Arawak Jah
Encyclopedia
Arawak Jah is a Cuban-American reggae
group based in Orlando, Florida
. The group was founded in 1994 by Cuban
expatriate
Ras Juan Perez (born 8 February 1960 in La Habana), who left Havana
in 1980 during the Mariel boatlift
, living first in Wisconsin
, then moving to Orlando in 2000.
In 1995, while based in Madison, Wisconsin
, the band released its self-titled debut. The band was the last reggae band to play the music venue Club de Wash before it was destroyed in a 1996 fire.
Members of the band, in addition to singer-songwriter and keyboardist Ras Juan Perez, have included drummer Pete Johnson & Vincent Davis; bassist Phil Meier & Demetruis Wainright; guitarist Mark Xavier & Steve Caddle to mention some of over a dozen of hired musician and guess through the 14 years of the band life.
Further membership changes resulted in a 1997 lineup of Perez, singer-guitarist Bobby Aleman, drummer Willie Wilson and dance hall specialist Super Irie. They were one of the headlining acts of the 1997 Bob Marley Festival Tour.
On the 1996 release King of Salem, the band recorded six songs twice, with each song having one Cuban reggae interpretation and one Jamaican reggae interpretation.
The band is on a self journey to greatness even without being sign to any major record company or record deal. They are on the pursue of making music, not money.
Arawak Jah has ten self-released CDs under the Rasta Rumba Record and theirs latest is "Rasta King". In 2008 they will also release "No Mercy" and "No Me Digan Feo" (don't call me ugly) their third cd in Spanish.
The band has it own recording studio (ARAWAK NGANGA STUDIO) in Kissimmee, FL and its helping local talents to record and guide their music endeavors.
During their 14 years of existence the band has performed along well known reggae acts like Burning Spears, Shaggy, Culture, Ipso Facto and Tony Rebel to mentioned some.
Today the band is travelling between Cuba and the USA constantly to keep themselves busy and exchanging their music experience with reggae fanatic in the Island.
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
group based in Orlando, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. The group was founded in 1994 by Cuban
Cuban exile
The term "Cuban exile" refers to the many Cubans who have sought alternative political or economic conditions outside the island, dating back to the Ten Years' War and the struggle for Cuban independence during the 19th century...
expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
Ras Juan Perez (born 8 February 1960 in La Habana), who left Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
in 1980 during the Mariel boatlift
Mariel boatlift
The Mariel boatlift was a mass emigration of Cubans who departed from Cuba's Mariel Harbor for the United States between April 15 and October 31, 1980....
, living first in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, then moving to Orlando in 2000.
In 1995, while based in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, the band released its self-titled debut. The band was the last reggae band to play the music venue Club de Wash before it was destroyed in a 1996 fire.
Members of the band, in addition to singer-songwriter and keyboardist Ras Juan Perez, have included drummer Pete Johnson & Vincent Davis; bassist Phil Meier & Demetruis Wainright; guitarist Mark Xavier & Steve Caddle to mention some of over a dozen of hired musician and guess through the 14 years of the band life.
Further membership changes resulted in a 1997 lineup of Perez, singer-guitarist Bobby Aleman, drummer Willie Wilson and dance hall specialist Super Irie. They were one of the headlining acts of the 1997 Bob Marley Festival Tour.
On the 1996 release King of Salem, the band recorded six songs twice, with each song having one Cuban reggae interpretation and one Jamaican reggae interpretation.
The band is on a self journey to greatness even without being sign to any major record company or record deal. They are on the pursue of making music, not money.
Arawak Jah has ten self-released CDs under the Rasta Rumba Record and theirs latest is "Rasta King". In 2008 they will also release "No Mercy" and "No Me Digan Feo" (don't call me ugly) their third cd in Spanish.
The band has it own recording studio (ARAWAK NGANGA STUDIO) in Kissimmee, FL and its helping local talents to record and guide their music endeavors.
During their 14 years of existence the band has performed along well known reggae acts like Burning Spears, Shaggy, Culture, Ipso Facto and Tony Rebel to mentioned some.
Today the band is travelling between Cuba and the USA constantly to keep themselves busy and exchanging their music experience with reggae fanatic in the Island.
Discography
- 1995: It Is Original (cassette)
- 1996: Arawak Jah
- 1996: King of Salem
- 1997: De Cuba con Amor
- 1997: It Is Original (CD re-release)
- 1998: Yo Soy Latino (Version Larga)
- 1999: Arawak Live!
- 2002: Mi Cincerro
- 2002: Yo Soy Latino (Version Corta)
- 2004: Duele
- 2004: Arawak Jah Classics Live!
- 2008: Rasta King
- 2008: No Mercy (out by late summer)
- 2008: No Me Digan Feo (will be out by X-mas)