Photography by Cecilia O'Rollins
By Owen Murray
Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley closed out the festival Sunday night on a high note.
Coming all the way from Kingston, Jamaica, the son of Bob Marley delivered a fantastic reggae set accompanied by a full band and a three person set of background singers.
Marley came out strong and kept the energy going.
His half-sung/half-rapped delivery had the entire crowd dancing and excited while his socially conscious lyrics brought another layer of passion to the stage.
The band was upbeat, super tight, and carried Marley well. Every reggae upstroke hit was precisely timed and easy to tap, jump, or dance along to.
At some moments Marley was accompanied by funky vocoder background vocals that added a fresh new element to the performance.
It wasn't long before the whole crowd got involved.
During a rendition of "More Justice" Marley called "Extra Extra" and the crowd enthusiastically responded "read all about it!"
The set was one of Levitate Festival's most unifying moments. With the entire festival behind them, the audience only had one thing to focus on. Damian Marley most definitely rose to the occasion. People were waving their hands back and forth in synch with one another, smiling, and singing. It was an upbeat ending to a happy weekend full of music.
