The Colombo Music Festival presented by Cinnamon Life was the first event of its kind in the island, with four legends of Reggae and dancehall – Shaggy, Maxi Priest, Big Mountain and Diana King coming together with some of Sri Lanka’s best local talent to present a Caribbean Night. The Festival was yet another initiative by Cinnamon Life to redefine the city’s entertainment profile and will stand as an annual showcase of some of the popular genres in music. Designed to be a multi-faceted event, this newest addition to its portfolio, will deliver a contemporary festival experience with a truly global feel. With its top-of-the-line set up, line-ups and many innovative touch-points, the festival will leave a lasting imprint on the city and will also give audiences a glimpse of what Cinnamon Life represents – the very epitome of vibrancy, exclusivity and inspired living in modern South Asia.
Bold revolutionary and fusion star – Renowned for her unique fusion of reggae and dancehall – a distinct brew of genres, Diana King is a Jamaican singer and songwriter who has made her mark with her incredible vocal ability and her very own brand of music. Her hit single “Shy Guy” brought her worldwide fame in 1995, along with other hits such as “Summer Breezin” and “L-I-lies” and her remake of “I Say a Little Prayer” was featured on the soundtrack of “My Best Friend’s Wedding”. She has also collaborated with some of the music industry’s biggest names including Notorious BIG, Brian McKnight and Celine Dion.
A crossover sensation who took dancehall reggae mainstream: – Emerging in the ‘90s, Shaggy shot to fame with hits such as “Oh Carolina”, “Mr. Boombastic”, “It Wasn’t Me” and “Angel”. Taking dancehall reggae to audiences across the world, he rose to become one of the genre’s most commercially potent artists in the international market. Even though he has visited Sri Lanka before, he always has new content and songs to perform and he is an artist whose constant collaborations, and ever-evolving work, have kept him relevant and enabled him to sustain a career that has spanned across decades.
A blend of reggae and R&B that rocked the world – An English reggae vocalist with Jamaican roots, Maxi Priest is best known for his songs that fuse reggae with R&B. His tracks “Some Guys Have All the Luck” and “Wild World” topped the charts in several countries in the ‘80s, making him one of the first international artists to break through and achieve success in this genre.
The band who shot to stardom – Best known for their iconic single, a cover of Peter Frampton’s “Baby I Love Your Way”, Big Mountain took a more commercialized version of Jamaican music to the American mainstream in the early ‘90. The band first reached the charts with their song “Touch My Light” in 1993, which was taken from their debut album Wake Up. Other popular songs that the band performed, which reached the Billboards included “Get Together”, “Touch My Light” and “Sweet Sensual Love”. To the band’s credit, though, its three albums contain reggae roots music combined with only several R&B covers, and the lineup includes two Jamaicans with excellent credentials: rhythm guitarist, Tony Chin and drummer, Santa Davis.
