Veteran music promoter Wayne ‘Lonesome’ Brown is gearing up to organise his two-day Run Tings Festival which will be held June 24-25 in Toronto later this year.

“We are trying to keep the music and the culture alive, it’s going to be a great event, there is a great demand for events that offer Caribbean culture in Toronto,” Brown, head of Run Tings label and production company, said.

Reggae music remains popular in Canada, even though it’s been a long journey to mainstream exposure. Though the genre and its players are known commodities, the scene still fights for recognition but remains alive through the many Canadian recording artistes — black or otherwise — who have incorporated reggae sounds into their music, whether it’s pop, rock, country or soul.

People of Caribbean descent make up more than 346,000 of Toronto’s population of just over 2.9 million, according to the 2016 census. Jamaicans comprise almost two-thirds of that figure.

“There is a huge Jamaican and Caribbean community here in Toronto so this festival represents an opportunity for them to enjoy their culture and to attract a diverse audience: everyone from families across Canada and the US, young singles looking for a good time, to celebrities,” Brown said.

The first day is dubbed ‘Chaos: Dancehall Soca Madness’ and will feature top notch soca selectors from Toronto such as Lukie Supreme, Magnum Force International, D’Enforcas Soca Sound crew, Doc Diplomats and Soca Sweetness .

The second day, dubbed ‘Tenacity’ will feature performances from Jigsy King, Lukie D, Louie Culture, and Sample King. Toronto-based talents such as Steve Knight, Mel C, Culture, Lucky Ras, Mr Blaze and Richie C will also be in attendance at the 72 Dynamic Drive location in Scarborough in Toronto, Canada.

Over the years, Wayne Lonesome and his wife, Carlene ‘Mama Angie’ Brown have promoted successful events all over the world including Battle of the Giants, a successful sound system clash event, which began in 1998, and the successful Veterans in Action stage shows which have been held for over a decade.