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Thousands of fans, friends, and peers of reggae-dancehall entertainer Sizzla Kalonji settled into Sabina Park on Sunday for an intense celebration of his 30-year journey in the music business. The man affectionately called ‘Dada’ was in his element as he made himself accessible to the media, warmly greeted his friends, and performed not once, but twice, for fans. Both the Firehouse and Ruff Cut bands have been an integral part of Sizzla’s momentous journey, and in acknowledgement of that, he arranged his set to accommodate both.
Titled Rise to the Occasion, the concert was curated by a team close to Sizzla, headed by Tamiann Johnson. Kudos to them for a job well done, including placing sign language interpreters on a local concert stage for the very first time.
Long though the night was, the first half took wings as the artistes saluted Sizzla and rose to the occasion. Early performers were the Nyabinghi Drummers, Jabar I, Zalia Jazz and Ras Shiloh. At 10:19 p.m., Dada himself stepped into the early spotlight. The crowd rose to its feet as Sizzla crooned Black Woman and Child, and a literal fire blazed hot and high from a specially designed machine. The optics were memorable: Sizzla jumping between two flames of fire while the Star of David on the backdrop moved to the rhythm, as three flagmen waved Rasta-coloured banners high.
The crowd roared in approval as Sizzla asked, “Mi can mash up in yah some more?”
“Mix mi!” Kalonji told the band and he rose even higher to the occasion, delivering the songs that made his three decades in music memorable. He closed his segment with the inaugural Rise to the Occasion Legacy Award, honouring the late Philip ‘Fatis’ Burrell, Garnett Silk, Coco Tea and Determine. Their children collected the awards.
Sizzla, in a brief interview with The Gleaner said the journey continues.
“This entire journey has been a beauty for me. I have managed to motivate myself and uplift myself from the hardest part to a platform where I can be inspiring others. As an entertainer, you must always be polite to your fans because they are the ones buying your music, supporting your career and paying to come to your concerts. Be respectful to the media, radio disc jocks and to others artistes, including those who have not yet reached the level that you are at. So there’s nothing better for me than just continuing the journey,” the singer, christened Miguel Collins, said. “And I thank every single one for being here.”
Among the artistes who were backed by the Firehouse crew were Nadine Sutherland, Turbulence, I-Wayne, Iba Mahr, Romain Virgo, Chris Martin, Bugle and Fantan Mojah. And for all of them, it was important to join Sizzla on his historic Rise to the Occasion concert.
“Sizzla, at one stage, was my label mate on Fatis Burrell’s Xterminator and he and I and Luciano went on tour in Japan. I have had a very long career and part of it was [with] Xterminator and Sizzla. And, so I had to be here because he’s a part of my history, and he’s an incredible artiste,” Nadine Sutherland told The Gleaner.
“When I sang Babyface, I did get a chance to big up Fatis Burrell ... Babyface, one of my biggest hits, was on Xterminator. So that’s why I did Dry Cry, and I put in Garnett [ Splashing Dashing] because I felt Garnett’s energy would be appropriate here, and then I did Action. Everything that I did, was intentional,” she added.
For Ras Shiloh, the day had an added layer of “special” because it was the birthdays of both his late father and brother.
“I couldn’t let this day pass and I don’t come to salute my brother, Sizzla. Thirty years is a big milestone and I just wish him another 30 years to come ... genuinely, ‘cause a mi brother that and mi love him and mi can seh dat big and bold,” Ras Shiloh stated.
Turbulence, post-performance, shared that “from inception Sizzla was there in [his] career”.
“I linked up with Mr Philip ‘Fatis’ Burrell and he introduced me to Sizzla and from then they [were] responsible for carving my career to where it is now. I was supposed to be in Kenya ... but I am here,” Turbulence explained.
Closing out the first segment were I Wayne, who “bun a fyah pon di bleacher dem [who] waan look like Snow White or Pink Panther; and Fantan Mojah who gave a brief sex education class and lashed out against “di artiste dem who a wuk (work) obeah”.
“The wicked dem plotting against me dem will never see I slew,” Fantan told the crowd, and he also gave props to artistes such as Sizzla, Turbulence, Bugle and others who consistently checked up on him when he was sick.
At 12:53 a.m., Ruff Kut took over for the second half of the concert which started off with a second performance from Sizzla, followed by artistes such as Nesbeth, Bascom X, Ricky General, Etana, Spragga Benz, Bounty Killer and others.
English (US) ·