In February, 2011 Jamaica’s Jolly Boys made their long awaited New York City debut to the fans, media, cultuarri and fashionistas at the Hiro Ballroom at the Maritime Hotel. While there they were interviewed by the folks at LargeUp.Com!



Watch as lead singer of The Jolly Boys Albert Minott and Rhumba Box player Derrick “Johnny” Henry talk about their instruments, the history of mento music, Albert’s youthful days as a fire dancer in Port Antonio, Jamaica and the success of their hit modern mento rendition of Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab”.

Fresh from their groundbreaking tour of Europe as R&B sensation Sade‘s opening act, Jamaica’s Mento Music Ambassadors The Jolly Boys are scheduled to perform at this year’s Escape to New York Music Festival. Set for August 5-7, 2011, the festival was started and inspired by the creative minds behind The Secret Garden Party, an independent arts and music festival which takes place every year in an estate near Huntingdon, England.



Last summer The Jolly Boys gave a memorable performance at The Secret Garden Party and fans can expect an even greater from the mento music giants in August. If you’re in New York missed out on The Jolly Boy’s Big Apple debut at the Hiro Ballroom in February of this year then here’s your chance to see them in action! The Jolly Boys are set to perform on Sunday, August 7 2011. For a taste of what’s to come enjoy this flashback video of The Jolly Boys in performance at The Secret Garden Party last year!
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It was a journey 50 years in the making. After months of anticipation The Jolly Boys made their electrifying Big Apple debut to a jam-packed audience at the Hiro Ballroom at The Maritime Hotel in New York on February 24, 2011. Performing songs from their repertoire of classic and modern mento hits The Jolly Boys made an exceptional impression on an audience that had never before seen the Jamaican sensations in action.



( via Chad Batka for The New York Times )

Upon arrival in New York, an appearance on East Village Radio with DJ Max Glazer of Federation Sound got the buzz going for American fans who might not yet have known The Jolly Boys were in town. While interviews with Jesse Serwer of Largeup.com and Sherman Escoffery of the Jamaica Observer made sure the fans back in The Caribbean got their slice of the pie as well. So by the time ‘the boys’ took the stage (at around 10pm) their big day had already seen a lot of activity, though judging by their energetic performance one would not have been able to tell.
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After a long journey from their homes in Portland, Jamaica The Jolly Boys arrived in New York City (NYC) yesterday for their most important show yet. Their NYC debut to the fans, media, cultuarri and fashionistas tomorrow February 24, 2011 at Hiro Ballroom at the The Maritime Hotel!



For weeks the excitement has been building for their highly anticipated Big Apple debut and their good karma already seems to be manifesting since ‘the boys’ are currently celebrating Maracas player Joseph “Powda” Bennett’s Birthday! To add intrigue to elation The Jolly Boys entered the U.S through Gate 22 on Powda’s Birthday (the 22nd of February). We take this as a promising sign.
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In just a few short weeks The Jolly Boys will be taking modern mento music to The United States for the first time ever with a highly anticipated show at the Hiro Ballroom in New York on Thursday February 24th, 2011.




As a special treat to all our fans in the U.S we will be giving away 8 tickets every day for the next 5 days between 6 and 7pm (Tuesday – Friday) and 1 and 2pm on Saturday on our Facebook Fan Page! As a bonu you can also watch The Jolly Boys journey from their first outing around Europe up to their imminent show in the Big Apple with a new clip posted on Facebook every day at 12:00 pm. Join in on the fun by joining us on Facebook. See you there!

Due to unforeseen circumstances The Jolly Boys’ American debut performance scheduled for January 13th at the Hiro Ballroom in the Maritime Hotel in New York has been postponed until Thursday, February 24th, 2011.



We sincerely apologize to all our fans who had made plans to attend on the original date but as we say in Jamaica “soon come”.

Since being snowed in in London at the end of their tour of Europe a few weeks ago The Jolly Boys have been enjoying some well earned time in the sun in Jamaica while preparing to take modern mento to The United States for the 1st time ever with a show set for January 13th at the Hiro Ballroom in New York! In the meantime we have for you a special treat; three of the most viewed YouTube videos of The Jolly Boys on their adventures on tour. First up here are some highlights from the exciting trip the mento masters made to the Maldives where they performed at the Soneva Fushi Resort‘s 15th anniversary in October, 2010:



Up next is another fan favourite featuring The Jolly Boys in a jam session outside their hotel just after rocking The Secret Garden Party in the U.K in July and before doing it again at the Cardiff Big Weekend in Wales:
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