The annual Jazzfest took place in Jamaica recently. Erykah Badu was there doing her thing, here are some clips from her performance.

Tonight at 6pm, the Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture will be hosting the Half and Half Panel discussion on exploring Dominican and Haitian identities. The discussion sounds like it will be pretty interesting and it will bring up some fiery topics that exist between the two nationalities. Race, economics, politics and colonial legacy will all be on the agenda. It’s a free event so if you can make it out.

Directions, and other details can be found below.

I definitely have to give credit where it’s due. CCCADI continues to put together some great events. Tonight, they’re set to launch their truly unique art exhibition for Women’s History Month. Check out the details below…

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI) is pleased to present “Wearing Spirit: Aesthetically Personifying the Feminine in African Sacred Traditions” a multi-media exhibition of paintings, sculpture, photography, textile art, video and installations honoring the power of the Feminine present in African Sacred Traditions.

While African Sacred Traditions exist within a context of gender duality of masculine/feminine, this exhibition specifically explores the complex fabric of female personalities in indigenous African spirituality. Work in the exhibition captures the essence and power of the female deities, priestesses, and prophets that have served as instruments of balance and grounding within indigenous African spiritual systems and their derivatives.

Artists attempt to answer such questions as: Who are the gatekeepers of the spirit and physical realms? Who are the most prominent female divinities? What are the roles of female priestesses and prophets in a contemporary context? How is feminine energy shaping the future of these traditions?

This show is an awe-inspiring reflection of the universal essence that is cosmically feminine. It also highlights the traditional West African systems of Akan, Vodun and Yoruba and their Diasporan counteparts along with other rituals and rites-of-passage ceremonies.

In 2010, people are still being persecuted for their devotion to these indigineous belief systems. Most recently, there are reports of Haitian earthquake survivors being denied food and assistance as well as having their temples and altars desecrated and destroyed by evangelical Christians, simply for their practice of Vodun. Additionally, there needs to be a resurgence of earth-based practices during times of environmental disintegration. These traditions must be preserved and celebrated and this exhibition further educates the general masses to the cosmic energy that is Feminine and Sacred.

Opening Reception:
March 11 6 - 8:30 p.m.

On View:
March 12 through May 21, 2010

For more info on the event, click here.

Check out a full listing of the artists involved and a video interview with Imo Nse Imeh, Ph.D as he discusses his piece “Mechanisms in Uyai,” after the jump…

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New video from Vybz that’s been making it’s way around the net. It’s only right that we join in. Check out the video below…

For a while I never knew who the actual artist was behind Dr. Evil, but he was always popping up mixes and doing silly impressions. Well those of you that don’t know its Leftside, formally from Leftside & Esco. The track “Transform” has been out for a while where Leftside uses his alter ego to do various impressions, see for yourself.

Full interview coming soon, but for now check out the preview @ ColoRising.com.

Shouts to Art for making this happen.

Gotta keep the variety up with these recipes….check out a recipe for surullitos, a Puerto Rican appetizer/snack made of corn and cheese, below…..

Surullitos

Ingredients:

• 6 cups water
• 4 teaspoons salt
• 3 cups yellow cornmeal
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• vegetable oil for frying

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A glimpse into everyday Caribbean life, via GOOD.is. Check out the details below…

In 2008 and in 2009, the photographer Caroll Taveras ventured to Jamaica on two assignments, one for Culture and Travel and another for The Guardian. For the former, her work focused on the development of downtown Kingston, specifically as related to a youth art and cultural center known as the Rock Tower and the distinction between the areas of the city that are considered safe (uptown) and unsafe (downtown). After completing the assignment, Taveras developed a deep attachment for the area, and during her time there (and on her next assignment) Taveras felt compelled to keep taking photographs.

“When you get sent out on an assignment, even great assignments, you’re following a checklist,” she says. “But I always try to do something for myself. After I cover the ground I have to cover, I look for a few other things. Of course, music is such a big thing in Jamaica, and I, personally, was obsessed with dancehall girls.”

What follows is a selection of photographs from Kingston, Jamaica, through the lens of Caroll Taveras. This is a Jamaica you might not see in tourist brochures, and it’s all the more beautiful for it.

Check out the full feature here: GOOD.is / Picture Show: Kingston, Jamaica…

…or check out a preview below…

While Haiti’s problems are far from gone, and while lives of people are still far from what it used to be, life still moves forward. One of the best things is despite all the hardships certain staples of Haitian culture won’t die - namely art and music. I threw up a report a from the NY Times a few weeks ago about the hardships of Haitian artists. This NY Times video shows how artist are still pushing on, making music, painting and surviving.

I just recently caught the video to Busy Signal’s “Nightshift/One More Night”, if you haven’t seen it press play.