Tuesday, October 20, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
/ARTS WEEKLY/CULTURE: Caribbean Music Getting Louder in U.S. Deep South
Howard Campbell
- Shaggy and soca music were on the menu of a recent concert in the U.S. Deep South, where more than 5,000 West Indian immigrants braved the rain for a taste of home.
Atlanta, capital of the state of Georgia north of Florida, is reportedly home to 70,000 people of Caribbean descent, many of whom moved from urban centres like New York, Washington DC and Chicago, looking to take advantage of the city’s reported employment boom.
In the past five years, Caribbean restaurants have popped up in downtown Atlanta and small Jamaican-owned radio stations and record labels promote the country’s music and lifestyle. The city has also fast become a happy hunting ground for reggae acts, especially dancehall deejays.
Last month the city hosted the Islands In The Park concert – a series of shows promoting island music and culture – for the first time since Air Jamaica launched the events in 1999.
Prior shows this year took place in New York City, Miami and Washington DC.
Air Jamaica started the series in 1999 in New York City and Miami to get West Indians in those cities interested in investing in their homelands. "We wanted to show that repatriation of money is no longer enough," said Allen Chastanet, vice-president of marketing for the airline.
Combining a musical and business theme in a picnic setting, the series has featured big-name performers such as reggae singers Maxi Priest and Freddie McGregor, Barbadian soca band Square One and Trinidad and Tobago’s soca queen Denyse Plummer.
One man who would like to see more reggae performers in Atlanta is Jeremy Huskey, who co-hosts the weekly More Fire and Easy Fyah shows on WRAS 88.5 FM at Georgia State University.
Huskey, who also owns Atlanta’s More Fire record shop, has been at the college station for the past four years, spinning the latest hit songs from Jamaica as well as classics from the ska, rock steady and roots-reggae periods.
He says top dancehall artists like Bounty Killer, Beenie Man and Elephant Man pass through the city at least once a year but audiences want more.
"If shows were dealt with correctly then the people here would support them," said Huskey. "The shows here are unsuccessful due to the lack of promotion."
According to Huskey, his radio shows are the most popular on the college station. They are heard as far as surrounding Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina states.
In addition to the soca bands and deejay Shaggy, who performed on the live segment of the day-long festivities, the Atlanta show included a list of Caribbean companies that displayed their products, which ranged from travel brochures and merchandise to remittance services and food.
Paul Weston, chief marketing officer of Ocho Rios Atlanta Inc., a company that distributes Jamaican products like coconut water, fruit drinks and seasoned rice to major supermarket chains, says the Island In The Park show was a shot in the arm for Atlanta-based Caribbean businessmen.
According to Weston, while his company has a presence in these stores, the buyers are mostly Caribbean nationals.
"We are trying to attract not only West Indians but Americans," said Weston. "Shows like this help us to get our products across."
As patrons danced to the music and greeted friends around the park, Curtis Hernandez of Trinidad and Tobago, a six-year Atlanta resident, took in proceedings quietly with friends.
"We should have something like this every week," he said.
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/ARTS WEEKLY/CULTURE: Caribbean Music Getting Louder in U.S. Deep South
Howard Campbell
- Shaggy and soca music were on the menu of a recent concert in the U.S. Deep South, where more than 5,000 West Indian immigrants braved the rain for a taste of home.
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