Five Essential Acts to Check Out at the Austin Reggae Festival

Hempress Sativa

Fri. 19, 6:30pm
Rub-a-dub preserver honors reggae women pioneers while giving classic dancehall a contemporary makeover.

Don Carlos

Fri. 19, 8:30pm
This founding member of Black Uhuru split for a solo career in the late Seventies and spent decades spreading strictly roots.

Mykal Rose

Sat. 20, 8:30pm

Joining Black Uhuru after the departure of Don Carlos, Rose’s distinctive and thorny lead vocals bless the group’s best material.

Cocoa Tea

Sun. 21, 6:30pm
Debuting at the height of Eighties dancehall, Calvin Scott’s laid-back flow highlights a prolific run of records, proving you “Can’t Stop Cocoa Tea.”

Freddie McGregor

Sun. 21, 8:15pm
Lovers rock legend, 62, has a soulful voice smoother than a “big ship sailing on the ocean.”