Winter Festivities

In about 2 months, give or take a couple days, I will probably be over packing as I prepare to go on Exchange. So in preparation for this monumental trip I decided to start jotting down some of the events and festivals that will be taking place around the island. 

As I was putting together my list of January Events, I realized that January in Jamaica is a jam-packed month filled with a variety of festivities, with the most famous one being Rebel Salute.

This huge cultural event was founded in the early 90s by the famous Jamaican promoter and 'deejay' Patrick George Anthony Barrett, who goes by the stage name, Tony Rebel. 

Rebel Salute is an annual music festival that is held on or around January 15 of each year. The festival began in the parish (town) of Mandeville, which is located on the south coast of the island, in 1994. And since 2012 it has moved to Saint Ann, which is located on the north coast of the island.

The event showcases some of the best Roots Reggae and culturally themed Dancehall music that the island has ever produced. But its primary focus is on conscious Roots Reggae music. This basically means that X-rated, explicit or violent song lyrics are absolutely unwelcome at this music festival. 

This is because festival promoters and performers take great pride to maintain and uphold the positive ambiance of the event. 

The festival strictly adheres to Rastafarian tenet, which endorses a vegetarian diet and forbids the consumption of alcohol and meat products. Although the event follows a Rasta diet, there are still lots of vendors who are willing to provide alternative food and drink choices for the millions of spectators. 




The one of a kind festival has grown into one of Jamaica’s biggest cultural events and will be approaching its 20^th anniversary in January 2014. The two day event is expecting a huge turnout, with attendees coming from all over the world!!!! 

Fun Fact: 

Reggae originated in 1968 with the Rocksteady hit "Do The Reggay" by Toots & the Maytals and has become very popular thanks to artist like Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff.

What we now call Reggae music has developed over the years from different music genres, such as, Mento (Jamaican folk music), Ska (Mento and Calypso), and R&B.