By no doubt this year Caribana music festival in Toronto Canada is the biggest ever. More than a million strong Caribbean music fans worldwide converge on the streets of Toronto and party Caribbean style for two straight weeks. What makes this year’s Caribana so grand is the abundance of musical talents from all across the Caribbean region. This year didn’t just see the usual soca artists shining, but several reggae/dancehall artists grace the stage to screaming fans.
Last weekend patrons simply could not get enough of Busy Signal, Queen Ifrica and Gyptian who is now the most popular reggae artist in North America with his mega hit single “Hold Yuh.” Both three artists are signed to VP Records showing that VP is doing something good to market these talents.
Queen IFrica, whose album ‘Montego Bay’ was well received in Canada, packed center stage at Harbourfront with 3,000 fans crammed to take in the performance and essence Queen IFrica delivers. “I drove all the way from Barrie, Ontario to see her perform”, said Kathleen. “There is something about her that all people can relate to, and I just love her!” Confirming this, Kathleen held up a copy of the Queen’s latest album she hopes to get autographed.
On the other side of the city, Busy Signal, whose album “D.O.B.” was released three weeks ago, was scheduled to perform at Lamport Stadium, the same venue which sees the Caribana King and Queen of the bands competition judged. This marks Busy’s second appearance in as many months, as the star was in the city in April for an event called ‘Redemption.’ busy also recently cops a Reggae Achievement Award for his hit single Night Shift.
Mega star Gyptian who performed at the 9th annual Irie Music Festival sponsored by TD Canada Trust. The three-day festival featured performances by several notable Caribbean artists such as Fab 5, and Shurwayne Winchester as well as local artists Friendlyness and the Human Rights, Blessed and Melodic.
Gyptian, who attracted a record 4,000 people to the mid-sized park confirmed that the artist’s popularity with fans in Toronto is solid. In addition to topping i-Tunes sales (in Canada and abroad) for the single “Hold Yuh,” the star also tops charts on Canadian radio, has solid CD sales for his album of the same name, and is the most searched artist in North America according to Google.com.
