Dred I Dread headlines carnival
ComedySportz also featured in weekend festivities
Spectator staff
Issue date: 2/14/02 Section: Spotlight
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Dred I Dread, named best reggae band at the Minnesota Music Awards last May, will headline a Winter Carnival concert on Saturday in Davies Center.
Doors will open at 8 p.m. for the show in the Council Fire Room. International Connections will appear as a special guest.
Put together in 1998 by drummer Rawle Gopie, originally from Kingston, Jamaica, Dred I Dread was chosen Best Local Reggae Band by City Pages magazine after less than a year of playing together. "Listen to the Revolution" (2000), the Minneapolis band's debut CD, was produced by Tony "Asher" Brissett, keyboardist for Black Uhuru.
Fronted by New Orleans native PeeWee Dread, Dred I Dread has opened for national acts such as DMX and Lee "Scratch" Perry, and has headlined throughout the Midwest.
International Connections is a new age, dance-oriented reggae band with members from both Madison and San Diego. Led by the charismatic Willy "Dred-I" Wilson, I-C is on the fast track to becoming the region's premier reggae band.
The concert is sponsored by the University Activities Commission of the UW-Eau Claire Student Senate.
Also featured this weekend will be the streetwise wit of Michael Jr., and the improvisational antics of ComedySportz will be presented on the Winter Carnival Comedy Showcase at 9 p.m. Friday in the Council Fire Room of Davies Center.
ComedySportz is a fast-paced comedy competition complete with a referee, points and penalties. Two teams of comedians improvise a series of comedy sketches based on audience suggestions — and the audience determines the victors.
An admitted people-watcher, Michael Jr. thanks Hollywood for giving him his start in comedy. One night, while watching a movie in a crowded theater where the film suddenly broke, he acted on a dare to tell a few jokes and entertain the audience.
When the house lights came up, he walked in front of the blank screen and discovered a new career.
The comedian has brought his laid-back style and unique perspective on everyday life to audiences from New York to San Francisco.
