Earning the Title

It takes big cojones to put together a reggae festival called Best of the Best. With a name like that, it had better come correct — Caribbean people are quick to criticize any concert that doesn’t deliver a complete experience; Trinidadians and Jamaicans are known to hurl a roll of toilet paper at a lackluster artist. We’re happy to report this year’s Best of the Best deserves the moniker. The lineup is absolutely ridiculous — a mishmash of vintage and contemporary stars of the dancehall that will leave any islander weak in the knees and ready to bogle dance at a moment’s notice. Stars so big they’re known on a first-name basis to any fan of the genre. Buju, Sizzla, Barrington, Beenie, and Bounty — all bringing years of musical tension and romantic rivalry to the stage at Bicentennial Park. And most notable of all, especially for fans of classic Eighties dancehall, is the Don Dada himself — Supercat.

Not only did this legendary Jamaican toaster bring dancehall to the mainstream, but also Supercat helped boost the backbone of a perennially popular hip-hop classic when he collaborated with then-newbies Sean “Puffy” Combs and the Notorious B.I.G on his remix of “Dolly My Baby.” Where’d you think the chorus to “Big Poppa” came from? There’ll be chanting and skanking from 1 p.m. until the wee small hours of Monday morning.
Sun., May 25, 2008