Jimmy Cliff ADD

SummerJam 2011 - Reggaeville Report DAY TWO

07/03/2011 by Markus Hautmann

Review: SummerJam 2011 Day Two

Even the cool morning breeze could not stop crowds of tough campers to greet the new day with a refreshing bath in the Fühlinger See (lake Fühling), adjacent to the Summerjam festival area. Some of them might have been on their way home from the dancehall area where the party had just stopped minutes before. Let’s hope for them that they had not to sleep for too long. Otherwise they missed a South American fireworks created by Colombia’s/ Spain’s/Argentina’s Che Sudaka and Karamelo Santo from Argentina who drew enormous crowds if you take into account that they had very early slots. At the same time Illbilly Hitech and I-Fire acted as crowd pleasers just 200 meters away at the “red stage”. It was a perfect early warm up for getting ready for the prime time which was started by Samy Deluxe. Having the reputation of being Germany’s best hip hop freestyle artiste for more than a decade, Samy is used to rock crowds of several thousands of people. And that was exactly what he did today by adding a distinct reggae flavor to his well appreciated hip hop set. Minutes after hell broke loose when Mono & Nikitaman, Germany’s top ranking dancehall duo, hit the stage. No other German act delivers such an energetic performance and draws such a diversified crowd. Thousands of patrons sang along every line and made this concert a memorable moment.

Anthony B, one of the favorites of the German reggae crowd, met the high expectations of the crowd easily. As a regular guest on European stages he delivered perfectly to the taste of the audience. As did Alpha Blondy, Africa’ superstar. He proved why he has been one of the most sought after acts of which the audience just cannot get tired. When Jimmy Cliff performed “You Can Get It If You Really Want” one could see in the faces of the patrons that they got what they really wanted. If not even more.

There might be even bigger festivals but it is still the SummerJam which is the highlight of the festival season. Behind the scenes it’s like an annual class meeting. Representatives of the Rototom Festival are here, Reggae Jam’s Sheriff or the organizers of the Ruhr Reggae Festival. In the press conferences there are journalists from the Netherlands, France, Italy, Austria and even from as far as the Gambia. The easy atmosphere also catches the artists which can be witnessed in their very open talks with our restless backstage reporter Munchy who does not let any entertainer pass the Reggaeville microfone without having a chat.

In the very late hours of the day the microfone was passed between Sentinel’s Shotta Paul and Cologne’s own Jr. Carl representing Pow Pow sound system in the dancehall arena. With the support of pure female power by Sweden’s Serengeti and a bunch of lovely dancers, amongst them  the official German Dancehall Queen Maggy, they fully satisfied the needs of the crowd. And also of some still very lively artistes like Mono & Nikitaman who enjoyed themselves dancing and wining until the early morning hours.

Below you can watch the interview with Sentinel before their show: