Reggae Rise Up Florida just put out the 2027 lineup, and St. Petersburg is getting four days of the good stuff. The festival runs March 11 to 14 at Vinoy Park, right on the water in downtown St. Pete, and the top of the poster is a roll call for American reggae: Slightly Stoopid, Rebelution, The Elovaters, SOJA, Stick Figure, The Movement, and Dirty Heads, with Big Boi riding along on closing day.
Full disclosure from this side of the mic: I'm a huge reggae fan. Bob Marley and The Wailers are my all-time favorite group, full stop. I've been lucky enough to sit down with Ziggy Marley, and with Aston "Family Man" Barrett, the bass man who held down the bottom end for The Wailers. So when a bill like this lands ninety minutes from my house, I don't cover it from a distance. I go.
Thursday, March 11 opens it. Slightly Stoopid and Rebelution headline the first night, with Artikal Sound System under them and Amp Melo, Anora, Pipe Down, and Seven Suns filling out the day. Gates open at 4 PM, so night one is an evening session, and that suits those two bands just fine.
Friday is the deep bench day. The Elovaters and SOJA top the bill, and under them you've got Atmosphere, Fortunate Youth, Donavon Frankenreiter, Landon McNamara, Rome, Satsang, and Twin Fin, plus Brinson Swann, Claire Wright, Emily Brimlow, and Sons of Paradise. If you only know the headliners, Friday is the day that changes your mind. Gates move to noon from Friday on.
“Saturday is the one I've got circled.”
Moe Train
Saturday is the one I've got circled. Stick Figure and The Movement headline, Common Kings and J Boog are on the bill, and the roots end of the poster runs Jesse Royal, Lila Iké, Mike Love, and Zion Marley. A Marley playing St. Pete on a Saturday, with his father's music running through this whole scene's family tree. That's the day I'm built for.
Sunday closes with Dirty Heads and Big Boi up top, and the history sits in the undercard: Burning Spear, live and still carrying roots reggae around the world after more than fifty years at it, plus Collie Buddz, Algorhythm, Hirie, Moon Taxi, Chad Tepper, Dale and the ZDubs, Matt and Zack, and The Sub Herbs. A Sunday with Burning Spear on Florida soil is not a small thing, and I don't plan to miss a minute of it.
The practical stuff: it's all ages, kids 12 and under get in free, and the show runs rain or shine. Music wraps at 10 PM every night under the city ordinance, so the days start early and end on time. Passes run from 4-day down to single-day across Platinum, VIP, GA+, and GA, and the festival says prices climb as tiers sell, so waiting costs money. Tickets are up now at reggaeriseup.com.
Moe Train's Tracks will be in Vinoy Park for this one, cameras out and interview asks in. This is the first of several pieces we'll run on this festival between now and March. If you're going, I'll see you down front. If you're not, we'll bring the weekend back here.
Source: Reggae Rise Up
