The 21st Garance Reggae Festival, which was inaugurated today, will take place at the Arthur Rimbaud Park at Bagnols-sur-Ceze in Gard, France, on July 25-28, 2012.

This year the Garance Reggae Festival celebrates the 50th anniversary of Jamaican independence and pays tribute to what a release from the organisers described as a “remarkable island whose influence has reached the four corners of the globe.”

Following a record attendance last year (48,000 tickets sold), this year’s Garance Reggae Festival has adapted to accommodate its ever-growing public, offering even safer and more reliable facilities. The festival has become the not-to-be-missed event for reggae and dub aficionados throughout Europe. As always, the festival will showcase the very best in reggae legends, revelations and surprises.

The Garance Festival line-up for the Main Stage includes I-Threes Feat Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths and Pam Hall; Johnny Osbourne; Morgan Heritage; Alpha Blondy; Jamaica All Stars; Sly & Robbie, Ernest Ranglin, Monty Alexander; Raging Fyah; Groundation; Busy Signal; The Mighty Diamonds; Freddie McGregor; Biga Ranx; and many more. The Dub Station Corner includes King Jammy vs Mad Professor; Downbeat the Ruler vs Soul Stereo; Aba Shanti-I; King Alpha; Rootsting (feat. Murray Man); Dubkasm (feat. Solo Banton); Obf; Blackboard Jungle, and more.

For detailed information, see http://www.garancereggaefestival.com/

For original article, see http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120424/ent/ent3.html