Tonight sees the start of the Respect Jamaica 50^th concerts in celebration of Jamaica’s 50th independence and over the next 12 days London’s IndigO2 will host some of the most iconic reggae, ska and dub artiste from Jamaica. The Complexd team and me are excited about covering tomorrow night’s performance headlined by Grammy award-winning artist Damian Marley alongside his brothers Stephen and Julian Marley. Keep posted on my diary for updates.

Complexd’s Contributing Writer Heike Dempster based in Miami recently watched Damian Marley’s passionate performance at Reggae Sumfest 2012, the largest music festival in Jamaica and here’s what she had to say about the exciting week of performances from national and international artiste there.

Reggae Sumfest 2012 in Montego Bay, Jamaica had a lot to celebrate this year. The 20th staging of this annual event coincided with the celebrations of Jamaica’s 50th independence anniversary leading up to Independence Day on August 6th.

With the aphorism ‘Looking Back – Moving Forward’ the promoters gave patrons a line up incorporating the past, present and future of Jamaican music. Looking back at the legends of reggae music, Sumfest honored the likes of John Holt, The Mighty Diamonds, Leroy Sibblies, Yellowman and Shabba Ranks, who treated the audience to some of the best of Jamaican music.

There was no shortage of young and upcoming talent such as Conkarah and Raine Seville as Sumfest presented some of the hottest artiste in reggae and dancehall music today. Protoje, Tarrus Riley and Tessanne Chin were some of the highlights on the two international nights while the ever-popular Dancehall Night featured artistes ranging from Romain Virgo to Popcaan, Tommy Lee, Konshens and I-Octane who were setting a few outrageous dancehall trends.

The veterans of dancehall delivered as expected with Bounty Killa, Beenie Man and Elephant Man setting the stage ablaze. Lady Saw was officially crowned the Queen of Dancehall, wearing a one of a kind gown by British designer Gavin Douglas.

The international acts for this year’s event, albeit not as highly anticipated as other artistes in previous years, convinced with good performances. Trey Songz had the ladies screaming and dreaming on Friday night as they sang his songs word for word while R Kelly’s performance seemed to be bit lackluster. It helped that he had an extensive catalogue of hit songs that the audience enjoyed nevertheless and the most exciting part of the performance was when two female fans got carried away and tried to take home his shoes, but the police ordered them to return Mr. Kelly’s property later that evening.

Overall Reggae Sumfest 2012 was still another outstanding experience, showcasing Jamaica’s finest. The Jamaica 50 Tribute was an old school treat while Shabba Ranks stole the show after 18 years of absence from the Sumfest stage.

Damian Marley also delivered one of the best performances at the festival and Bunny Wailer closed off three days of musical greatness with the love for reggae music and his fans shining brightly on his face.

By Heike Dempster 

Recently I had the pleasure of interviewing Skye, a pint-sized revolutionist draped in African fabric, Kenyan beads and donning a military jacket that says Gay & African. I won’t give too much away as you will be able to read her compelling story in the next issue of Complexd, but she has been selected to take part in a project in London that is extremely Complexd.

 Skye from Zimbabwe Photographed by Zanele Muholi

Over the last three years, The Photographers’ Gallery has been commissioning photographers to take portraits of 204 Londoners for a major public art project, called The World in London.

India Dane Ngatama May from Cook Islands Photographed by Charlotte Player

Coinciding with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the portraits will present Londoners who originate from each of the competing nations and showcase the diverse cultural mix found in London. Large-scale posters will be exhibited at two sites close to Olympic venues and on a website dedicated to offering access to the personal stories behind each portrait. (www.theworldinlondon.org.uk)

Pimjai Ponsawan from Thailand Photographed by Albrecht Tübke

The project will feature individuals from all cultures, classes and creeds that contribute to London’s unique population. Fashion Designer, Alexander McQueen was photographed by American photographer Andres Serrano to represent Great Britain, a year before his unexpected death.

The project is supported by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, whose founder Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian, was a Multicultural and multilingual art collector who spent his career bringing people from different cultures and nationalities together. Andrew Barnett, the current Director of Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in the UK hit the nail on the head when he said:

‘The 204 portrait photographs of this innovative public art project challenge cultural stereotypes and help us to explore the rich diversity of our City, and fits squarely as part of the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Movements.’

Ana Lavekau& Takenivula Rakei from Fiji Photographed by Salvador Brown

Exhibition Info: The World in London

1^st Location: Victoria Park, London, E3

Dates: 27 July – 12 August 2012

Admission: Free

2^nd Location: Park House, 453 – 497 Oxford Street, London, W1

Dates: 27 July – 30 August 2012

For more info click here 

If you are not in London you can view the exhibition online here

Last week I stumbled upon what I consider to be the most distinctive nail bar in London. Located just off Commercial Street in Old Spitafield Market, MWnails, nail bar cleverly imitates the interior of a vintage plane. With fixtures from American Airlines Boeing 737 and Air France, it fits in perfectly with the one-off boutiques found in and around the market.

As soon as we entered I noticed the tilted caps and uniforms of the nail technicians as-well as airport style arrivals and check-in signs; finishes touches which made the experience even more authentic. And, just when I thought it couldn’t be more true-to-life, a friendly manicurist named Afia popped our handbags into an overheard cabin.

Seen as I won’t be flying out to the Caribbean this summer, this was the next best thing so I figured I’d treat myself to some island prep anyway. Just like a holiday-maker deciding on an exotic destination, I was completely spoilt for choice with their island inspired treatments like Nassau Non-stop and Trinidad Trio. In the end I chose to island hop by going for the Caribbean Combo bespoke treatment. My nail technician Jacqui who is also a talented nail artist, happened to be from the island of St Lucia so we laughed and joked about our island hopping memories, which is probably why I ended up going for a hot orange by OPI (Rolling in the Hague).

By lunchtime it was brimming with customers, but nothing the very efficient, thorough and precise technicians couldn’t handle. And, just like Air Hostesses managing a busy flight of passengers, they kept up their composure, warmth and friendliness.

It just goes to show how innovation coupled with high standards of customer service really makes a business in a competitive market stand out. I was curious to find out from Managing Director Henrietta Flynn how the idea was conceptualized and what they have planned next.

Who came up with the concept/design and how did you manage to source the authentic fixtures from the airlines?

We knew there was an opportunity for a different type of nail bar – one that filled the gap between the no-frills approach and the full-on spa experience. Somewhere you could have a New York style express treatment or 101 minutes of unadulterated luxury. All in a relaxed, accessible place that really looks after its clients, but doesn’t take itself too seriously. We also knew we wanted everyone to feel special and pampered and what makes you feel more special than turning left on a plane. Once we reached that conclusion we then knew we simply had to recreate a first-class airplane! We have a strong team behind MWnails with an excellent creative designer on board – we began developing the concept in early 2011 and then hunted for the right suppliers to help us make it all real. It’s amazing what you can find when you put your mind to it, but it certainly wasn’t all plane sailing!

What do the customers think?

We have incredible feedback from customers – about the whole MWnails experience. From arrivals to departure they know they will receive First Class service and treatments. We also always listen to feedback because we know that’s the best way to keep improving what we do. We’ve also had a great response to the private and corporate events people have held with us. It’s a fabulous location for Hen Parties – and much cheaper than actually jetting off somewhere!  We’re already looking to grow our fleet and are currently searching for our next flagship premises.

www.mwnails.com