Bia Ferreira, Split Sphere, Kia Kadiri, Trippycals, Alpha Centauri, Dave O Rama

Event Description

Victoria's 27th Annual Ska & Reggae Festival kicks off with a completely stacked show that will keep everyone moving and grooving from open until close. Headlining this huge kickoff show is powerhouse Brazilian singer and multi-instrumentalist BIA FERREIRA. The self-proclaimed Pastor of the Lesbiterian Church, Ferreira is a musical force of nature. Playing her own mix of funk, r&b, reggae and soul, with a captivating stage presence, her songs are powerful and clear, often directly addressing affecting and important topics like racism, women's rights and LBTQA+ rights. We are excited to welcome this powerful voice to Victoria for the first time.

Also making their festival debut for our opening night is hip-hop duo SPLIT SPHERE. Comprised of west coast rap legends Moka Only and Prevail, Split Sphere is actually the moniker they initially rapped together under before co-founding the mighty Swollen Members. Luckily for rap fans, the duo reunited and started recording new tracks earlier this year, tracks they’ll be bringing to get our opening night crowd jumping. KIA KADIRI, another west coast rap legend in her own right, returns to the festival with her razor-sharp tongue and ultra-smooth, varied flows. There aren’t many MCs in Canada who get flowing as fast as Kia when she hits her stride and she’s guaranteed to set the festival stage on fire at some point during her set.

Joining the party by way of Mexico & Colombia are our friends TRIPPYCALS, who many of our Victoria massive might remember from their appearance before The Wailers at Royal Athletic Park this past September. Their tropical rhythms and spicy grooves got the stage so hot, we knew right away we were going to have them back with us sooner rather than later. Kicking off the festival and opening the day is one of the Island's most exciting and diverse acts, ALPHA CENTAURI. The genre-smashing singer/MC has had highlight sets not just for us – at Garden City Grooves and Explosive Germinations – and it's about time he and his band took our Ship Point stage on a journey. If it's funky and groovy, you can expect that you might hear some of it in an Alpha Centauri set. We will have the mighty Dave O Rama and his schizophonic ear to keep things tasty and bouncy between sets. Come join us for one of the dopest nights of music to hit Victoria in some time.