Reggae Fest!

This upcoming weekend is the 17th annual Austin Reggae Festival, also known as Marley Fest. This year, they are adding a 3rd day to the festival, so it begins on Friday afternoon,April 16 through Sunday evening, April 18. It is going to be located at the Auditorium Shores in Austin which is an outdoor venue with a great view of the Capital City. This celebration of spring brings together great music, tasty foods, and arts and crafts.

Reggae is a music movement created in Jamaica and is characterized by soulful beats and songs about unity, love, and the purpose of sending that message around the world. The bands headlining are Easy Star All Stars, The Mighty Diamonds, and the Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars. There are also many other bands lined up such as Mystic Roots, Ashes of Babylon, and Spiritual. There will also be dozens of vendors set up around the venue; some will have a wide variety of international foods for you to sample and others will be selling unique and handmade items.

Not only is it an incredible time, but you will be helping a great cause. A large portion of proceeds from the festival benefit the Capital Area Food Bank which nourishes hungry central Texans by providing food and grocery products to more than 350 partner agencies in 21 central Texas counties. They request that you bring two cans of food to donate when you get to the festival. Over the last fifteen years, this event has generated more than 350,000 pounds of food for the less fortunate hungry families throughout the central Texas region.

So if you are able to head out to Austin this weekend, make sure you check out ReggaeFest to enjoy international foods, spiritual Reggae music, unique arts and crafts, and help out those who are less fortunate, all while having a great time.