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Nov. 9 - Slims – 333 11th St San Francisco, CA
Nov. 10 – WOW Hall – 291 West 8th Ave. Eugene, Oregon
Nov. 11 – Crystal Ballroom – 1332 W. Burnside Portland, OR
Nov. 12 – Studio Seven – 110 S. Horton St. Seattle, WA
Nov. 13 – Night Light Lounge – 211 East Chestnut St., Bellingham, WA
Nov. 14 – The Vault Nightclub – 425 Franklin St Se Olympia, WA
Nov. 15 – The Domino Room – 51 Greenwood Ave Bend, OR
Nov. 16 – Indigo Bar & Lounge – Eureka, CA
Nov. 17 – Santa Cruz Vet’s Hall - 846 Front Street, Santa Cruz, CA
Nov. 18 – TBA
Nov. 19 – TBA
Nov. 20 – Century Club – 10131 Constellation Blvd Los Angeles, CA
Nov. 21 – Belly Up Tavern – 143 S Cedros Ave Solana Beach, CA
Nov. 22 – The Coach House – 33157 Camino Capistrano San Juan Capistrano
CA
Anthony B (born Keith Anthony Blair) is the living personification of
Afrikan consciousness in Reggae. His single "Nah Vote Again" was a
major factor in making the Jamaican elections of Thursday, December 18,
1997, the most peaceful one since the insidious cancer of gun violence
was introduced in West and Central Kingston, prior to the elections of
1967. Like his hero, Peter Tosh, the most revolutionary of the Wailing
Wailers, he is an uncompromising Pan Afrikanist, in the tradition of
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jamaica's first national hero and the founder and
leader of the largest Afrikan organization ever, the Universal Negro
Improvement Association and Afrikan Communities League, U.N.I.A. and
A.C.L.
The traditional route of most Afrikan singers is via the church, and
Anthony B is no exception. Growing up in Clarks Town in the parish of
Trelawny (a parish noted for the heroic Afrikan freedom fighters, the
Maroons, who defeated the English military), his Revivalist grandmother
and Seventh Day Adventist mother immersed him in the singing, call and
response, and clapping mechanics of rural Jamaica. In this rural
environment that Afrikan culture is best found and preserved in
Jamaica, not Kingston nor urban St. Andrew. Like Bob Marley, Peter
Tosh, The Maytals, Justin Hinds & The Dominoes, Twinkle Brothers, the
Clarendonians and countless other Jamaican stars, Anthony B honed his
vocal skills in the church and school choirs and then entered the
secular world. His deejaying debut was on the local sound system Shaggy
Hi-Power. Moving to Portmore in the parish of St. Catharine in 1988,
the musically keen teen hooked up with other aspiring teenage deejays,
Determine, Mega Banton, Ricky General and Terror Fabulous on Lovers
Choice Sound. Other Portmore acts that he knew or flexed with were
Little Devon, Agony Polish, Cobra, Baby Wayne, Grindsman, Ronnie
Thwaites, Professor Nuts, and others. He steadfastly refused to deejay
girl lyrics when they were ruling the roost in the early nineties.
Patience is a virtue and good things come to those who wait. In
combination with Little Devon (the Half Pint sound-a-like singer) he
made his debut single "The Living is Hard" on the Wizard label in 1993.
Anthony B tried King Jammy’s Black Scorpio and other studio producers
after but none saw fit to help plant musical corn of the budding
genius. Undeterred he was looking for a break at Black Scorpio studio
one day when Little Devon introduced him to Afrocentric producer of
Garnett "Mama Africa" Silk fame, Richard "Bello" Bell of Star Trail
Label fame. The rest is history or blackstory!
Recordings and releases followed quickly and his first hit was
"Repentance Time". The bigger hits "Fire pon Rome", "Rumour" and "Raid
di Barn" followed in quick pursuit and his landmark debut album Real
Revolutionary was released to popular acclaim in 1996. Late 1997 his
second worldwide album "Universal Struggle" was released and again
excellenc
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