By Nicholas Kellyman—

International reggae artist Cali P will be hosting Royal Reggae Festival on August 3 at Escherwyss Club in Zurich, Switzerland.

Cali P explained that the impetus for the creation of the festival was the lack of stage shows in Europe which provide fans with a wide range of reggae acts all in one night.

“Inna Jamaica, when a artist do him thing, is a natural thing weh you have nuff artist pan a show and all a that but, yuh see inna Europe, it is really different; concerts contain one artist, maximum two artists and that is a show,” he said.

“Right now, me change the thing over there and build a festival inna one night weh have over 10 artists performing.”

The show will be headlined by Cali P and gold-selling Swiss artist Phenomden.

The line-up, backed by Germany’s SoulFire Band, will also include artists such as Cookie the Herbalist, Collie Herb, Andrew Robinson and others.

This is not the first time Cali P has embarked upon a venture of this nature.

“The Royal Reggae Festival is a festival that I built before I came to live in Jamaica, like I would say, like even seven years ago was the first one wi did keep, and then wi kept a second one, and now we lively it back up again,” he said.

The Switzerland-born artist, who is based in Jamaica, recently returned to the island after performing at two shows in Panama. Additionally, Cali P used the visit to shoot the video for his single Si No Hay Amor with Panamanian artist, I-Nesta, which he says is getting a lot of airplay on Panama.

“Because of the combination of English, Patois and Spanish, is like it really touch the people them,” Cali P told The Sunday Gleaner.

The artist is putting the finishing touches on his new album musiCALI-sPeaKING, which will be produced by Bobby Digital.

“Right now, my album is in the process of mixing,” he revealed.

The artist, who cites Bob Marley, Sizzla Kalonji, Buju Banton among other reggae greats as his musical influences growing up, hopes to release the album before the end of the year.

He has been working on that album for the past three years and regards it very highly.

“Is the strongest project I ever work pan.”