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FRESH FROM VP RECORDS Planet Reggae Weekly:

 

JOSH HARRIS AND ETANA TEAM UP FOR "SUNSHINE"



Etana’s voice sits right on top of “Sunshine” with an easy warmth that suits the title. The single pairs her with Josh Harris and comes through Big Feet Records, the Northern California-based label Harris founded and has used for a steady run of reggae collaborations. The track was released on May 15, 2026, and the title alone points to a bright, uplifting mood rather than anything heavy or dramatic.



What makes the song work is the contrast between Etana’s smooth, grounded phrasing and Harris’s clean production style. Big Feet Records has long balanced roots-reggae sensibility with modern recording, and this release follows that path without crowding the vocal. The arrangement leaves room for the melody to breathe, so the song reads as a feel-good single built around presence, tone and lift rather than big studio effects. That approach fits Etana well; her best recordings usually carry strength without forcing it, and “Sunshine” appears to lean on that same calm confidence.




Josh Harris has spent years building Big Feet as a label for original songs and Jamaican collaborations, working from his home base in Northern California and linking with artists across the roots and reggae spectrum. His previous work with Etana included “High Grade, ” which gave the pair a proven chemistry in a more herb-themed lane. “Sunshine” shifts the mood toward something lighter and more open, and that gives the release a different emotional color while still staying inside the reggae tradition. It is the kind of single that keeps the message simple and lets the performance do the talking, which is often where this scene still sounds freshest.



THIS IS ZIMBABWEAN DANCEHALL FAMILY ... CHECK IT OUT !


Sunshine After Rain Riddim finds Dj Kevy working in that Zimbabwean dancehall lane where street-level expressions, singjay phrasing and melodic hooks meet a clean, modern riddim bed. The project lands in 2026 and reads less like a one-off compilation than a working platform for voices that know how to move between heartbreak, warning shots and uplift. Kevy is already out there as a producer-DJ with a growing catalog, and this riddim fits the kind of cross-border, digitally driven movement that has been pushing ZimDancehall into wider circulation.





The strongest thing about the release is the contrast in its cuts. Donator Calvin’s on Mubook Rerudo brings a more direct love-song angle, while Klarry Mujoma’s Bhururu and Jah Bvaru with Real Master on Kuvhura Hombe give the riddim its local street grit. X-tynah’s Uchandifunga adds another emotional register, and the Kevy vocals scattered through the project help tie the whole thing together as more than just a beat pack. There’s a push-and-pull here between personal reflection and chants meant for dancing, which is exactly what keeps a riddim alive in the dancehall space.




Kevy’s own tracks, including Welcome back, Ngwarira Hama, Chitikidhimba, Yut Killer, Darlie and Tinodanana, act like anchor points rather than filler. They help define the riddim’s identity: percussive, bright, and tuned for patois-inflected call-and-response. The title Sunshine After Rain suggests the mood well enough. This is music that carries resilience, but it does so with bounce rather than heaviness.




What makes the project worth a close listen is the way it feels rooted in Zimbabwe while still speaking the shared language of modern dancehall. The featured artists are not random names dropped onto a beat; they sound like part of the same ecosystem, each taking a different angle on the same rhythmic frame. That gives Sunshine After Rain Riddim a lived-in feel that should travel well with fans who follow the ZimDancehall circuit closely.





6 HOURS MASSIVE NOSTALGIC KNOCKINGS !!!! 9AM mon & fri 7AM wed


For those new to the roots of this music and culture, tuning into NON STOP NOSTALGIC REGGAE will be an education of often rare music that you might never have heard.  We are helping keeping these magical vibes alive and well and available to hear. As Dennis Brown said "Medicine for the world" we all need that more than ever. Jah Jah bless you and yours one and all.






RICKY DREAD BRINGS SERIOUS BOUNCE WITH THIS: Bend Back Fi Mi


 Slinky groove. Ricky Dread comes in over “Bend Back Fi Mi” with a tight, cheeky one-song drop that runs just over three minutes, and BroadYard Records keeps the arrangement lean so the vocal sits right on top of the rhythm. 



Released on January 16, 2026, it has that modern roots-dancehall polish BroadYard has been leaning into lately, but there’s a lighter, more playful edge here than on some of their more straight-faced productions. 


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Dread rides the cut with enough attitude to make the hook stick without overworking it, which is exactly the kind of restraint that suits this label. In a BroadYard catalogue that’s been building out single by single, this feels like another sharp entry rather than a throwaway.




HERE'S A FUN RIDDIM FOR YOUR PLAYLIST: Ras Beethoven Riddim – Heartical Label

 


Heartical keeps its hand on the roots pulse with Ras Beethoven Riddim, a 2026 one-riddim set anchored by Sergio Marigomez’s long-running Paris-based Heartical operation and its deep link with Basque Dub Foundation. That pairing has been part of the label’s identity for years, and this release sits neatly inside a catalogue that has repeatedly gone back to vintage Jamaican foundations while recutting them with a modern, heavyweight sound. Heartical started as a sound system before becoming a label, and the BDF connection has produced plenty of dubwise roots work over the years, so this project lands like a continuation of a familiar conversation rather than a one-off experiment.


The riddim has a stately, classically minded feel without losing the grit that keeps a reggae juggling alive. The title alone signals the angle: Beethoven as a nod to arrangement and drama, then the roots side of the bandstand in the rhythmic weight and melody-led bassline. The vocal cuts move across generations and styles, from elder statesmen to more recent European and international voices. Cornel Campbell’s Too Many Soldiers brings that unmistakable silky tenor grace, while Carlton Livingston’s Robbery and Macka B’s Robbery Of The Century? push the theme into social commentary and streetwise wit. Joseph Cotton’s Show Time and Owen Knibbs’ Danger Zone give the set a sharper sound-system energy, and the pairing of Ernest Wilson and Papa Kojak on Chant Dem Down feels especially natural for the rub-a-dub spirit that Heartical has always favored.


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The European side of the lineup gives the riddim extra color. Rootsamala bring their Malaga roots credentials, Straika D adds a French-language cut in Dans La Stéréo, and Colour Red with Clive Hylton widen the reach again on Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Basque Dub Foundation also close the circle with Classical Roots and the dub version Ras Beethoven In Dub with Darren Jamtone, which is the kind of finishing touch that makes the whole project feel properly assembled for selectors and dub fans alike.



Warner Music launches vinyl take-back pilot scheme with indie retailers



Throughout the programme, participating record stores will serve as collection points where consumers can return damaged or unplayable vinyl records regardless of artist, label or condition. 




Collected materials will be aggregated and evaluated through recovery partner, Virterras Materials. The pilot will assess factors including participation rates, material quality, transportation and processing requirements, and potential recovery outcomes.



While vinyl has experienced significant growth over the past decade, there has been limited industry-wide exploration of what happens to records when consumers no longer want them. 



“By examining both the practical and economic realities of collection and recovery, the pilot aims to help stakeholders better understand what infrastructure, partnerships, and investment may be required to support future recovery pathways for physical music products,” 




"Independent record stores have long served as gathering places for music fans and stewards of music culture," said Madeleine Smith, senior director, ESG, Warner Music Group. "The pilot brings together retailers, recovery partners, and music fans to explore an important question: what would it take to create practical pathways for recovering unplayable or damaged vinyl records? It’s a vital first step in understanding what’s possible."



The pilot will run from the end of June to September.


The initiative follows a May 2026 manufacturing study by WMG, GZ Media and Abbey Road Studios, which demonstrated that unsold, obsolete records can be successfully reprocessed into high-quality, commercial-grade new pressings while maintaining audio quality and a reduced carbon footprint. This pilot takes the next step by exploring how unplayable and damaged records from consumers can be collected and moved through the recovery process at scale.




The pilot is supported by the Vinyl Institute, which awarded funding to Virterras Materials.


Participating stores include:

Amoeba Hollywood (Los Angeles, CA)

Antone’s Record Shop (Austin, TX)

Country Line Records (Keller, TX)

Criminal Records (Atlanta, GA)

Easy Street Records (Seattle, WA)

Home Rule Records (Washington D.C.)

Red Zeppelin Records (McKinney, TX)

Rough Trade NYC (New York City, NY)

Spin Me Round (Easton, PA)

Reckless Records (Chicago, IL)

Sweat Records (Miami, FL) 





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