Dancehall Party Hamburg

November 01, 2022

Ministry Of Silly Walks

Founded in Hamburg in 1991, Silly Walks is one of Europe's best-known reggae/dancehall sound systems. Oliver Schrader: Countless good memories have accumulated there and of course it's a bit hit and miss now. Related to Hamburg, here are our beach parties at Schröder's Elbpark, they were great. Dub evenings with Ire Hifi and Iration Steppas, some Flora evenings, Wednesdays in the Astra-Stube, our 20th anniversary at Uebel & Gefahrlich and generally always very special: releasing new music. In the late 80s it really sparked in me, since then reggae has been my great musical love. Joscha, who is a little younger, grew up with ska and also came to reggae from there. Music was still very popular in Bob Marley's time, there were many concerts with many visitors. The scene, which was in tune with modern Jamaican dancehall reggae, was set in a living room. It was a floor occupied as a party venue in an office building on Grosse Bäckerstrasse, around the corner from Rathausmarkt. We also did a lot in Rote Flora and Hafenstrasse, simply because those were places where it was possible. What annoys me in general - not just in Hamburg - but a little, is that reggae and dancehall are drifting further and further apart as genres. Part of the dancehall crowd no longer has any connection with reggae and vice versa, some reggae people also reject the current musical development in Jamaica. Years ago, Spex wrote that Silly Walks had made Hamburg the most important dancehall venue in Germany. The city is well located and of course central for us personally, but Cologne is also important for the people of Cologne and Stuttgart for the people of Stuttgart. There are parties every weekend and many reggae and dancehall artists touring Europe stop in Hamburg. Gentleman is a good friend and we also have a very good relationship with Patrice. It was a worldwide reggae hit, it's kind of the unofficial national anthem in Jamaica and it's our biggest hit as producers so far. Viva con Agua is a very supportive project run by incredibly friendly people doing unique things. We had done something with them before, we had known each other for a long time, but until we went to Ethiopia together, we hadn't realized how fundamentally each well was to so many people. We want to do a trip like this again soon, hopefully it will work out next year. And we occasionally DJ at Antifa, No Human Is Illegal or Right to the City events. The backing band is Gentleman's band "The Evolution", who also recorded most of the tracks for our new album. Next up is a new video featuring reggae queen Marcia Griffiths and some of the riddims from the Smile Jamaica album juggling.

Please note the currently applicable restrictions of the authorities for all activities and avoid social contact as much as possible upon arrival and departure, as well as on site.