The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) is calling all past and future participants and all other creatives to get ready for the opening of entries of the 2021 competition cycle on Thursday, April 29.

So you want to write some hot lyrics – get your songs picked up my major recording artists, hear one featured in a film score……yes…we can all dream. But what if you had a chance to attend a rare, one-of-a-kind songwriting workshop with a master guitarist, composer and arranger? It’s going to happen on Saturday April 17^th from 10am-4pm at JEPA’S Place in Oakland Park, Broward when Eugene Grey will bring his vast experience as a practicing musician and music educator to share with aspiring songwriters in the workshop – Lovin De Lyrics.

After a year's absence from performing in front of live audiences due to COVID-19, Dance NOW! Miami (DNM) returns to the stage with limited in-person ticketing, on Saturday, April 3 at 8:30 pm, bringing their Program II of the season to the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center. One of the leading contemporary companies in Florida, they will perform a reconstruction of dance great José Limón's iconic La Malinche, as part of their annual Masterpiece In Motion series, along with other works.

The Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport celebrated the 112^th anniversary of the birth of political stalwart and trade unionist Kenneth ‘Ken’ Hill with a wreath laying exercise at his tomb at the National Heroes Park yesterday.

KINGSTON, Jamaica,  – Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has announced that due to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the organizers of Carnival in Jamaica will forego the annual road march and related activities for April 2021, until further notice.

Chronixx starts the new year with a fresh perspective on his new single, “Safe N Sound” (via Soul Circle Music). The eponymous luminary of modern-day Jamaican reggae and dancehall marks the first release of 2021. The track co-produced by Chronixx and Romain "Teflonzincfence" Arnett strikes hard with a foreboding bass drum rumble and slashes of viola. It pivots into a digital syncopation of booming 808 percussion and vibrating synth keys. Chronixx calls for an uprising during a dire time filled with hypocrisy and corruption. He declares the need for “more love flowing in the streets” and “evolution time.” He carries a timely  unifying message, yearning for the global community to feel safe and sound, especially in oppressed nations. 

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) has paid tribute to the former Production Director, Mr. Bert Rose, who passed away at the University Hospital of the West Indies on Thursday, April 1 after falling ill.

POS, Trinidad(Sonique Solutions) –On Saturday March 27th at 8pm, Trinidad and Tobago’s island-Rock impresarios Orange Sky will take global music fans on a musical journey in celebration of the band’s 25^th anniversary. The virtual extravaganza will be powered by cultural supporter Carib Beer.

Columbia, South Carolina (Sonique Solutions) – Even with no physical Carnivals set for 2021, Caribbean entertainer Champeon is paying tribute to the annual festival tradition of J’ouvert with his latest musical release appropriately titled “J’ouvert Powers”.

Today, Jamaican reggae star Jesse Royal unveils his latest single “Rich Forever” featuring dancehall’s self-proclaimed “World Boss” Vybz Kartel. The song is from his anticipated sophomore album Royal, slated for June 11th, 2021 via Easy Star Records. This cross-genre collaboration between both artists unifies people's differences to support a common goal - to be “forever royal.” It serves as a reminder of the internal strength and mental fortitude human beings possess, which prepares them for success in a society designed for their failure.

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission is currently hosting a series of free online workshopsfor the Phase 1 subject areas of National Festival of the Performing Arts and Arts Development competitions, ahead of the 2021 competition cycle.

Me, myself & I, a Master of Fine Arts exhibition by Courtney Schmidt, features all black and white photographs utilizing the self-portrait to visualize the journey of self-growth. Referring to this body of work as “visual therapy”, she uses her art practice to make peace of past traumas and further her personal development in this unpredictable contemporary era. Within her exploration of identity, self-transformation, and self-acceptance, Schmidt uses the female nude within different spaces to express both literal and metaphorical realities of emotional passages. In this process, the self-portraits come together to display how acceptance of vulnerability can be channeled into a place of comfort and strength.