Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and all these things! It’s been awfully quiet over here, but as you may or may not know It’s Reggae Month in Jamaica so we had to come out and represent at a few events. Up first, we passed through UNPLGD on Feb. 10 which featured acoustic performances by Sevana and Jesse Royal. As usual, Sevana serenaded the crowd with her angelic voice and Jesse brought that high energy! Have a look at the photo gallery and recap video below! Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube to see regular updates.
REMEMBER INNER EAR – FEBRUARY 28, 2020!
UNPLGD w/ Sevana & Jesse Royal - #DownDiRoad • LIVE
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Published at 2020, February 11
Greetings roadies and welcome back to the channel!
The uploads have been a bit slow, but we getting
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Published at 2020, February 11
Greetings roadies and welcome back to the channel!
The uploads have been a bit slow, but we getting back into the groove. Here is a quick recap of the recent staging of UNPLGD, featuring Sevana & Jesse Royal.
Location - UPLGD - Ambassador Bar & Grill - February 10, 2020 Featuring: SEVANA SIREN & JESSE ROYAL
Have a look at the photo gallery right here - http://downdiroad.com/unplgdfeb
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Producer ⇢ Duane 'Doofy' Phillips Director ⇢ Duane 'Doofy' Phillips Director of Photography ⇢ Duane 'Doofy' Phillips Assistant DP ⇢ Editor ⇢ Duane 'Doofy' Phillips
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We do not own any of the music in this video! [Soundtrack] ⇢
Is long time we don’t hold a nice reason don’t? It’s been a busy two months but let’s talk. As long as this blog has been active, our focus has been travel, food and music content. When Red Bull announced that their yearly Culture Clash sound system battle would be coming to Jamaica (the birthplace of clashes), of course the first thought was that this event could not be missed!
I’ve been following the Red Bull Culture Clash series for a few years and they’ve always created some memorable experiences, so when they announced this years line up I found it quite interesting. Let’s just break down each team and my views on their performance.
Do It For The Culture
The marketing leading up to this event, along with the night’s proceedings was poetry. In most of the Instagram sponsored posts advertising the event, the Do It For The Culture Crew was at the forefront so their image was already engraved in the minds of patrons. The name of the sound; ‘Do it for The Culture‘ in and of itself felt so familiar mirroring the Culture Clash event name. Call it coincidence or fate, but Do It For The Culture started the night as the first sound system to play a set, made it to final found and ended the night as winners.
The crew was led out by Grammy Award-winning music producer Salaam Remi, dancehall OG Spragga Benz, ZJ Bambino, as well as OG djs Jack Scorpio and Disco Neil. Throughout the night I’d say they were very consistent. They kept it traditional which was interesting based on the general demographic of patrons in the venue, but it just goes to show that dancehall will always be connected to it’s roots regardless of how times change. The crew had some heavy dubplates all night and kept it consistent.
Romeich Entertainment
Led out by Ding Dong, Badda Bling, Bishop Escobar, Zj Chrome, Zj Liquid, Dj Antsman and Dj Franco Romeich Ent. started the first round with the biggest energy out of all four teams. I expected nothing less from a team filled with party djs and entertainers. Romeich Ent. had some very good dubs and questionably the most controversial dub, a Wasp special on Stylo G’s Dumplin beat which mentioned Niko the deceased member of Strike Force’s Chromatic LIVE.
Regardless of controversy, Romeich Ent. lifted the energy throughout the night with appearances by Teejay and Shenseea bussin verbal shots at Strike Force’s Jada Kingdom bringing the crowd to almost fever pitch! Speaking of Shenseea, there was a dub of her song ‘Blessed’ in reply to RiddimStream that shelled down the place. Romeich Ent. did really well, but in the end the crowd didn’t choose them.
Riddimstream Platta
Let’s talk about Riddimstream Platta. Personally I have a love hate relationship with soca, it gives me highs and lows. Regardless, when I heard there was going to be a soca sound system in a sound clash I was very confused, but still intrigued. The team was headlined by Barry Hype & King Bubba FM, but the saving grace was Kurt Riley, Willy Chin and Tony Matterhorn who all have extensive knowledge of Jamaican clash culture. Their first round was strange, it was filled with a lot regular party songs and it almost felt like I was at I Love Soca Redbull.
I was interested though to hear how they would flip soca songs into clash songs and though I was anticipating a Machel and/or Bunji dub, they did get A LOT of other dubs from many of the big artistes. Riddimsteam Platta in the end were my favourite sound system based on the fact that they were able to present the soca music in such a creative way. It was breathtaking to witness. They had an allegedly spliced Shenseea dub that demolished the National Arena I kid you not… Fake or not I don’t think any dub got that big of a forward. They had Beenie Man, Little Natty & Thunda, Mr. Killa and Stylo G who all touched down to perform. Their section was definitely the section with the most energy. It’s hard to go wrong with a soca crowd. Big up all di crew dem.
Strike Force
Strike Force, the team consisting of recording artistes Govanna and Jada Kingdom alongside ZJ Sparks, Fire Links, Richie Feelings and djs from Chromatic LIVE Sound ended up second place for the night. Zj Sparks & Ariez Chromatic kicked things off alongside Heavy D Chromatic with some gospel music surprisingly, setting the tone for a “blessed” evening. The Strike Force had a lot of energy and Sparks really entertained the crowd with her charisma! Unfortunately, the general consensus from the crowd was that by the time Fire Links came on in the later rounds, it became more talking than music and a lot of time was wasted.
In the later rounds, Strike Force held the momentum and got points where it was worth it. By the time Govanna and Jada Kingdom entered the stage, the performances were at a all time high. Protoje, Aidonia, Munga and I-Wayne were just a few of the surprise acts who demolished their performances and increased the energy in the arena to an eclectic level. They definitely had the best integration of live acts, and it was a repeat of songs leading to a disqualification that put the nail in their coffin.
Final Words
All in all, it was a fun filled event and very well executed. Logistics were great and they were very organized. Four stages in each corner of the venue aided in making a very interactive experience. My biggest concerns were the fact that the audio quality was a bit lacking. I think because the venue was enclosed the sound wasn’t tuned properly so the projection was not clear and it caused a lack of clarity, considering the crowd was loud! Also, the bar only had Red Bull as chasers for rum. Energy drink and alcohol is a really big no no, but I suppose it is what it is.
Blessings to all the readers. Photo gallery is below! Until the next one. Bless up!
–Duane
It’s been a long summer. The blog has been extremely quiet, but the team and I have been busy shooting footage. Lots in store, so listen out!
Kington City. The #InnerEarExperience is back again! Finally the show came to Kingston and I’m happy to say that downdiroad.com was directly involved in the full organizational process. On Saturday August 24th, we brought the vibes to the lawns of the SkyDweller Lounge. Blvk H3ro, The No-Maddz & Ras-I gave us some stellar energy and made Inner Ear another amazing experience. All the patrons were fully immersed in the music & I can confidently say that majority if not all of the patrons left feeling fulfilled. Many thanks to Ras-I & Silent Noise for bringing DDR on board! Can’t wait until December! Here’s our photo gallery & recap video below. Recap video coming soon!
Big up all the roadies! A few weekends ago, we headed out to Portland to shoot a scene for an upcoming #DownDiRoad special. In between locations we stopped at this place called Folly Ruins. Now every time I drive through Port Antonio, I have always passed the Folly cricket oval & heard that an old mansion was up there. The story behind the circumstances that lead to the mansion being dilapidated is very interesting to say the least.
History: Alfred Mitchell, a businessman from Salem, Connecticut, visited Port Antonio with his wife Annie Tiffany, heiress to the Tiffany fortune, in the early 1900’s. Having fallen in love with the town, in 1905 they purchased land at Folly Point and constructed an elaborate home. The mansion was built as a replica of a Roman villa and boasted 60 rooms, marble floors, glass window and wooden doors. The Mitchell’s lived in the home until 1911 when Alfred Mitchell died at the age of 80. Local Flavour: Local legend of the Folly Ruins likens the name of the property to a mistake by the owner, who in an attempt to impress his bride, mixed seawater with the concrete to quickly construct the mansion. Upon seeing the house, already in a state of deterioration due to the instability of the concrete, his bride exclaimed ‘what a folly!’
Currently, the ruins are still an attraction and artists have painted murals throughout the property. The mansion has an aura exudes from it and a sense or mystery which is very appealing. Locals hang out there & explorers pass through quite often. There is a beach close by that isn’t that great for swimming, but pretty beautiful non the less. The beach is also overlooking the real “Monkey Island” which got it’s name when Alfred’s pet monkeys escaped the mansion and lived over there.
All in all, the mansion is dope & a very cool spot to hang out. We headed to our shoot after a while & stopped in Boston & Long Bay. It’s not often we take St. Thomas route back home, but it’s always such a welcome change. Our pit stop at the roadside waterfall in Roselle/White Horses, St. Thomas was the perfect ending to the day.
Check out the photo gallery below, and don’t forget to subscribe to our YourTube channel!
At this point downdiroad.com is almost a music blog LOL! I know there has been a lot of music content rolling out, but it’s just the DDR culture man; we have to keep things covered over here! On June 23rd we took a drive out to Montego Bay for Inner Ear: The Silent Headphone Acoustic Experience. It was a joy & the experience was next to none. Check out our recap video & photo gallery below!
Greetings roadies! Back again! [Kaci Fennell voice]
It feels like it’s been forever since I’ve been here, but what can I say? Life happens, but #DownDiRoad is forever!
You can scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the images from our South Coast Par, but keep reading through for a short history lesson.
Let’s flashback to December 2018 when we hosted a small group of our friends for a prelude to the then upcoming DownDiRoad Tours project.
[Check out HIDDEN BEAUTY – DOWNDIROAD JA TOURS EDITION]
Our Hidden Beauty: River Par was an amazing time and we promised there would be something official in 2019. So happy to say that we finally did it! On June 8th, 2019 the team hosted our first official tour dubbed; the South Coast Par!
The idea was simple. We wanted to go somewhere that was a bit under explored by Kingstonians, but still had a lot of appeal. St. Elizabeth just seemed like a no brainer and we decided to curate an experience which would include the Joy Spence Appleton Estate Rum Experience as well as Floyd’s Pelican Bar as the main attractions. The promotional material was whipped up & we made it happen in two weeks, with a final count of 32 attendees! Not bad for a first run right?!?
The South Coast has been a constant topic on downdiroad.com, and we’ve covered both the Joy Spence Appleton Estate Rum Experience as well as Floyd’s Pelican Bar before, but it was a joy to give some of the fans and followers an opportunity to explore Jamaica and come par with us.
All in all, it was an awesome day. Everybody was happy and it was a real learning experience for both the DDR team & the patrons who came along. The rum was flowing & the energy was high. There is really nothing more that I could have asked for. Toast to everybody who came along, we are only just getting started! We are about to start planning for the next adventure in July. Where to next? Stay tuned to find out!
-Duane
For images from South Coast Par, check out our gallery below.
Finally, the madness has ended. It was a crazy carnival week in Jamaica & another successful jump day as revellers took to the street for the Jamaica carnival road march on April 28th, 2019. You can’t have a road focused event without downdiroad.com being in attendance, & we were there again for another year in the streets for Jamaica carnival. The bands have witnessed exponential growth and it was a fun filled day for all. We have coverage coming to you from a few of the events leading up to Jump Day, as well as our JUMP DAY 2019 video so follow our social media pages for updates!
Do good & good will follow! For some time it has been our prerogative to showcase Jamaica and it’s beauty. Portland has been a parish that we visit quite often & we have featured several Portland locations on this blog & on our #DownDiRoad travelogue. For Easter weekend 2018 the crew took a trip out to Portland as we made the decision to attend this little event called Marbana. Let me tell you, by little I am being modest Lol. This event for the regular Jamaican may be classified as “expensive” (the tickets start at JMD $12,000 & go upwards over time). Though “expensive” the DDR collective believe in paying for experiences, and Marbana is just that.
Picture the beautiful scenery of Frenchman’s Cove, transformed in a playground of joy. Beautiful women. Delectable food. Booze to fill your hearts content. Music from all eras. M7 has created a beautiful product in Marbana, and once a consumer can access this product, they will be truly satisfied with their findings. It was a great weekend and we even took a trip out to Reach Falls [CHECK IT OUT].
Fast forward to 2019, and can you imagine the surpise I had when when I heard that the good folks over at M7 Events wanted to link up with us to capture some footage of Frenchman’s Cove while they made preparations for Marbana 2019?! It was a very organic experience. The concept was that we would just capture some footage of everybody enjoying themselves on the beach, and that we did. Check out our newest episode of #DownDiRoad as well as the amazing photographs we captured! Remember to like, share & subscribe to our YouTube channel! #RoadTo1000Subs
No long talking today! Rum Fest was definitely a hit! From the organization to execution, it was an all around lovely affair. Check out our highlights below.
Black Fleet Market 2019 was a hit! The second staging was a joy & the Crav’nish team passed through to capture the moments. Yhuli J will give her take shortly on the blog so look out for that, but until then check out the recap video as well as photo gallery + BONUS IMAGES from the 2018 staging!
