Before Melbourne based band Rasta Unity brings their roots reggae groove to the stage at The Gershwin Room at The Espy for the semi-finals of Emergenza Festival Australia, they sit down to catch us up on the first round and let us know what may be in store for this Thursday, October 9th. Don’t miss your chance to jam out with them then.

FOR THOSE WHO DIDN’T GET TO SEE YOU IN THE FIRST ROUND, CAN YOU INTRODUCE US TO YOUR BAND RASTA UNITY?
Rasta Unity is an original roots reggae band influenced by Jamaican 1970’s reggae era.

WHAT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR YOU?
The energy from the crowd.

OUT OF ALL THE SONGS YOU PLAYED, WHICH ONE GOT THE BIGGEST REACTION OUT OF THE CROWD AND WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS?
“Sweet Love”, the reason why the crowd react to it is because everyone loves a good love song, especially a reggae one!

CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE FIRST ROUND AND WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM IT?
Our experience of Emergenza was very positive and it was great to see the diversity of bands playing in the heat..The most important thing we learnt, is to just be ourselves and have fun. Everything else we leave up to Jah!

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO BETWEEN GIGS AND WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING TO PREPARE FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF THE COMPETITION?
We have been arranging an upcoming show with a band from Sydney called Abuka. We will play with Abuka at The Laundry on 22 October. It will be a Brazilian soul-jazz reggae night and feature musicians from Brazil and Australia. To prepare for Emergenza we have been rehearsing and making changes to our set, including adding a brand new song called Why, which we think people will like the new song.

SO HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ONE STEP CLOSER TO THE EMERGENZA FINALS?
An honor and exciting!

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR UPCOMING CONCERT AT THE ESPY?
Gaining experience being in a band competition and embracing our unique essence. Every new experience provide new lessons and opportunities for growth and we thank Emergenza for holding the space and providing bands with such a great opportunity.

For more details on the show at The Espy, October 9th, click here.