'Spreading message of love and peace'

WESTERN BUREAU:The rhythmic drums throb through the afternoon skies, as you approach the Rastafari Indigenous Village in Porto Bello, Montego Bay.

The welcome area is filled with guests, most of whom are watching the group providing entertainment.

The tourists - a mix of young and middle-age Europeans - give a standing ovation, as if they had just witnessed an international artiste in performance at the Madison Square Gardens.

The stage is a dirt floor, and the performers, who are all members of the village, make up the Rasta Village Live band. Each has a story to tell of how they became a part of the village, but the musicians are equally confident that they are fulfilling the purpose for which they were called by spreading the message of Rastafari through music.

"It is a good reception each time we perform, because our guests know that we are performing from the heart, and what we are preaching is righteousness," said Iziniga Ion, lead chanter for the group.

"We are, however, keen on taking this beyond the village because we believe that we have to share the message with all mankind."

Iziniga is no stranger to the music fraternity. He has performed on Rebel Salute and Reggae Sumfest in the past, and also toured Europe extensively in the 1990s before taking a sabbatical.

"Rasta Village Live is here to spread the message of love and peace to our fellow men, and we cannot afford to be distracted by negative influences, because Rasta lives on."

The group is now moving to tie down a stint in Europe in the coming weeks, as it moves to extend the message beyond the borders of Jamaica.