This weekend the second version of the World Heritage Reggae Festival will take place, initiative that started in 2019 and that this year will be carried out virtually as a result of the pandemic, the confinement and restrictions that follow from this.
But… How did this initiative originate and who will participate in this unpublished version?.
It was the year 2018, November to be more specific, when the news reached every corner of the planet: the United Nations Educational Organization, Science and Culture -UNESCO- declared Reggae as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity for its contribution to international reflection on highly relevant issues such as injustice, the resistance, love, inequality; a vehicle for social opinions, a means of cultural expression of the whole of the Jamaican population that lives daily in all its social and age ranges, in all aspects of society, with this unique musical genre that has undoubtedly captivated the world.
In Latin America - and in Chile particularly- has also captured and entrenched itself in the hearts of many and many. Reggae has its local manifestations since the late eighties, achieving a climactic moment in the 2000, when it became overcrowded due to different factors, mainly media. Despite that peak that had at the beginning of this century, Reggae is still a niche genre, and also cult. Few Chilean and Latin artists have achieved great international fame in Reggae, even so, the love for this musical style has perpetuated in a generation of musicians of yesterday and today that does not stop raising their voice in the Reggae key.
This genre, born at the end of the years 60 In Jamaica, It already has its international recognition and this is the main reason that led a Rastafari organization in Chile to carry out the first Reggae festival celebrating its declaration as World Heritage in 2019.
In conversation with Reggae Chalice, Rodrigo Benjah, one of the organizers of the contest, He told about how this initiative was conceived, which will now have a great challenge in this second version in its virtual mode.
“The Leon de Juda community takes that idea of Reggae as a Heritage of“ all Nations ”to celebrate and enhance our own local Reggae Heritage produced in Chile. The high quality of bands that we have is known nationally and internationally, in contrast to how little support is given to the movement in organizational terms, economic and transversal management. Under this premise, As a Community we set ourselves the goal of creating the first version of the World Heritage Reggae Festival this year 2019 where we had high guests from the national scene and it was a success ".
Along the same lines and recalling the sense of congregation that marked a whole generation of reggae in Chile, Max Asher, member of the event organizing team, said that the festival seeks to "resume the instances of" encounter "from Reggae music that, as we well know, they have always been warm and familiar. That is why we believe that it is very important to feed the festival like those events that were seen years ago where there was something much more than music and entertainment.. It is true that time passes, but there are essential elements that as human beings we must always rescue and not forget. So we can continue to enjoy the generations from before in a healthier way with those of recent years ".
Carrying out a Reggae festival from self-management is, definitely, a complex work that the Community of the Lion of Juda carried out last year at the San Joaquín cultural center, in Santiago, with success and with a great list of national reggae artists. This time, the purpose of getting the festival going in the middle of a pandemic did not stop them and, despite the difficulties of technology, the event will take place this friday 25 and saturday 26 of September.
“It has been a great challenge and hard work, but what I rescue the most is that it has meant a journey of union and of re-generating ties and reggae family with bands, artists, technicians, entertainers, media and all collaborators, since in a way the OnLine format is new for us and therefore this is a festival that has been made with a part of each one of those mentioned ", Rodrigo Benjah expressed about the edition 2020 .
The second edition of the World Heritage Reggae Festival will be held in two days and will feature the participation of Talulah Neira, 12 tribes, Red I, Reggae resistance, Anblessnabi, Angela, Ahinko, Magodread, Kingo Roots, Sistah Lore & Chinitafari, Mc Jona, Bethany Lopez, Samuel Says, Natural energy, Heart, Apon Küyen, Ska Jazz and Selektor Power manifest on controls.
The event will start each day at 20 hrs Chile, and since it is a free virtual event, can be seen around the world at different times. Reggae Chalice It will be part of the joint transmission of this festival that will also be broadcast by the Facebook pages of Comunidad del León de Juda, Barrio Show, Sublime Sensation, Activism Reggae Radio y Reggae del Sur.
"Reggae contains a special element in music, a code present in the rhythm, in the themes, in dance. It's always up, your message may be critical, but hopeful, is of love and praise, is constructive and positive in the middle of a world that often breathes the negative. Reggae raised its song when a Jamaican said Jah, Rastafari! and spread the good news to the whole world. Reggae contains elements of the Rastafarian Culture and Faith that cannot be removed from its meaning.. It is important to celebrate it because it communicates what is necessary in the heart and in humanity ", reflexionó Max Asher.
Finally, The organizers of the event invited everyone to connect this Friday and Saturday and enjoy this tremendous grill of Chilean Reggae artists.
"The festival is a beautiful showcase and compendium of top quality Chilean artists, both legendary from the reggae scene and from the new breed so don't miss out. The whole family invited! Our thanks to all bands and artists. JAH RASTAFARI”, Rodrigo Benjah sentenced.
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