There is a long-standing notion that Boston’s music and nightlife scene lacks the cultural diversity or energy of major cities like New York or Los Angeles, but a night like Reggae Fest proves that Boston’s music scene has plenty to offer.
On November 22, Big Night Live opened its doors to a packed crowd of not only Caribbean diasporic communities from Mattapan, Dorchester, Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Hyde Park, Brockton, and beyond, but people of all ages, backgrounds, and ethnicities. Causeway Street was turned into a vibrant celebration of island sound, dance, and shared rhythm that moved everyone. As soon as the music spilled out of the entrance, people in line were already dancing – a clear sign of the energy inside.
Founded in New York in 2015 by promoter C.J. Milan, Reggae Fest has become one of the biggest international Caribbean-music party brands, with stops in countries like the UK, Ghana, and Dubai with pit stops in New York, Miami, London, and now Boston. While its base is in New York, Reggae Fest’s frequent trips to Boston show that there is real demand here – an audience that hasn’t always been fully represented in Boston’s nightlife. The event promised a journey through dancehall, reggae, afrobeats, amapiano, soca, kompa, and Caribbean-influenced rhythms, and that promise was delivered in full. The moment the lights dimmed and the first beat dropped, the crowd surged forward. For the next several hours, the dance floor throbbed with life. The energy in the room was contagious – from the moment the first song played, the room pulsed with energy – people danced, sang along, and rode the waves of every beat…