Manifesto|JA
on George Hamilton (Jamaica), 11/Sep/2010 03:17, 34 days ago
Fashion Week oddly enough took us to the Friday night entertainment at Bookophilia where we happened to walk into a free evening of live poetry readings and hip hop music. The entertainer generating the most crowd reaction (below in the beige shirt) was a young Jah rasta-far-EYE singer. George and I couldn't understand a word he said - it must have been pure patois. He was the only rastafarian performer in this alcohol-free evening, but certainly not ganja-free. You can see the crowd reaction to the young rasta man in the two photos that follow.Below are a couple more of the hip hoppers."ManifestoJA is a non-profit organization dedicated to youth empowerment and nation building through the Arts and Culture. The executive board combines the energies of young Jamaicans– all below 30-years-old – making it a truly FOR YOUTH, BY YOUTH initiative." This is actually a weekend long contest and the winners go to Toronto to participate in the 7 day festival of the same name - ManifestoTO. So I hope all my Torontonian followers will go out and support the Jamaican artists at the free festival on September 20 - 26.Not all the performers at Bookofilia's event this evening were under 30. We bought an autographed copy of Yvonne McCalla Sobers' book (photographed below) which she co-authored, entitled "Lifelines: The Black Book of Proverbs" and includes a foreward by Desmond Tutu. I can't wait to read it.One of the most amazing things about Jamaica is it's vibrant culture. I'm lovin' it.