For the past eleven years, California Roots Music & Arts Festival has been bringing the best reggae, roots music, rock, hip hop and psychedelic art center stage to the iconic Monterey County Fair and Event Center. To celebrate "International Women's Day," the festival is proud to highlight artists HIRIE, Nattali Rize, Vana Liya and Artikal Sound System fronted by Logan Rex on their 2020 lineup. DJs also bringing the vibes include Kayla Kush and Lexy Love. In addition to the talent on stage, behind stage has plenty to celebrate with a staff of over 70% women bosses!
HIRIE is a pop reggae act led by front woman Trish Jetton. HIRIE's latest album Dreamer is inspired by the novel Women Who Run With the Wolves, a book that explores feminine instinct and power. It celebrates, as she says beaming, "that wild woman archetype." Already a long-time Cali Roots favorite, get ready to hear one of the most inspiring and successful women in the scene take center stage.
Nattali Rize will also be returning to Cali Roots in 2020! Of mixed global heritage, with dominant Native American and Samoan roots,
Nattali Rize is known around the world for her work fronting epic roots band
Blue King Brown as well as for her unwavering commitment to using her voice and music for the global struggle toward the realization of Full
Freedom and the movement of Truth and
Justice over the systemic exploitation of the people and our planet.
Making her Cali Roots debut is the fast rising Vana Liya. Vana Liya grew up outside of New York City. Being of Caribbean descent, Vana was surrounded by soca, calypso, dancehall and reggae music. Vana's mom gave her a ukulele for Christmas and a few years later she began covering songs by some of her favorite artists. The combination of the ukulele and her soft voice put a unique twist on some reggae-rock staples. Artists like 311, Rebelution,
Stick Figure and SOJA shared Vana's covers across social media platforms, which was the beginning of Vana finding her audience. After gaining traction, in early 2018 Vana Liya signed with Pepper's LAW Records becoming the first female and first solo artist. The Cali Roots community is very excited for her debut. Another artist making their debut at Cali Roots is Artikal Sound System. The Delray Beach, Florida band is lead by the fierce front woman Logan Rex, blending roots and modern sounds with Logan's smooth female vocals. The results bring love, good vibes and a dancing mood wherever they go. Behind the turntables will be DJs Kayla Kush representing WORT FM and Rootfire and San Diego's Lexy Love from Z90.3 FM.
Leading the charge backstage is Amy Sheehan who oversees all festival operations; from marketing to production to HR. She is the glue that keeps the team together, and during the festival Amy is connecting the pieces between artists, ticketing, marketing, and so much more. She works closely with Ana
Elizabeth who heads up artist relations, and connects often with Lauren Langone head of hospitality, Marina Petros, head of ticketing, and Keisha Murray in charge of running artists to and from airports to hotel rooms. All to ensure artists and their teams get to the venue on time and on stage to perform.
Deep behind the scenes Lindsay Freedman manages over 100 plus volunteers for the festival, everything from recruitment to training. Every staffer is thankful for Brandalyn Raymond, who is in charge of getting supplies to all the teams - everything from signage to tents, and Katie Hovis is the go to person in the production office. Front of house, you can find Meesh Baraga watching over the entrances as head of the front gates, and Katie Wilson at the merchandise table working with artist product. Dana Greer leads the in-house media team through social media, managing talented photographers and bloggers through compelling content. The above mentioned is only a sample of the 50 plus other women who make the festival run so smoothly.
Amy Sheehan has also been a pivotal part of Cali Roots' reputation for putting on an impressive "green" and environmentally conscious event. She states, "Cali Roots has paved its own unique way in the festival circuit, leading by example on how our event can do more than just entertain. Cali Roots' ethos is to reduce our impact on the environment by aligning with other like-minded organizations, making earth-wise choices regarding the products purchased, promoting environmental awareness to fans, staff & artists, and continuing to set the bar higher each year in our commitment to sustainability. Every year we continue to find new ways to stand out and make a difference and so much credit is due to the women leaders on our staff. I am proud to celebrate 'International Women's Day' surrounded by such a passionate and talented community of women."
GA tickets and
Redwood passes are on sale now at
https://californiarootsfestival.com/tickets.
