Celebrating 311 Day 2020

In what could possibly be the last concert for a long time (with the current COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the globe and all), diehard 311 fans flocked in hoards to Viva Las Vegas for three full days of 311 performances — complete with pre-parties and after-parties around the casino! An annual tradition, the band has been […]

RootfireTV currently raising funds for quarantined artists

Hysteria has swept the globe, forcing citizens around the world indoors in fear of contracting COVID-19, the rapidly growing Coronavirus plaguing humanity in the shortest amount of time. Most are scrambling to stay sane and provide for their immediate loved ones, stocking up on rations for — as of now — an indefinite amount of […]

WORLD VIDEO PREMIERE: Kalalea “This Is Country”

Hawaiian solo artist Kalalea surprises all in his latest self-produced EP This Is Country that dropped late last night. The typically characterized reggae artist has pivoted his sound after parting ways with his former Roots Musician Records label, from roots to, dare we say it, more of a trap demeanor??? First off, in this day […]

Top Shelf Music News: Episode 3

Welcome to Top Shelf Music News Episode Three, with your hosts Matt Cook & Kristy Rose. Also making an appearance is field reporters Alexia Johnson, Danny Brophy, a basketball and at least a half dozen Coronas. The current pandemonium with the spreading Coronavirus has led the music industry to be disrupted when it comes to […]

Dr. Dog delivers at Observatory North Park

A late February Friday night in North Park is the perfect atmosphere: not too hot, not too cold, finally thawing off that thick layer of hibernation everyone has been living in all winter. The Observatory Theater attracts a wide array of musical talent, ranging from hip hop to alternative to reggae to metal artists; this […]

The 2nd Annual AZ Roots experience

Walking into the gates of Chandler’s Rawhide Events Center is always enlivening. It’s country themed, like the rest of Arizona, but the quaint old-timey-themed photo ops of Rawhide make it more of an experience than most festival front gates offer. Like last year, Arizona Roots was returning for another two days of the finest reggae […]

WORLD VIDEO PREMIERE: Inna Vision “The Dollar”

Island reggae rapper Inna Vision is back at it again, with his unending hustler mentality embedded throughout his new video for “The Dollar” off his latest Link Up album. IV is no stranger to the game, the desperation one faces when trying to make ends meet. “The Dollar” lists all the ways to make one, […]

WORLD TRACK PREMIERE: Piper Street Sound “Rid Them”

Atlanta producer prodigy Piper Street Sound, aka the one-man talents of Matt Mansfield, brings more infectious dub reggae to the public with his forthcoming EP release, Small Plate / Rid Them. Two tracks, each done three ways, Piper Street Sound lays the dub track beautifully in both instances, with friends like Addis Pablo (Augustus Pablo’s […]

Goldenvoice announces Cruel World Fest to hit Los Angeles

Goldenvoice, the leading west coast festival name, loves to continually spice things up. It seems every year, Goldenvoice organizes and carries out novel weekends of music with varying themes. Tropicalia Festival in Long Beach highlights Latino acts; One Love Cali Reggae Festival in the same location revolves around the finest in reggae rock; Camp Flog […]

NYC to celebrate 10 years of The Governors Ball

If there is one thing about New York — the city is for the people. New Yorkers living as New Yorkers, a lifestyle unlike any other American city. A festival, now reveling in a decade of glory, was built for New Yorkers by New Yorkers a full 10 years ago. It’s the 10th Annual Governors […]

Top Shelf Music News: Episode 2

Welcome to another valiant edition of Top Shelf Music News, with your hosts Matt Cook & Kristy Rose. With the New Year behind us, it’s time to look into spring fests, comment on the GRAMMYs and obsess over Shakira’s and J Lo’s smoking Super Bowl halftime performance. Hear about some new music with this month’s […]

Levitate Festival unleashes 2020 lineup

Aw…summertime at Cape Cod. What a serene experience, surrounded by bogs and marshland in every direction. The Northeast is a beautiful place, especially when the sun shines. Coupling with the warm weather are several outdoor music fests (naturally). It’s about time Massachusetts locals got to party outside. Every year, west coast residents get major FOMO […]

Firefly Festival discloses 2020 lineup for summer

Kick off summer in supreme fashion with the return of Firefly Festival to Dover, Delaware! Set at The Woodlands, this expansive Northeast fest stretches four thrilling days this upcoming June 18th-21st, upping a day from previous years. Why the extra day, you ask? All the more to rock out with your favorite bands, celebrating the […]

Capyac packs the funk out of Winston’s OB

If you’ve never witnessed the glory that is Capyac IRL, you have no idea the enigmatic out-of-body energy they bring to the stage. Captivating — emphasis on the root word ‘captive’ — is the closest definition one can muster. For these two brilliant house-meets-funk-meets-a-giant-girating-question-mark musical men combine their talents onstage in a way that metaphysically […]

Julian Marley interviews days ahead of 62nd GRAMMYs

GRAMMY-nominated reggae legend Julian Marley sits down with Top Shelf Music journalist Kristy Rose, days ahead of the 62nd GRAMMY Awards in Los Angeles. Up for ‘Best Reggae Album’ for his fourth full-length album As I Am, Julian Marley shares his feelings on his first nomination from the Academy, what’s to come for 2020, how […]