US-based reggae artiste promotes debut album

Last year was a turning point in the career of Clatta Bumboo.

In November, the roots-reggae singer released Make Way Rasta, his first album, which he plans to promote for most of 2024. The Rhode Island-based artiste co-produced the 12-song set which was recorded in that American state and Negril.

"For the first quarter of 2024, the priority is to service the album and get it positioned in the respective spaces where people dig this flavour of reggae music. We plan to be more physically present in the territories where reggae is welcomed, and break ground where it may be introduced," said the artiste.

'Breaking ground' means areas in New England, where his favoured one-drop roots-reggae earned a following through Bob Marley and Burning Spear during the 1970s. He also hopes to perform in the US Midwest and Canada.

Clatta Bumboo, who is from Westmoreland, has been in the music industry since the 1990s. A student of classic roots-reggae, he started as an entertainment coordinator in hotels like Sandals, but it was not until 2017 that he launched his recording career.

Future Water, his EP, came out two years later. He and musicians from Rhode Island and Jamaica began production on Make Way Rasta in November 2022.