Whanganui And Palmerston North Bands Win Talent Search

Whanganui And Palmerston North Bands Win Raggamuffin Talent Search

Palmerston North reggae/urban band ReZist and Whanganui’s Cool Meditation will be the opening acts at Raggamuffin IX after winning the Raggamuffin Talent Search Contest.

The two bands competed against 15 other reggae and urban acts from around the North Island at the Talent Search Finals held in Porirua on Friday night.

Raggamuffin Festival spokesman and contest organiser Brotha D (Danny Leaoasavaii) said the two bands stood out for their slick sets and the way the audience responded.

“We were looking for bands who really gave everything to the audience. We’re looking forward to seeing ReZist and Cool Meditation on the main stage at Raggamuffin in February.”

Judge Avina Kelekolio of Tomorrow People said the difference between the top 10 bands in the finals was only slight, but Cool Mediatation and ReZist had "that little bit extra that we were looking for".

Cool Meditation is a 10-piece reggae band who started two years ago playing covers for parties. “We got together with more musicians and began writing our own original music and now we’re looking to record an album in the coming year,” says manager Parora Poutini.

“Playing at Raggamuffin has been a goal of ours for a while, and now that dream is coming true.”

Hailing from Palmerston North, ReZist’s seven young musicians met while studying for a Diploma in Music at UCOL (Universal College of Learning). They have an established following and have opened for a number of New Zealand bands including Katchafire, Tomorrow People, Ardijah, 1814 and Che-Fu.

Their first single ‘The Recipe’ was released on Spotify and iTunes in June and was followed by their first music video ‘Lockdown’ and a second single ‘PhyZics’.

Band manager Kirsty Lavin says the band plays a cross-over mix of reggae and hip hop and are looking forward to bringing their supporters north to Raggamuffin in February.

ReZist and Cool Meditation also received $2500 each in prize money and will open Raggamuffin IX onSaturday 20 February 2016 at The Trusts Arena in Auckland. Raggamuffin IX features reggae icons UB40, Grammy Award winners The Game and Macy Gray, rapper/actor Xzibit and a host of top reggae and urban acts.

Tickets for Raggamuffin IX are available through Ticketmaster 0800 111 999 www.ticketmaster.co.nz or through Red Rat clothing stores.

ENDS

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