Two days to remember. Skol Tropical Beats brought Salvador the biggest names in Reggae. Exclusive!

 FIRST DAY The event, held at Estádio de Pituaçu in the Bahian capital, drew a crowd that hadn’t seen something of this scale and organization for reggae in a long time. Opening the festival night, the Bahian band Scambo, which blends rock with reggae, warmed up the audience still arriving at the venue. Expectations were very high, since the promise was to bring two heavyweight international attractions, Yellowman and Inner Circle, both from Jamaica, the cradle of reggae. During the show by Edson Gomes, the night’s second act, it was already possible to see that the audience would be quite large. Everyone cheered to the biggest hits by Edson, who, along with Nengo Vieira, was one of the first artists from Bahia and Brazil to play reggae. In a brief exclusive interview given by Edson Gomes to Surforeggae, he spoke about the importance of the event for reggae in Bahia and noted that this is a big step toward reducing the discrimination that exists against the rhythm. “TV doesn’t show it, radio doesn’t play it, but we keep fighting to spread this philosophy that only preaches love and unity,” said the singer. Continuing the festival, which on its first day drew an estimated audience of 15,000 people, it was time for the band Cidade Negra, which recently released its new album titled “Perto de Deus.” The band made a return to its origins in traditional reggae after a long period of experimenting with various other styles. Delivering a much more solid and rich show, instrumentally speaking, Cidade Negra was one of the most applauded attractions. The big name of the night, one of the greatest legends in Jamaican and world reggae history, Yellowman, or “King Yellow” as he’s known in Jamaica, had a show packed with classics. Yellowman (the nickname “yellow man” due to albinism), made the reggae faithful vibrate. Playing over the most famous riddims in the world, Yellowman, despite having faced serious sound problems at the beginning of the show, handled it very well and didn’t disappoint those who already knew him and were there to see him. Due to the technical problems already mentioned, many present were somewhat disappointed, and because of the heavy rain they decided to leave. Energetic the whole time, “King Yellow,” together with the band accompanying him, gave a lesson to various musicians who were present, who promised to carry those lessons forward. Once all problems were solved, it was possible to see perhaps the biggest and best sound setup ever assembled for an event in Bahia. The Bahian Sine Calmon, who is releasing his new album called “Guerreiro Mor,” showed, as usual, very well-known songs. Sine, known for his speeches during the breaks between songs, closed September 25 with a flourish. SECOND DAY With energy recovered and spirits high for another day, everyone watched the band Mosiah open the second night with great enthusiasm. Playing successful songs, many people stayed excited under the heavy rain that fell during the show. Olodum, the next attraction of the night, was highly applauded by the tourists present. The group is about to complete 25 years, and this was a special performance given the huge audience. The band O Rappa, one of the most anticipated of the night, made the audience “kick up dust.” True to the band’s militant profile, Falcão (vocalist) delivered social criticism, mainly against the American government and oppression of underdeveloped countries. The big name of the night arrived: Inner Circle. The great attraction drove the audience wild with well-known songs like “Games People Play,” “Black Roses,” “Book of Rules,” among others. The strongest point of the performance was the energy from vocalist Kris and bassist Ian Lewis, who spent the whole show at the front of the stage dancing and singing with the public. Overflowing with friendliness and attention to the fans, the band received Surforeggae in its dressing room, where we could talk a lot and even set up an exclusive interview to be done soon. Wrapping up Skol Tropical Beats, which was without a doubt the best-organized reggae event ever held in Bahia, the band Diamba played its new and old hits for a crowd that still had energy to enjoy Jah’s music. We can only thank the show’s organization that believed in reggae’s potential, and we hope this is just the first of many editions to come.

EVENT PHOTOS

 Click here and see the photos from the 25th.  Click here and see the photos from the 26th.

more information

 Click here and learn more about Yellowman.