Jamaica - Jamaicans In Los Angeles

Jamaicans In Los Angeles

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:56:22 UT

Jamaican Businesses

Eboni B. aka "Reds" — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Below is a sampling of Jamaican-owned businesses in Los Angeles:

New York Looks (Fox Hills Mall): Retail clothing store specializing in fashions from New York. Carry brand names like Guess, Vokal, Ecko, Enyce, Dada, etc.
Platinum Salon (Inglewood): Barber shop/ hair salon.
Air Jamaica: Offers non-stop flights to Jamaica from Los Angeles.

This is just a very small sampling of Jamaican owned businesses in Los Angeles and the surrounding areas. There are many, ranging from Markets, Restaurants, Bakeries, CPA's, Lawyers, Record Shops, Clothing Stores, Hair Salons & Barber Shops, Production Companies and so much more.

Media

Eboni B. aka "Reds" — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Over the years, there have been more radio stations that play reggae music and with artists like Sean Paul and Wayne Wonder, even the Yankees request to hear them on the radio.

Radio
If you twist that dial any day of the week (and weekends) you can find quite a few AM and FM stations that have one or two hours of Reggae and some have even more time. Most shows are in the evening or late night. Orange County has a few dedicated radio shows as well as LA. If they were all to be listed here, it would take up a few pages! Ask anyone that listens to Reggae on the radio in LA and they will tell you what *their* favorite stations are, when and where on that dial to find them.

Unfortunately, there are no television stations/programs solely dedicated to Caribbean residents within the Los Angeles area. The Beat Magazine, dedicated to Reggae & African/World Music is published in LA and has been on the stands or by subscription Internationally for over 20 years now.

Events

Eboni B. aka "Reds" — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Throughout the year there are numerous events (many in the summer) in Los Angeles. Ticket prices range from $10 - $40(US) and you'll never be hungry; vendors are by the dozens, selling everything from beef patties to mannish water and there are also vendors selling various craft items & music as well.

Annual Events:

RaggaMuffins Bob Marley Festival: Every February in Long Beach, CA @ Long Beach Arena
RaggaMuffins Old School Jam: Every June in Long Beach, CA @Queen Mary Park
UCLA Reggae Festival: Every June in Los Angeles @ University of California, Los Angeles
Sea Breeze Festival: Every July in Long Beach, CA @ Queen Mary Park
Jamaica Independence/Family Day Fest: Every August in Los Angeles@ Westchester Park

Artists like Lexus, Elephant Man, Lady Shaw, Mr. Easy, Baby Sham, Red Rat, Capleton, Shaggy and many more perform at these events and simply mash up the place.

The crowd are always hype, with jumping, dancing and flag waving. I've never been disappointed yet, it's always fun!

In between all the Annual events are many, many club events and dances. You can usually pick up flyers of local happenings at any of the local Jamaican Restaurants or Markets.

Clubs & Night Life

Eboni B. aka "Reds" & Jonathan Bell — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Even though Los Angeles is hundreds of miles from Jamaica, you can still keep abreast of the latest dances like "pon the river", "row da boat" and "signal da plane" seen in the clubs. There is an annual dancehall queen contest and Stone Love dances are heard as well! To look good at the clubs is the key and club goers can be seen wearing the latest fashion of Burberry, Prada, Guess, Roca Wear and Armani.

If you come early (before 10 PM), admission can be as low as $5 (US) for some dancehall events and often times ladies get in free!

"Chocolate Bar" takes place every Saturday night at Gabah. While not a purely Jamaican themed night, it's a mix of classic hip hop that moves into more modern tunes and eventually dancehall and other music being played in JA now. Surprisingly enough, when you see the Korean DJ take over, get ready to get down. It draws a small devoted group of Jamaicans dancing like only we know how, with a mix of Californians and sometimes your young, hip Japanese tourists.

Gabah
4658 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90029-3330
Phone: (323) 664-8913

Here is a list of some reggae clubs in Los Angeles:

The Atlas
Jamaica Live @ The Dragon Fly
Asylum @ Wilshire Club
Jamaica Gold @ The Key Club
Reggae Club @ 49 Clubs
Dancehall Night @ The Galaxy

If you'd like to get more information about clubs/events in Los Angeles, check out these web sites:

Where Jamaicans Live

Eboni B. aka "Reds" — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Los Angeles is home to a growing number of Jamaicans, which are scattered throughout Los Angeles and neighboring cities. Below are a few areas with an influx of Jamaicans:

South Central Area
Between Normandie Ave. and Western Ave., one can find homes with a Jamaican flag waving in the front yard. This lower middle class area is made up largely of bungalows and small apartment complexes. Take note that this area is also made up of a large population of Belizean residents.

South Bay Area
The South Bay is made of several cities: Inglewood, Hawthorne and Gardena. South Bay appeals to many because of clean & quiet beautiful homes and lower cost in rent/mortgage.

Long Beach
This is a place where many of the Jamaican events are held and is home to a growing number of Jamaicans. With a convenient train/bus system, it's easy to love the town by the harbor.

Overview

Eboni B. aka "Reds" — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Sunny L.A. enjoys pleasant weather throughout the year. Ringed by mountains and the sea, the temperatures tend to be moderate -- seldom exceeding 85 F/29 C or falling below 40 F/4 C.

The city offers numerous nightclubs, marvelous restaurants, beaches, diverse cultural events, Hollywood glamour contrasts with gang violence, year-round sunny skies with smog and fast cars with traffic jams.

Los Angeles is a land of style and disaster, movers and shakers and earthquakes. Residents are accustomed to a rhythm that alternates between relaxation and stress.

Jamaican Food

Eboni B. aka "Reds" & Jonathan Bell — Mon, 01 Sep 2003 17:00:00 UT

Dead fi hungry? Well look no further in Los Angeles. Jamaican restaurants have good selections on the menu. On Sundays, some offer an all-you-can-eat deal per plate that ranges from $6-$15(US) depending on where you dine. Here's a few:

Coleys Caribbean-American Cuisine
Stone's Market & Bakery
Milton's
Joe's Restaurant
Jucy's Restaurant & Market
Derricks

Market Place
If you don't want to dine out, many of the larger commercial supermarkets in Los Angeles carry Caribbean products such as plantains, chocho, coconut, papaya, mango, thyme, oxtail and fish and even jerk seasoning. Some produce may be a little harder to find. There are smaller privately owned markets and bakeries within the communities that carry items like Ting®, bammy, sorrel, hard dough bread, ackee and bread fruit but it may cost a little more.

Along with food the smaller grocery markets also provide Western Union & Money Gram Service if you'd like to send money home, as well as phone cards with special rates to Jamaica. Also, barrels are sold normally in four different sizes and shipping services are provided as well.

Akka's Market, Jucy's and Stone's Market are places to get all those things one misses from home: Irish moss, spices, scotch bonnet peppers, chocolate balls, salt fish, goat meat, green banana, yams, D&G beverages and so much more! Unfortunately, fresh ackee is impossible to come by in LA but they do have the canned variety and callaloo too. You can also find a variety of Jamaican produce & spices being sold in neighborhood markets that carry Spanish/Latino/Mexican products. There is also downtown LA's Grand Central Market that has a wide variety of fresh produce, fish and meats!

Jamaican Organizations

Eboni B. aka "Reds" & Jonathan Bell — Sat, 30 Aug 2003 17:00:00 UT

Jamaican Consulate
8703 Venice Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA
Phone: (310) 559-3822

Note: This is not a complete consulate and it has an "Honorary Consul" who is the appointed representative. This means that passport issues and other such business cannot be handled here and still requires visits or mailings to NY or DC.

Jamaica Awareness Association of California
www.jamaicaawareness.org

The Jamaica Assocation of Northern California
www.janc.org