Blue King Brown are led by the relentless energy of singer Natalie Pa’apa’a.
Photo: Matt Garrick
Got time for a dreadlock holiday?
Then get your rasta on for the Reggaetown Festival funking out on September 1 in Kuranda, 27 km from Cairns.
The gig reaches its tenth anniversary this year and they’re celebrating by showcasing a killer lineup of Aussie and international reggae, roots and dub performers.
Some of the acts representing the Land of Oz include Melbourne funksters Blue King Brown, who will pump out their political poetry, and Queenslander Bobby Alu armed with his ukulele to chill the masses.
From the greater globe, dub dudes Katchafire are crossing the Tasman from New Zealand to play at the festival, and Gramps Morgan, from Jamaica, bring some Mediterranean flavour to proceedings.
Natalie Pa’apa’a, the feisty lead singer of Blue King Brown, herself hailing from Samoan heritage, said she knows how islanders from all over love their reggae music.
She said she can’t wait to see plenty of Islander faces in the audience at Reggaetown.
“I love being up in that part of the country, with all the different people from the Torres Strait, even from PNG,” she said.
Blue King Brown come packed with political passion, particularly vocal about ending discrimination of Australia’s Indigenous people and about fighting for freedom in one of our nearest neighbours, West Papua.
“West Papua doesn’t have a proper way to exercise their democratic voice,” she said. “It’s full of human rights abuses.”
But Blue King Brown won’t be at Reggaetown purely to preach.
“We keep a good balance and like to keep the crowds engaged and energised,” said Natalie.
And in addition to all the great acts on stage, the festival is located amid glorious rainforest adjacent to the World Heritage areas of Barron Falls National Park.
The venue sprawls over 1.62 hectares of land, making it a pretty grand dance floor.
Tickets cost $65 plus booking fee, or more at the door.
Visit www.reggaetown.com.au for more information about lineup, tickets and how to get there.
