“Reggae My Life Is”, the long-awaited memoirs of music industry veteran Copeland Forbes, will be released this spring. It will be the first project from Downsound Books, owned by American businessman Josef Bogdanovich.
Forbes has been pitching the book for several years. He blamed the delays on failure to find a suitable publisher, which has come in the latest venture by Bogdanovich, the principal of Reggae Sumfest.
“Downsound is in the business of content delivery and investing in a book publishing operation is consistent with that strategic objective. Book publishing is largely about storytelling which has considerable commercial and cultural implications. We have always been fascinated with the promotion of Jamaican culture and we see this venture as another way of achieving this objective,” said Bogdanovich.
Forbes is one of the distinguished faces in reggae. He has acted as manager, tour manager and booking agent for many reggae acts including Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Dennis Brown, Freddie McGregor, Marcia Griffiths, Luciano and The Mighty Diamonds.
From west Kingston, Jamaica, Forbes has led an eventful life. As a scout, he was part of the welcoming party at the National Stadium in August, 1962 when Britain’s Princess Margaret officially declared Jamaica an independent nation.
In April, 1966 he acted in a similar role for the state visit of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I.
He has hinted that “Reggae my Life Is” contains stories about his upbringing in west Kingston, and colorful tales of his time on the road with reggae’s biggest artists.
Written By Howard Campbell
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