Natty Nation
| Natty Nation | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Madison, Wisconsin |
| Genres | Reggae,roots reggae,reggae rock,Rock music |
| Years active | 1995–2006; 2007-present |
| Labels | iNatty Records (current), Laughing Cat, Fish-Eye |
| Associated acts | dumate, Son Contrabando, Fruit Salad, Kevin Kinsella, Prophets of Rage, Arawak Jah, Al Jewer, Biff Blumfumgagnge |
| Website | NattyNation.com |
| Members | Demetrius "Jah Boogie" Wainwright, Aaron Konkol, Richard Hildner, Olen Franklin, Francisco Savage-Martinez, Mike Daum, Eric Kummer, Harjinder Singh, Shonn Hinton |
| Past members | Jeffrey "J-Maxx" Maxwell, Peter "Ras Kit It" Johnston, Steven "Cup O Tea" Cadle, Ras Joseph "Fuzzy" Mayeur, Al Jewer, Anthony Paul "Dr. Bric-Da-Brac" Willis, Stefan "Ras Trues" Truesdell, Don Rembert, Aaron Sleator, Nickolas Moran, Paul Renke, Tyson Klobles, Jason Himebauch, Mario Dawson, Biff Blumfumgagnge, David Wake, Urban Empress, Dan "Spiffy" Neuman, Luke Polipnick, Phillip "PJ" Hill, Jr., Louka Patenaude |
 Natty Nation in Africa & the Middle-East tour video (Jun 27, 2009) |
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Natty Nation performing "Arise" on Urban Theatre (Feb 17, 2011) |
Natty Nation is an American rock and reggae band from Madison, Wisconsin. Founded in 1995, as of December 2016, the lineup included Demetrius "Jah Boogie" Wainwright (bass, vocals), Aaron Konkol (backup vocals, keyboard), Richard Hildner (guitar), Olen Franklin (drums), Francisco Savage-Martinez (backup vocals, percussion, drums), Mike Daum (guitar), Eric Kummer (drums), Harjinder Singh (backup vocals, guitar), and Shonn Hinton (guitar). The group has released several studio albums since their 1996 debut The Journey Has Just Begun..., in 2010 Isthmus Magazine named their 1998 release Earth Citizen one of the "top 25 Madison pop albums of all time," writing that "Natty Nation's mix of roots reggae and hard rock proved unique and gained a following that remains today," and their 2016 release, Divine Spark debuted at #3 on the Billboard (magazine) Reggae Chart.
The band has released several live albums on their independent label Inatty Records. They have also toured regularly in the United States, performing at festivals such as SXSW, Summerfest, and Freakfest, and also touring throughout the Middle East and Africa in 2008, and Japan and the Marshall Islands in 2009. Natty Nation's song "Cool & Proper" was named Broadjam's international song of the month, and as of 2015 the group had won twenty seven Madison Area Music Industry Awards (MAMIs), including Performer of the Year in 2009. The group won the Wisconsin Area Music Industry Award (WAMI) for Reggae Artist of the Year, and in the Isthmus' Newspaper's readers poll the group was named Best World Artist or Group for five consecutive years.
The American reggae band Natty Nation was first formed in 1995 in Madison, Wisconsin. Founding members included rhythm guitarist and vocalist Jeffrey "J-Maxx" Maxwell, vocalist and bassist "JAH Boogie" Wainwright, drummer Peter "Ras Kik It" Johnston, guitarist Steven "Cup O Tea" Cadle, and rhythm guitarist and vocalist Ras Joseph "Fuzzy" Mayeur. The group formed after JAH Boogie, Cup O Tea and Ras Kit It split off from Arawak Jah, a more traditional group, with Boogie stating "we wanted to do more rock, harder hitting, have a younger vibe." They began writing music that blended reggae, dub, roots, and rock with positive messages, and in 1995 the original members began playing shows at The Mango Grill, small diner in the University Square in Madison. Fuzzy introduced the rest of the band to Jamaican musician, rhythm guitarist and vocalist Jeffrey "J-Maxx" Maxwell, who quickly joined the group as front man, trading off lead vocal with JAH Boogie. Their first studio album, The Journey Has Just Begun, was released on April 20, 1996 on the indie record label Laughing Cat Records, which is based in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the album met with an "enthusiastic response," and led to the band touring for a year and a half in its support. In 1997 the band was joined by percussionist Anthony Paul "Dr. Bric-Da-Brac" Willis, and by that year they had performed at festivals such as SXSW.
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