Copeland Forbes Bemoans Cancellation Of Reggae Shows Globally
Artist manager, author and music historian Copeland Forbes is lamenting a slew of cancellations of major Reggae festivals around the world.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Forbes raised concerns that the cancellations of the usually well-attended festivals are also ironically occurring in Jamaica.
“Reggae concerts and festivals are cancelled all over the place even in the country of birth Jamaica. After a failed and flopped return of the one time great Sachie (Sashi) concert in Jamaica with the no-show of two major artists in the likes of Keyshia Cole and Busta Rhymes,” the post began.
He went on to list the stoppage of other popular concerts across the island, and the world—likening it to a domino effect. “Then, a little over two weeks another proposed festival, ‘Reggae Jam,’ a stapled event in Europe for many years, cancelled three days before the scheduled opening date, June 14, 2024, of its first staging in Trelawny, Jamaica.”
On June 12, Reggae Jam organizers announced that the event had been postponed to December 2024 due to “inclement weather conditions at the park,” according to Reggaeville.
“Less than a week after the cancellation of ‘Reggae Jam’ in Trelawny, Jamaica, another great Reggae festival ‘Sierra Nevada World Music festival,’ a festival concept created by my good friend the late Warren Smith announced cancellation due to low pre-sold ticket sales for a June 21 start of a 3 day event with one of the strongest lineups.”
Forbes continued, “One day after the cancellation of SNWMF in California another Reggae/Dancehall proposed concert in Miami Florida titled ‘Reggae Lovefest’ scheduled for June 22, 2024 with headliners Shabba Ranks, Super Cat, Elephant Man, Capleton, Patra, Spice, among others announced cancellation also.”
According to checks made by DancehallMag, The Sierra Nevada World Music festival was canceled “due to extreme financial challenges,” the Medocino Voice reported, while the Reggae Lovefest, scheduled for June 22, has been postponed to February 15, 2024.
Forbes also revealed that he heard that the Overjam Festival in Slovenia and the Sundance Festival were also put off.
Admittedly, he noted that Buju Banton’s “Long Walk To Freedom New York” concert looks to be the only one promising this year. At the end of May, Buju added a second date to the tour due to high demand. The second show will be held on Sunday, July 14, just one day after the originally scheduled July 13 performance.
Reggae and Dancehall lovers can also look forward to Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay, St. James, with the two-day festival spanning July 19-20.