anyone can win,” she said. “I
am just truly grateful to have
made it this far in the competition
and thankful to be able to
spread the word.”
dary founder and the 1st Lady
and mother of Hip-Hop, respectively,
and will be in conversation
with poet and writer Kevin
Powell live from Cedar Park in
the Bronx.
SummerStage Anywhere
Sessions on Saturday, July 25
will be on SummerStage Instagram,
SummerStage YouTube,
Facebook page and Twitch, at
8:00 pm EST, with jazz multi
instrumentalist, composer,
arranger, music director, DJ,
producer and educator Miguel
Atwood-Ferguson.
Atwood-Ferguson will feature
a live Q&A before the
debut of exclusive footage from
his Aug. 23, 2012 performance
at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival.
On Sunday, July 26, SummerStage
said #PeopleSpeak-
Sundays curator takeover SummerStage
Instagram channel
live at 2:00 pm ET, with special
guest curator Afro-Latino Festival,
a New York based festival
that will be celebrating Afro-
Latin American, Afro-Caribbean
and Diaspora Women’s
Day.
This special collaboration
will be live from Barbès in
Brooklyn, with Big Room partner
venue DROM, fully equipped
with Big Room’s automated live
streaming production system,
SummerStage said.
If you missed a recent performance
or conversation, you
can keep up to date with all
SummerStage Anywhere programming
on the Summer-
Stage YouTube channel.
Still to come this season
are: performances and conversations
with Brazilian drag
queen and pop star Pabllo Vittar;
Afro-French Cuban musical
duo Ibeyi; co-founder and
co-artistic director of Complexions
Contemporary Ballet Desmond
Richardson; and Brazilian
rapper and MC Emicida.
SummerStage said among
others are: frontwoman and
bass player of Brooklyn-based
band Sunflower Bean Julia
Cumming; Bronx-born Puerto
Rican American b-boy Crazy
Legs; Dance Magazine’s “25
to Watch” Camille A. Brown
Dancer Juel D. Lane; Indie folk
singer/songwriter Fenne Lily;
and New York-native and Alvin
Ailey American Dance Theater
member Khalia Campbell.
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Since July 20, fans of the
genre have been sampling vintage
showcases from the “biggest
little reggae festival in the
world” series — among them
appearances by Cocoa Tea,
Beres Hammond, Lady Saw,
Mavado, Kartel, and Shabba
Ranks,
And while nostalgic performances
have already surpassed
expectations of virtual viewing
on the Facebook social media
platform, the bar will be raised
higher on the final nights of
Jul. 24 and 25 with a spotlight
on current influencers.
Beginning at 8:00 pm on
July 24, the lineup bills Ding
Dong, Shensea, Konshens,
Chaka Demus & Pliers, Tanto
Metro, Ishawna, Agent Sasco,
Frisco Kid and those are not
all.
The following night another
Facebook Live edition promises
this year’s Grammy winner
Koffee, Gyptian, Freddie
McGregor, Tarrus Riley, Maxi
Priest – and those are not all.
“When the COVID-19 pandemic
led to the postponement,
our team explored a range of
ideas and decided to pursue
a partnership with Facebook,”
Joe Bogdanovich, chairman
and CEO of Downsound Entertainment
(producers of Reggae
Sumfest) said.
“Facebook welcomed the
opportunity and agreed to host
a week of events. This initiative
is in keeping with the creativity
and innovation that is characteristic
of the Sumfest team.”
Revered for presenting marathon
reggae concert performances
throughout the last July
weekend in the month, the
Caribbean’s premiere music
festival is dedicated to a promise
that despite COVID-19, the
show must go on and in 2020
for free.
Next year’s live presentation
is already sealed at July 18 to
July 24, 2021.
Continued from Page 23
Kool Herc speaks at a news conference in New York February 28, 2006, about the Smithsonian
National Museum of American History’s decision to add items from Hip Hop culture
to the permanent collection. The museum will trace hip hop from its origins in the 1970’s as
an expression of urban black and latino culture to its status today. REUTERS / Chip East, File
‘A taste of Reggae Sumfest’ Coronavirus song finalist
Koffee poses backstage with her Best Reggae Album
award for “Rapture.” REUTERS Monica Almeida, File