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Final Day of Sunfest: A fusion of Latin Hip Hop , Classic Rock, and Hebrew Reggae

Final Day of Sunfest.  Latin Hiphop, Classic Rock, and Hebrew Reggae 
Story by Sheldon Robertson  – Reggae Reflection Correspondent
Photos and Feature by Empress K  – Editor at Reggae Reflection

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Pitbull:  A Miami Sound Machine Comes To West Palm Beach
The  self-dubbed “Mr. Worldwide”  brought a healthy dose of Latin hip-hop to the final afternoon of  West Palm’s waterfront music festival . The massive crowd gave what was probably the festival’s loudest cheer for an artist’s entrance, as  the super-hot Miami rapper took to the stage in a stylish outfit more appropriate for evening cool than mid-afternoon heat (black suit, vest and shirt).  Pitbull immediately launched into one of his biggest hits  “Hey Baby (Drop It To The Floor)”, which, like many of his hits, includes lyrics in both Spanish and English.

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Not only was Pitbull’s band able to perform faithful renditions of his best known hits, in between songs they also recreated riffs from other artist’s hits, through a combination of live instruments and recorded samples. Some of the early riffs performed included Lenny Kravitz’s “Are You Gonna Go My Way”, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Guns ‘n’ Roses’ “Sweet Child Of Mine”.  At one point, the band even dropped into a reggae rhythm. The result was an interwoven performance, with the riffs serving to connect various Pitbull songs in a fun way.  Martin Solveig’s “Hello” was followed by LMFAO’s ”Party Rock Anthem”, which  led into “I’m From Miami Trick”. It says a lot about Pitbull’s confidence as an artist that he was willing to risk the possibility of being upstaged by other people’s hits in order to put on a more entertaining show.
Pitbull played a crowd-pleasing set, including all of his hits, even those that were collaborations with other artists. “The Anthem” , his hit track built around a Latin sax line, was followed by the riff from Nina Sky’s “Move Ya Body”, then on into the song that put Pitbull on the map, “I Know You Want Me”. A medley of collaborations comprised of “On The Floor” (recorded with Jennifer Lopez), “I Like It”, his hit with Enrique Iglesias built around a sample of Lionel’s Richie’s “All Night Long”, and the 2010 smash “DJ’s Got Us Falling In Love”, Pitbull’s pairing with r&b superstar Usher.  

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Continuing to bring the heat on an already hot afternoon, Pitbull  turned into the home stretch with  “Hotel Room Service”, with lyrics based on the original rap song, Sugarhill Gang’s “Rappers’ Delight”.  This was followed by the riff from Black-Eye Peas’ “I Got A Feeling” . Final song of the show was his first single, “Give Me Everything”.

Pitbull fans of all ages packed the main stage for the final afternoon of SunFest

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Foreigner: Cold As Ice on a Hot Sunfest NightIn 
In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, this classic-rock outfit racked up a string of hits, so this Sunfest performance was somewhat like a greatest-hits album come to life. The set began with the title track of the group’s 1979 release Head Games,   followed by the title track of the previous album, 1978’s Double Vision. But current lead vocalist Kelly Hansen cranked things up on the next song, “Cold As Ice”, the group’s big hit from its 1977 self-titled debut release.  As the tune moved into its familiar coda, Hansen took the opportunity to go on an extended excursion into the crowd, running back onstage later to slide to a halt in front of the drum kit riser.

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After that dramatic ending, the group took things down a notch with “Waiting for a Girl like You”, the monster-hit ballad from 1982’s 4, following it up with the easy-going rocker, “Blue Morning, Blue Day”. Throughout its set, the group gave festival-goers the hit s they came to hear, including the saxophone-driven  Top-Five smash,  “Urgent” .


[Current Touring Lineup: Kelly Hansen (lead vocalist), Bruce Watson (lead guitarist), Jeff Pilson (bass), Tom Gimbel (sax/guitar/keyboard), Michael Bluestein (piano), Mark Schulman (drums)]

Fans ready to enjoy a classic set from Foreigner 

Matisyahu:  One last dose of Peace and Sunshine
Photos, Story and Feature by Empress K  – Editor at Reggae Reflection

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Reggae fans were out in full force again on the last day of Sunfest  to see  American Reggae singer Matisyahu accompanied by Dub Trio, a three piece band originally from Brooklyn.  Matisyahu fans of all ages packed the FPL stage, the smallest stage at Sunfest to capacity to enjoy one last dose of peace and sunshine. 

During the nearly 1 1/2 hour set, Matisyahu played a variety of his well known songs from his three studio albums including ‘Time of our Song”, “Heights”, and “King without a Crown”.  He received an enthusiastic response from the audience when he performed his new song “Sunshine” and announced that it would be released within a few days of his performance at SunFest. 


Matisyahu Fans at the FPL Stage

Reggae related sightings while passing thru the BBT Juried Art show on the way to the FPL Stage located on the South end of the Sunfest location

Matisyahu’s  latest single release ‘ Sunshine’

Sunfest Fireworks Finale to a great week of music

Reggae Reflection
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