ST ANN, Jamaica —Despite the rainfall, the third staging of Africa Mi Deya saw success during its staging on March 2 at the Irie FM Great House in St Ann.

The event, which drew inspiration from the high-fashion catwalk in Paris with a Caribbean twist celebrated creativity and style from start to finish.

“This was the third staging of the event, and each year, it continues to grow in scale and excellence. We are already setting our sights on the next edition, which promises to be even bigger and better. Fashion lovers and entertainment enthusiasts should mark their calendars for late February to early March next year—you won’t want to miss it,” event conceptualiser and reggae singer Maroon Queen told Observer Online.

The evening’s proceedings featured an appearance by the reigning Miss Jamaica Universe Rachel Silvera, and Miss Supranational Jamaica, Sara Dee Palmer, as well as empowerment sessions with Sunshine Velvet and Tara-Chande. There were performances by D’Angel, Italee and Singer J.

In addition, there was a special tribute to the Right Excellent Marcus Garvey, which the organiser explained was an integral part of the celebration.

“The teachings of Marcus Garvey are especially important now because of general hopelessness and the high crime rate. People are suffering and we need to cleave to the teachings and philosophy of Marcus Garvey to get through,” Maroon Queen said.

Later this year, Maroon Queen plans to do a school tour to underpin the ideals of her Africa Mi Deya movement.

“We want to talk to students about their and help them to deal with peer pressures, and colourism, especially,” she said.

Black Queen, who is known for the single Black and Proud, which deals with the negative connotations that some people ascribe to the word ‘black’, has a long history of tackling social causes.

“It started with my song, Black and Proud. This song is always big on the radio in Black History Month in February, which is also reggae month. I use the song as an educational tool for this upcoming generation. We still have issues with our race, loving and embracing ourselves,” she said.

Black Queen first made a name for herself with her R&B-flavoured Roll With Me, and You Say.

She released her first EP, a seven-track effort Black N Proud in 2020 with several standout songs such as Thankful, and Nobody Knows My Pain, a tribute to music selector Nicko Chromatic who passed away after losing his battle with kidney disease.

-Kediesha Perry

Maroon Queen