“My greatest expectation is to be able to take away the desire to play live!!”. On the coast of the Maule Region, En El Balneario de Curanipe, Jimmy Rivas He last appeared live with his full band, It is already long 3 years, And for that Your emotion for this Saturday 4 of March, When he reunites with his followers.
And it is that the connection with people is essential for an artist, As the singer commented, guitarist and composer in dialogue with Reggae Chalice in the prelude to the show that will be made next Saturday in the SCD room of Plaza Egaña, from 21:00 hours.
“I am very expectant because it is my first postpania concert, Which entails resume my musical activity, since in recent years I was very focused on production and I think I need to live again the experience that the shows give live, feel the connection with the public”, manifested.
further, raised that “One of the most beautiful things that is the artist is to be able to connect with people through live music. My intention is that this is the one year of an active year musically. I want to give a great concert and make the public make their homes happy”.
New album on the way
Together with continuing to play live and specify a postpone, One of Jimmy Rivas's main goals for this year is to get his second solo album after Jah is My Life of the year 2017, a new work that has been cooked for a while.
“Like my previous album, This will also be an extensive album, of some 17 songs, They are creations that I have been working several years ago and others that were born in full pandemic. Within my plans in this year is to be able to make the launch of this new album live”, commented the artist.
Regarding the album, The singer commented that he has been largely mixed by the renowned Jamaicin musician and producer Phillip McFarlane, “except for some songs that I am mixing in studiesjr and mastered byAlex psaroudakis a new york, who has extensive experience and has its credit 3 Latin Grammy”.
The presentation of this production is expected for the second semester of the year And the musician said he will have some collaborations, as with the duo Yes Love (Chile & Peru) and also with Nick Sefakis (Singer of the recognized band Iya Terra) & Bobby Hustle, both singers from California, Of.uu.
Musical influences
Jimmy's beginnings were in the band Tehijah, where he liked to merge reggae with other genres such as soul, el jazz, The hip hop and rock, Group with which he published the album Transcendence (2012), although then in 2014 He started his solo career, almost 10 years.
— What are your musical influences?
- My musical influences are very varied. During all my childhood and adolescence I heard rock, Progressive metal, power metal, CLÁSICO ROCK, etc. Guitarists like Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Slash, among others, They marked my way of playing the guitar. The reggae discovered it through some schoolmates who were rappers, They introduced me to the entire Black Music, Like reggae, hip hop, soul y funk. Then, In the times I studied sound, I was constantly listening and studying jazz musicians for several years asPat Metheny, Wes Montgomery, George Bensonamong others. On the other hand, I also love flamenco and two of my favorite artists are Paco de Lucía YIsland shrimp, But my influences promptly on reggae are Bob Marley and their children, The Wailers, Peter Tosh, Black Uhuru, Burning Spear and all the music of the classic Jamaica reggae. I also like reggae in French, among them Alpha Blondy, Dub Inc., and of the US Big Mountain Y SOY. As for Latin reggae, Prophetic Culture, The CAFRES, Mushroom, Dread Mar I, To the muse, among many others.
—Reggae roots or new roots predominates in your creations. In your words, how do you define your style?
"I think I have been varying my reggae style a bit. Since I started my solo career (in 2014), My wish was always going towards the root, Towards reggae roots and from my adolescence, Where I started listening to reggae, I was always a roots lover reggae. You never finish learning in this special and beautiful musical genre, but I could define my style as reggae roots and also some new roots, With rock brushstrokes especially in my live shows, Because rock goes in my veins since childhood, ha ha ha. Another very important thing that defines my style is the spiritual and positive message that for me is the most crucial and important. Music can change the world and reggae is a spiritual music, If you listen to Bob Marley many of his songs were psalms expressed in reggae. I think that's why this musical genre was deeply fallen into me. His lyrics changed my worldview of life.
Aim: Internationalize your music
As we mentioned before, One of the objectives for this year of this Chilean artist is to tour the United States, what has to do with another of his most ambitious goals, which is internationalizing your career.
Little by little it has been taking steps in that line, like in 2021 When he was invited to participate in the BBC special, British public radio and TV chain, For the International Reggae Day that is celebrated by the 1 July of each year.
“It was very crazy to receive a call from the producer from London receiving the invitation. I think I'm the first Chilean and South American artist to participate there, And that is really an honor for me, be able to represent my country in something like that”, Said about that special occasion.
Likewise, He has also managed to develop several collaborations with different foreign musicians, of long experience, as Big Mountain O Mushroom, among others.
“I have had the blessing of doing many songs with incredible artists, both musically and also as people (…) In the case of international artists, I had the opportunity to share the stage and meet us in person with some of them, as was the case with Green Valley in a ‘Always alive reggae’ And with Matamba we met in a show in Chile”, Rivas said.
“In other cases (The connection) It has been through social networks where there has been mutual respect for our jobs, as was in the case with Big Mountain and Gomba Jahbari. For example, The case of Boris Bilbraut, former drummer and prophetic culture voice, He wrote to me on Instagram congratulating me on a song he had launched, which was the beginning of a great friendship which endures to this day, even participating in my album “Jah is my life” in the song ”I thank”, Y, at once, I had the honor of composing a song for your solo album (that is not yet launched)”, he added.
—How do you see the current reggae scene in Chile?
—The artistic level has appeared many good bands and soloists in recent 10 O 15 years, But I consider that we are still in diapers at the cultural level. There are very few reggae festivals in Chile and today other genres such as Trap and Reggaeton predominate. To devote yourself to this musical genre and endure in time you have to be brave and love the reggae a lot, Because it is clearly not a passenger fashion. What I can highlight is the work done by several colleagues who have managed to represent with their music, among them Maxi Vargas, Balaguero, Gondwana, Quique Neira, vibration Eleva, Aflora, Kingoroots, Tiano Bless, 12 tribes, Delacruz, Yes Love, Reggae worship, football, Abya Yala, Tehijah, Mistah dijah, Caliajah, And we also have very good female representatives like Talulah Neira, Angela and Fran Mc Manus, and newer ones like Manlyon, Dr reggae, Pozoul and Palma. In summary, There is very good talent in our country, But more support from festivals producers is clearly needed, Radial and television. I need to play it with the reggae artists, since a pleasant surprise could be carried.
—Do you have any dream to fulfill in music?
—I feel blessed, Because I think I have already fulfilled much of my dreams in music, Among which has been playing in great stages, tour Chile and abroad through music, as well as being able to work and collaborate with artists that I admire a lot. Getting to live from this art is already a luxury and I have been able to do it, Something that is difficult in our country, But not impossible. I hope to get old doing what I love, leaving a positive and spiritual legacy to the new generations and continue creating music that transcends and lasts, Always continuing faithful to my convictions.
—An invitation to your fans for the March 4 show ...
"Friends friends.", I leave you all guests for this great reggae party where I will be playing with all my band live. It will be a necessary celebration in these times of such affliction and uncertainty, There is no better medicine than music. A good panorama to end summer and resume activities. Add with all your people and support the Chilean reggae! Blessings.
The concert of Jimmy Rivas “Reggae Vibes” This will be done Saturday 4 of March on the Egaña SCD Room, from 21:00 hours, And you can acquire the entrances by the system Eventrid.
