Ride a Bio Bus from North Carolina to the Virginia Key Grassroots Festival Feb 8-12th

World-Renown GrassRoots Music Festival Poised to Take Centerstage at the Historic Miami Virginia Key Beach

Scheduled to perform: Chaka Khan, Del McCoury, Arrested Development, Immortal Technique, Beausoleil, Keith Secola & His Wild Band of Indians, Locos Por Juana, The Lee Boys, Donna The Buffalo, Jahfe, & more…

In the spirit of family, cultural celebration and fun, The Historic Virginia Key Beach Park will serve as home to the world-renown Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival of Music & Dance, February 9 – 12, 2012.

The Festival organizers are planning to fill a bio diesel bus in North Carolina to travel down to the festival. Here’s what they say about it:

Hey folks! We’re planning on renting out a 55 passenger bio diesel bus for an epic road trip from the Shakori Hills Festival location in triangle area NC down to the Florida Keys for the first annual Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival. http://virginiakeygrassroots.org/

The bus leaves Wednesday, Feb 8th and returns Sunday, Feb 12th after the music.

The Tour Bus is super comfortable with DVD and bathroom, and runs on locally made bio fuels.  We’ll drive 1600 miles round trip (14 hours each way), starting out in the night so we’ll wake up at the beach! $120 per person covers fuel and drivers, and saves you festival overnight parking costs of $50.00. Plus, you can bring your camping gear with you!

NOTE: We need 55 people to sign up in order to fill the bio bus. Email grassrootsbiobus@gmail.com or Call Iris @ (919) 542 0244 for more info or to sign up.  For more info click here.

The four-day event will showcase some of the world’s most amazing and respected talents from over 50 performing groups whose genres include: roots rock, reggae, hip-hop, Latin, funk, Cajun, bluegrass, African, Kompa, world beat and zydeco. Grammy® Award winning performers Chaka Khan, The Del McCoury Band and Arrested Development will headline the inaugural festival along with the legendary ska/reggae band Fishbone, Donna the Buffalo, BeauSoleil avec Micheal Doucet and several South Florida local favorites Locos Por Juana, Suenalo and ArtOfficial.

To learn more about The Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival, performers, or to purchase tickets please contact Emma Hewitt at (786) 332-4630 or visit us at http://www.virginiakeygrassroots.org.

Read Full Post »

Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival: Global Music Festival Debuts in Miami with Headliners Chaka Khan, Arrested Development, Del McCoury, & Donna the Buffalo

Global Music Festival Debuts in Miami with Headliners
Chaka Khan, Arrested Development, and Del McCoury

Family-Friendly Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival February 9th-12th, 2012
Welcomes Community Participation

The world-renowned GrassRoots Festival of Music & Dance is coming to The Historic Virginia Key Beach Park in Miami on February 9th-12th, 2012. Founded in upstate New York in 1991, the non-profit festival showcases top tier world and roots music performers from a wide variety of genres; Latin, Reggae, Hip-Hop, Americana, Funk, Cajun, Bluegrass, Indie Rock, African, Kompa, World Beat, and Jam. International and Grammy Award winning artists will perform alongside some of Florida’s premier bands – Chaka Khan, Del McCoury, and Arrested Development.

Throughout the four-day, family-friendly event, a Kid’s Village will offer interactive activities. Local artisans and visiting craftspeople will display and sell their work. In addition, celebrity dance instructors will provide ongoing group instruction and festival performers will conduct daily music and instrumental workshops. Those interested in wellness will find movement classes, flow workshops, massage and more in The Healing Arts Area.

The festival welcomes local residents and out of town visitors. The on-site campgrounds, just a short walk from the beach, are open to all festival attendees for a reasonable fee. Space is for tents and vehicle camping. Day Tickets, Discounted 4-Day Passes, and Special Packages are available by phone (786) 332-4630, online www.virginiakeygrassroots.org, and at the gate.

The Virginia Key GrassRoots Festival’s mission is to promote community engagement through music and arts education, while supporting environmental sustainability, and social justice. To this end, GrassRoots invites local non-profit groups to set up booths in the Community Advocacy Area. For more information please contact Emma Hewitt at emma@grassrootsfest.org or (786) 332-4630.

GrassRoots is seeking volunteers to help in all areas of the festival, from the Street Team to Hospitality Kitchen. In trade for hours worked, Volunteers are rewarded free festival passes. For more information visit http://virginiakeygrassroots.com/volunteer

Festival Line-up:

Arrested Development, ArtOfficial, Beausoleil Avec Michael Doucet, Big Cosmo, The Del McCoury Band, Donna the Buffalo, Driftwood, Fishbone, Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, Greg Humphreys, Jim Lauderdale, Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band, Keith Secola & Wild Band of Indians, The Lee Boys, Locos Por Juana, Mixed Culture, Preston Frank, Revelation Mizik, Roy Jay Band, Rubblebucket, Sim Redmond Band, Suenalo, Thousands of One, Toubab Krewe, Willie Watson & the Evil City String Band

Visit the website for additions that have been added to the lineup

Read Full Post »

Vertigo Jazz Project and One Leg Up Masquerade New Years Eve Party at MoDaddy’s

Vertigo Jazz Project & One Leg Up

MoDaddys
Saturday, New Year’s Eve 12/31

Complementary Champagne Toast and Balloon Drop at Midnight!

Masquerade and Photo Booth!

$15 / $10 before 10pm (So get there early and save $5)
Open for dinner all night, NYE event starts at 9pm

Music begins at 10pm sharp with One Leg Up.

(828) 258-1550
77 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
www.modaddysbar.com

Vertigo Jazz Project:

Throw out your expectations of what “jazz music” is or might be. Jazz is a giant tree with thick roots, a twisted trunk and continuously expanding branches. Just pull up the wikipedia page and you’ll find countless sub-genres and off-shoots. Over the past century jazz musicians have always pulled inspiration from many sources, be it Latin, funk, or even pop music.

Asheville, North Carolina’s Vertigo Jazz Project is doing just that. It being the 21st Century, we are bombarded by music from all sides,and thus influenced by it whether we like it or not. VJP decided to embrace that influence and is creating original jazz music for modern audiences. And, yes, taking jazz back to its foundation- the dance floor. This is music to move to. Throw out your inhibitions and come have fun watching some musicians play the %#$! out of their instruments. But, if that’s not your thing that’s okay, you’ll enjoy listening as well.

Speaking of musicians and their instruments, VJP is a power trio (i.e. guitar, bass and drum set). And speaking of influences, guitarist and son of a preacher man Preston Cate learned music in church at an early age, bringing some blue-eyed soul and gymnastic improv skills to the group. Meanwhile, Ryan Reardon on electric bass has been all over the map, from symphony orchestras to studying in West Africa. Rounding out the trio is Sean Mason on drum set, learning vicariously through his father, former member of The Fugs, play in all sorts of musical settings.

VJP is currently in the studio working on their third album, entitled “This is Rock?”, set for release in spring 2012. They tour throughout the southeast and enjoy frequent well-known guest soloists. Here’s a link to a great video of the band live: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zCqohNhaa0.

To quote the great Thelonious Monk- “Where’s jazz going? I don’t know? Maybe it’s going to hell. You can’t make anything go anywhere. It just happens.” www.vertigojazzproject.com

One Leg Up:
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, One Leg Up performs a vibrant mixture of upbeat Gypsy Jazz, Latin, Swing and original jazz compositions and is a favorite of club, concert, and festival stages throughout the southeastern United States. One Leg Up is John Stineman (guitar, vocals), Jim Tanner (Guitar), Zack Page (bass), Mike Guzalak (Clarinet, Sax) and Steve Trismen (violin, vocals). They formed in 2003 as a “String Swing” band in the style of famed French gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt.

Propelled by their excellent self-produced debut recording “Gypsy Blue”, they soon won critical acclaim for their “hot club” prowess and were tapped to back up award-winning Spanish guitarist Pere Soto on some of his 2005 U.S. tour dates. Also in 2005, One Leg Up performed at a concert and book show with Michael Dregni, author of Django: The Life and Music of a Gypsy Legend. Over the years, One Leg Up has broadened its repertoire to include fresh arrangements of Django classics, vocal harmonies, original compositions, and innovative adaptations of classic jazz numbers in the French “hot club” and American “big band” styles. Now more than just a Django band, their latest recording “Pere La Chaise” is a music mix that is danceable and accessible. One Leg Up continues to attract a growing, varied, and enthusiastic fan base with music that always swings.  www.onelegupjazz.com

Read Full Post »