With finals week rapidly approaching, spring quarter is not far off. Spring quarter comes with a slew of UCLA’s biggest arts and entertainment events, including Spring Sing on May 16 and the 29th annual JazzReggae Festival April 25 at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
This year’s lineup features a mix of established acts Wale and Portugal. The Man as well as up-and-coming artists such as Marian Hill and Lido. Although lacking distinctly jazz and reggae musicians, the acts have shifted to incorporate more electronica than past years.
Wale
In his hometown of Washington, D.C., Olubowale Akintimehin, known onstage as Wale, walked away from a college football scholarship to pursue a career as a rapper. Now, the self-proclaimed “Ambassador of Rap for the Capital,” is a Grammy-nominated artist who has collaborated with the likes of Lady Gaga, Jeremih and Nicki Minaj. Wale, who first rose to the music charts in 2009 with his song “Chillin,” describes his hip-hop style as having 1970s go-go influences. He is set to drop his fifth studio album “The Album About Nothing” March 31.
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Portugal. The Man
Portland-based indie rock band Portugal. The Man will return to UCLA for the first time since performing alongside HAIM and the UCLA Philharmonia at Royce Hall in 2012. The band rose to popularity in 2013 with its hit single “Purple Yellow Red and Blue” and is currently recording the group’s eighth studio album while playing shows and festivals sporadically through the coming summer. While aspects of the Pacific Northwest music scene bleed into the band’s work, psychedelic elements separate Portugal. The Man from the typical indie rock band.
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Shwayze
With his laid-back hits “Corona and Lime” and “Buzzin’,” Shwayze sang the songs everyone listened to on their iPods and radios during the summer of 2008. That same year, he starred on his own reality television show “Buzzin’” on MTV. However, his music, which largely boasts a carefree lifestyle, has been missing from the charts since. Although JazzReggae Festival needs a jazz act, Shwayze offers his reggae-influenced sound to the festival.
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JMSN
Only recently transitioning from electronica to R&B, Christian Berishaj previously performed under the name Christian TV and as part of the group Love Arcade. Berishaj left his label at Universal Motown in 2011 and created his own label, WhiteRoom Records, through which he entered the next phase of his career. Under the stage name JMSN – pronounced “Jameson” – Berishaj has released two studio albums and an EP. Electronic elements of his previous work are heavily present in his R&B work, including his latest, self-titled album, “JMSN (Blue Album).”
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Lido
Norwegian singer-songwriter, hip-hop artist, rapper and producer Lido garnered fame after the release of several free online mixtapes, including “The Good Guy Mixtape,” in 2008. He became popular in Norway with his debut studio album, “Pretty Girls and Grey Sweaters,” which reached No. 6 on the Norwegian albums chart. While Lido’s work is versatile, synthetic elements thread together his most recent EP, which features several remixes of his hit, “I Love You.” While Lido hasn’t received mainstream recognition in America, the artist’s sold-out shows in San Francisco and Los Angeles in March speak of a developed niche fan base.
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Marian Hill
Though ultimately electronic pop, Marian Hill’s blend of saxophone and heavy percussion is as jazz as the JazzReggae Festival will get. Described by vocalist Samantha Gongold as “sax-ual” music, the duo’s first EP “Sway” was released February on iTunes. The Philadelphia band, composed of Gongold and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Lloyd, sets itself apart with its seductive music and as the only headliner with a female vocalist in the largely male-led festival.
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– Gail Acosta, A&E senior staff, and Emaan Baqai, A&E contributor.