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8/16/18 Cocoa Tea and Koffee taste great together as Rototom 25 begins. Article written by Noah Schaffer for Reggae Reflection
The 25th anniversary of the Rototom Reggae Sunsplash kicked off last night, and if any of the 250,000 or so attendees didn’t know the festival’s history, Cocoa Tea filled them in during his set. The freestyle segment during his “Informer” described the festival’s origins in Italy before it relocated in Benicàssim, Spain, where it has grown into one of the world’s largest and most respected reggae fests.
Cocoa Tea’s marathon 80-minute set stood out as the opening night highlight, with the versatile veteran showing that his energy has not dissipated one bit. “Rasta Don’t Work for CIA” had renewed relevance with its references to the KGB. A new song, “Medical Marijuana,” was offered as well as a Gregory Isaacs medley.
Biggest Response for special guest Koffee
But the biggest response came for his special guest, Koffee, the 18-year old Jamaican phenom who had also been a guest of Cocoa Tea’s segment during this year’s Rebel Salute. Her brief segment displayed her incredible lyrical dexterity, and indicated that the heavy amount of hype she’s receiving is deserved.
Koffee wasn’t the only lady to join Cocoa Tea. Spanish singer Ines Pardo added a reggaeton touch to “Fyah.”
Earlier in the day both ladies appeared at the festival’s Reggae University as part of a panel on Women in Modern Day Reggae. Koffee said she had yet to face any discrimination in her new career. “Female empowerment makes the music scene more complete,” she said. “We’re completing, not competing.”
Asked about the pressures of being a hyped new artist — with some already comparing her to Chronixx — Koffee said “I’m just trying to meet up to the standards that have been presented. I appreciate people acknowledging me, but I just see myself as human.”
Koffee also revealed that her main inspiration was the flow and vocabulary of Protoje — proof that the stars of the “reggae revival” have now been around long enough to inspire the next generation of artists.
Thursday’s main stage also included a laid-back set from Julian Marley. It was closed out by blues-rock guitarist Ben Harper, who could at best be described as reggae-tinged. Some purer one-drop was coming from the Lion Stage where the excellent Kingston quartet EarthKry who delivered optimistic lyrics.
Many of Rototom’s Charms come from unexpected suprises
Many of Rototom’s charms come from the unexpected surprises that tend to pop up, like the Ethiopian Fekat Circus, one of whose members managed to skip rope while riding a unicycle. There were some very different acrobatic moves later in the night in the Dancehall as Spice brought a duo of daring dancers to act out the moves described in her salacious lyrics. Other late-night highlights were the Green Light Sound System mixing in a taste of traditional folk music into their Dub Academy and the Spansih ska of Auxili.
The festival continues tonight with Jimmy Cliff and a Sly and Robbie superset that includes Yellowman, Johnny Osbourne and Bitty McLean. Many of the stages are streamed live at http://Rototom.TV.
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