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Trench Town, Kingston - The Trench Town Muzik Festival, which was held on December 21st, 2010 was a great success indeed. The Festival, promoted by Trench Town International Music and I-Cient-Cy Mau and the Mau Mau Warriors, was a real musical treat featuring authentic Jamaican reggae music and Nyabinghi drumming all day and night bringing joy and positive music to young and old alike.
I-Cient-Cy Mau and his band, the Mau Mau Warriors were one of the headliners of the show and their energetic performance was a crowd favourite with songs like “Works To Do”, “Struggle” and “We Are From Trench Town”. Many artistes performed exceptionally well. Bryan Gold, Royal African Soldiers, Earl “Chinna” Smith and the Inna De Yard Family and Bryan Art, who performed songs off his latest album, were well received and the Royal African Soldiers, Lucosade and Jennifer Barrett also delivered noteworthy performances to the delight of the patrons.
Trench Town has a longstanding legacy as the birth place of reggae music bringing forth some of the greatest reggae musicians such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. Today roots reggae music is still well and alive and flourishing in the community with many musical talents waiting to be seen on the world stage.
I-Cient-Cy Mau, the Mau Mau Warriors and their management team have been working tirelessly to record and promote an outstanding reggae album entitled “When Words Come To Life” (now available online on the website www.icientcymau.com). With many memorable performances under his belt it is just a matter of time until reggae fans the world over will feel and enjoy the music, messages and charismatic stage presence of I-Cient-Cy Mau live.
© Copyright 2010 by thebahamasweekly.com
- thebahamasweekly.com
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Still working on that hot first release.
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BIOGRAPHY
DEEP WITHIN THE TRENCHES OF REGGAE MUSIC LIES JONES TOWN
AT THIS TIME KINGSTON WAS THE BIRTH PLACE FOR REGGAE MUSIC, AND ONLY JAH KNOWS WHAT HIT THE ISLAND WHEN GROUPS BEGAN TO EMERGE. THE PRODUCERS WANTED ONLY GROUPS TO SING ON THEIR TAPES, THE PARAGONS, WAILERS, HEPTONES, AND THE TECHIQUES, JUST TO NAME A FEW. MR. ROCK STEADY AS HE IS CALLED, ALTON ELLIS STOOD OUT AS A SOLO ARTISTE AT THAT TIME, WITH HITS AFTER HITS THROUGH DUKE REID FROM TREASURE ISLES AND COXSONE DODD FROM STUDIO ONE. AT THAT TIME POLITICS PLAYED A MAJOR PART IN MANY JAMAICANS LIVES, AFTER GAINING INDEPENDENCE A SHORT TIME AGO.
A GREAT ERA WAS NOW IN SEDUCTION AS JOE HIGGS THE FATHER OF REGGAE MUSIC THOUGHT IT WAS WISE AS TO BRING THE MUSIC TO A BETTER OVERSTANDING. THE WAILERS, DENNIS BROWN, BURNING SPEAR, CULTURE TOOK REGGAE MUSIC WITH THIS NEW ONE DROP SOUND AND CREATED HISTORY, GRASPING THE WORLD STAGE ESPECIALLY BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS. DRUM AND BASS WAS NOW THE HEART BEAT OF THE PEOPLE, WITH LYRICAL CONTENT THAT CREATED A POLITICAL, SPIRITUAL AND MENTAL AWARENESS TO JAMAICAN’S DAY TO DAY LIFE. THE WAILERS, THEMSELVES FROM TRENCH TOWN, BEING OF RASTAFARIAN LIVITY EMBRACED BOTH THE TEACHING OF MARCUS GARVEY AND EMPEROR HAILE SELASSIE THE FIRST, OF ETHIOPIA, AT A TIME WHERE MARCUS TOLD JAMAICAN’S TO LOOK TO THE EAST FOR THE COMING OF A BLACK KING.
DUB CREATED ANOTHER WAVE WITHIN OUR MUSICAL HISTORY. KING YELLOW-MAN, U-ROY, BRIGADIER JERRY, AND THE DUO, MICHIGAN AND SMILEY TOOK THE DJ ERA WITH THE DRUM AND BASS, BRINGING THEIR OWN UNIQUE STYLE, AND PATERN. SLY AND ROBBIE PICKED UP THE BATTON WHEN BOB HAD PASSED ON IN FLESH, WITH BLACK UHURU ONLY TO SEE THEM CLAIMING THE FIRST REGGAE GRAMMY AT A TIME WHEN EVERYONE THOUGHT THE MUSIC HAD DIED WITH BOB MARLEY PASSING. MANY ARTISTES BEGAN TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE GROWTH OF REGGAE MUSIC. NEW TALENTS WAS ALWAYS EMERGING TO THE FOREFRONT.
PAPA FINNIGAN AND JUNOIR RANKING
ICIENTCY KNOWN THEN AS JUNIOR RANKING SIDED WITH PAPA FINNIGAN TO FORM THE DUO “PAPA FINNIGAN AND JUNIOR RANKING”. THESE TWO YOUNG SCHOOL YOUTH EMERGED WITH LYRICS, ENERGY, SWAGGER AND SHOWMANSHIP. THIER FIRST ALBUM “TWO THE HARD WAY” CREATED A WORLD WIDE BUZZ. THEIR FOLLOW UP ALBUM “EASY WE EASY” PROPELLED THEM TO PERFORM TO PACKED HOUSES IN JAMAICA AND ABROAD, WITH THE DIRECTION OF DANCEHALL HEADING IN A MORE DERAGUTORY DIRECTION, JUNIOR RANKING WANTING TO BE NO PART OF THE DEMISED AND THE UNDERMINDING OF THE NATIONS YOUTH. HE PARTED COMPANY FROM PAPA FINNIGAN ENDING A MUSICAL RELATIONSHIP WHICH LASTED MANY YEARS.
THE BIRTH OF ICIENTCY MAU
ICIENTCY’S MOTHER, ELIZA “MS SHIRLEY” TEMPLE FROM CLARENDON, FATHER EDMOND “PAINTER” WILLIAMS FROM ST. ELIZABETH, MET THERE WHILE LOOKING FOR WORK IN KINGSTON. IN THE MIDIST OF THIS BEAUTIFUL RELATIONSHIP CAME THREE SONS “JUNIOR DESMOND WILLIAMS” WAS THE SECOND SON FOR THE COUPLE.
GIVING LIFE TO “ICIENTCY” A NAME THAT WAS GIVEN TO HIM FROM HIS CHILDHOOD DAYS BY ELDERS IN MANY INNER CITY COMMUNITIES, MEANING “ANCIENT ONE “. WHILE ATTENDING EXCELSIOR HIGH SCHOOL HE READ ABOUT THE MAU MAU MOVEMENT THAT WAS KENYA'S MILITANT RESISTANCE AGAINST BRITISH COLONIAL RULE, THAT BEGAN IN 1946 AND ENDED IN 1961 WITH MANY MAU MAU WARRIORS LOOSING THEIR LIVES. HIS CONNECTION TO THEIR PLIGHT MADE HIM REALIZED HE WOULD SOME DAY DRAW UPON THEIR STRENGTH AND INSPIRATION, PUTTING IT INTO HIS MUSIC. THUS GIVEN BIRTH TO THE NAME OF HIS BAND “ICIENTCY MAU AND THE MAU MAU WARRIORS”
AFTER DEVELOPING THE MAU MAU SOUND, ICIENTCY NOW SET OUT TO ASSEMBLE THE MAU MAU WARRIORS. JERMAINE "GADGET" REID (RHYTHM GUITAR, VOCALIST) GREW UP IN ICIENTCY’S HANDS MUSICALLY. JERMAINE INTRODUCE ICIENTCY TO JERMAINE "SONGO" WILSON A DRUMMER THAT WAS ATTENDING THE EDNA MANLEY SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS, SONGO INTRODUCE BOTH HIS COUSIN DAMION BENJAMIN WHO PLAYS BASS GUITAR AND JEFFERY GRAHAM WHO PLAYS KEYBOARDS. RICHARDO "ST. PATRICK" LAWRENCE A LONG TIME FRIEND OF ICIENTCY, JOINED THE WARRIORS AS THE PROCUSSIONIST. ICIENTCY MET NINA KARL A VOCALIST, MANY YEARS AGO AND ENCOURAGE HER TO SING BECAUSE HE KNEW ONE DAY HE WOULD NEED HER SIGNATURE SOUND TO ACCOMPANY THE WARRIORS. CHRIS “JAH CHRIS” SHEPHERD (LEAD GUITAR, VOCALIST) A GREAT BREDREN FROM MANY MOONS AGO JOIN THE BAND TO ADD MORE TO THE MAU MAU SOUND. AT THE WARRIOR’S FIRST REHEARSAL ICIENTCY KNEW HE HAD CREATED THE MAU MAU WARRIORS OF THIS TIME.
I-CIENT-CY MAU IS A PROLIFIC ARTIST THAT WILL LEAVE YOU PONDERING AFTER HEARING THE LYRICS TO HIS SONGS. SOON TO BE ONE OF JAMAICA'S REGGAE AMBASSADORS, BORN AND RAISED IN THE OUTMOST PARTS OF JAMAICA’S GHETTOS NAMELY TRENCH TOWN, AND CENTRAL VILLAGE IN SPANISH TOWN. ICIENTCY DEVELOPED HIS SKILL USING HIS EVERYDAY STRUGGLES AND THE STRONG INFLUENCES FROM SOME OF JAMAICA’S GREATEST MUSICAL AMBASSADORS. TRENCH TOWN BEING THE CATALYTS FOR REGGAE MUSIC, ICIENTCY HAS INHERITED THAT UNIQUE SOUND FOUNDED BY HIS PREDECESSORS.
HIS DEBUT ALBUM"WHEN WORDS COME TO LIFE" HAS A ROOTS ROCK SOUND, MIX WITH A COMBINA
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