Music was heard echoing through downtown St. Petersburg as thousands of festival-goers filled the streets and the waterfront for Reggae Rise Up Florida 2025. The long weekend kicked off Thursday, March 13th in the fest’s longstanding home of Vinoy Park, right on the western shore of the Tampa Bay. But, this year was a landmark year for the festival.
2025 marked the tenth year of Reggae Rise Up Florida.
This felt like an additional layer of excitement and energy throughout the weekend. Many of the artists talked about the anniversary and reminisced about the Reggae Rise Ups of years past and their overall experience as the festival evolved to what it is today.
Some fans were able to get an early start on the festivities, with a pre-party hosted at a local watering hole called One Night Stand in downtown St. Petersburg. The host of the official after parties in the early years of the event, this bar holds a lot of memories for many who have attended the festival since its humble beginnings. Featuring several local reggae acts, the pre-party closed out with Howi Spangler (of Ballyhoo!) performing solo with the Orlando-based ska band, The Supervillians. A warm-up for the busy weekend to come, the excitement for Reggae Rise Up’s official start the next afternoon was palpable.
Thursday was marked by a little something for everyone. Although it was a shorter day, leveraging just one of the stages, the Day One lineup seemed to have been tactfully curated to appeal to a broad cohort of fans, featuring a myriad of genres from pop to funk, jam, reggae, 80s rock, and beyond.
Local Tampa-based reggae band Ichroniq started it all off; describing themselves as “drawing from a kaleidoscope of musical influences”, the were a perfect opener for Reggae Rise Up. A style of rock, funk, and hip hop, their sound was a showcase of the diversity the festival represents.
Up next, full of energy and funky vibes, was Bombargo bringing the total package. Their “vintage-pop” style extends beyond their music; their presence, their energy, their style, their crowd-surfing-on-a-paddleboard skills were all sure to acquire scores of new fans.
Natural synergies exist between the jam band scene and the reggae rock world. The funk act Lettuce has opened for some big reggae rock names at epic venues, such as Slightly Stoopid at Red Rocks, so naturally there was a lot of excitement to be heard ahead of their Reggae Rise Up Florida debut. A group of talented musicians, Lettuce delivers unique and — at many times — improvised segments to every show. Their Reggae Rise Up performance was no different, with the group incorporating more reggae influence into their jams.
Iration, a veteran band of Reggae Rise Up, anchored Day One in the tried-and-true vibes of the festival. Experiencing growth at a similar trajectory as Reggae Rise Up over the past 20 years, Iration has maintained their reggae rock west coast-meets-Hawaii signature sound throughout their evolution.
Their set delivered many old-school favorites with the newer material.
A true gift to fans for the tenth anniversary was Shaggy and Sting’s headlining performance on Thursday. This unlikely duo worked in the most unexpected way, with Sting singing the chorus of Shaggy’s greatest hits like “It Wasn’t Me”! The juxtaposition of Sting standing next to Shaggy in a bedazzled button-down was an experience that won’t be quickly forgotten. The two flip-flopped between their hits, making the night a true once-in-a-lifetime experience. Only in hindsight does this experience really sink in how legendary this performance was.
But the night wasn’t over yet. Mihali headlined the after party at The Floridian Social, a staple establishment in the Reggae Rise Up Florida experience for many years counting. His indie singer-songwriter music sets a mellow mood, providing a chill and captivating end to the day. His set brought out emotions for many fans in attendance, especially ending with a nod to Mihali’s former band, Twiddle, with a beautiful rendition of “Lost in the Cold”.
And this was just the start. Three more days of great vibes, music, art, and experiences followed Day One, so stay tuned for the recaps to either read what you missed or reminisce about the times that were had!
Cover & thumbnail photo by Rob Flagg @robflagg
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