NEW YORK – Reggae singer Cocoa Tea is joining an all-star cast later this month for the inaugural Team Jamaica Bickle Reggae Concert.
The event is set for April 20th at the Brooklyn College Performing Arts Center, 2900 Campus Road Brooklyn, New York 11210 from 7 p.m. Its goal is to assist athletes from Jamaica who participate at the Penn Relays annually.
Cocoa Tea, who recently made national headlines with his new song, “Barack Obama,” is set to thrill fans with his Obama lyrics and more. Cocoa Tea, whose real name is Calvin George Scott says that he is donating his time because “whenever there is a charity event that supports Jamaica, I always want to be apart of it.”
Cocoa Tea reiterated that fans should support the event because, “This event helps the Olympic team. Funds are limited and whatever we can do to support Jamaica and the Olympic team we should do it.”
Other acts scheduled to perform at the inaugural Team Jamaica Bickle event include Richie Stephens, Etana and Duane Stephenson. Stephens is best known for his dancehall singles ‘Winner,’ ‘Bus the Place,’ and the mock operatic ‘Slop Dem,’ while Etana has been hailed as one of the burgeoning new and sensational sounds in the roots Reggae era. She has hit home on the roots scene with songs like ‘Wrong Address’ and ‘Roots.’
Over the past 14 years, Team Jamaica Bickle has provided necessary financial support and services to Jamaican and Caribbean high school athletes participating in the annual Penn Relays track and field competition. Support offered by TJB includes subsidized travel and accommodations, meals, ground transportation and athletic scholarships to outstanding high school track and field athletes.
According to TJB founder Irwine Clare, a donation in honor of the late Olympian, Jamaica’s Herb McKenley, will be made to aid athletes preparing for the Olympics.
Clare urged Jamaican nationals to support the event, stressing that it’s not an ordinary promotion aimed at pocketing personal cash but a patriotic venture targeted to help boost Jamaican athletes participating at the Penn Relays and in the Beijing Olympics.
“Jamaican nationals who get joy in seeing their flags at Penn and at the Olympics need to support this event since it is a direct way of helping the athletes and supporters who make the journey all possible,” added Clare.
The concert will be presented under the Patronage of Jamaica’s new Ambassador to Washington, Anthony Johnson, while Donald Quarrie Jamaica’s most eminent Olympian, will be among the special guest. Supporters for the endeavor include the Jamaica Amateur Athletics Association and VP Records.
“This year the challenges for TJB are more difficult as more is expected of us and as such we have to become more creative in our fund raising endeavors,” commented Clare, when asked about the reason behind the concert. “TJB is assisted annually by a core of volunteers who work assiduously to ensure that ‘our athletes, our ambassadors’ are housed, fed, transported and assisted in a manner consistent with their stature. Additionally, TJB also provides assistance to athletes on immigration issues, tuition, medical and other issues. To be able to satisfy these requests we must raise funds and this is done by solicitations, sponsorships and general contributions from the community. In deed this is a very daunting task but nonetheless a necessary one.”
Annual corporate include Caribbean Foods Delight, The Vincent Hosang Family Foundation, VMBS, Grace Foods, the Union of Jamaican Alumni Associations, Western Union and Tower Isle Patties among others.
