The Beat Rootz

lot of experience, playing in many reggae or punk bands before. It was love that brought charismatic black singer Stefano Auguste „Rasta Nation” from Mauritius to Poland. He started jamming with Groove Baza in Warsaw and then joined The Rockas where he was a part of the vocal trio. They released a self-titled album in 2016. Stefano brings a different perspective to the music and shares the rich cultural heritage of his homeland. “In Mauritius we play Seggae. It was created in the 1980s by a singer called Kaya. Sega is Mauritian original music. It could be traditional or electronic. He mixed it with reggae. Seggae rhythm is different than reggae, but it is still very close” – he explains. A real ambassador of the island in Poland, Stefano is on a mission - “It is very important to continue Kaya’s roots, to tell people about Seggae and Mauritius. People dream of a honeymoon there but that’s not only a place for holidays. There are a lot more things happening there right now.”

The Beat Rootz consists of musicians with dozens of years of experience in playing reggae in Poland. A reference list of bands like Transmisja, Galago Band, Stage of Unity, Vibes'n'Power or The Bartenders means a lot to every Polish roots music fan. What has punk to do with The Beat Rootz? Great saxophone layers of sound are provided by Aidan Hoyle, “an Englishman in Poland”, known for his previous work with X-Ray Spex, the legendary London’s punk band of the 1970s. The Beat Rootz played four shows in 2020 during the relaxing of the lock-down in the summer and managed to record and produce their EP “I Love my Life” which is available on bandcamp and via most streaming platforms.