The reggae industry has raised an estimated $200 million toward Jamaica’s recovery from Hurricane Melissa, Culture Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange said on January 21 at the launch of Reggae Month at J. Wray & Nephew’s New Kingston offices, the Jamaica Observer reports.

Of that, $64 million raised through the I Love Jamaica telethon in Kingston on November 23 has been lodged with the Government’s Support Jamaica portal. Money from the overseas shows will follow once banking procedures are complete. “All the funds raised will go to Support Jamaica, the funds raised overseas may take a little while, but it’s all earmarked for Support Jamaica,” Grange said. “The funds from New York are being transferred, and the funds from Hard Rock are being processed.”

Three shows

The telethon and virtual concert at the National Indoor Sports Centre drew some 30 performers — Tessanne Chin, Tarrus Riley, Beenie Man, Tanya Stephens, Christopher Martin, Ding Dong, Jahshii, Govana, Yaksta, Nadine Sutherland and George Nooks among them — with Usain Bolt and Sean Paul working the pledge lines, the Observer reported at the time. “I wanted to partake in every one of the shows,” Sean Paul said. “It’s just an amazing cause for all of us to pull together.” “Even though we are in a really tough place, we have to remember who we are,” said Chin, who sang “We Shall Rise Again.”

Jamaica Strong at the UBS Arena on Long Island filled the room to near its 18,000 capacity in December, the Gleaner reports, with Shaggy, Sean Paul, KES, Inner Circle, Ky-Mani Marley, Tessanne Chin, Aidonia, T.O.K., Gramps Morgan, Richie Stephens, Teejay, Maxi Priest, Marcia Griffiths and I-Octane, backed by Derrick Barnett’s Statement Band. Amazon Live and TVJ streamed it to more than 1.4 million viewers; Grange, US Congresswoman Yvette Clarke and VP Records co-founder Patricia Chin joined the closing anthem. It raised approximately US$500,000, Grange said this week.

Stay Strong Jamaica followed on January 2 at Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Florida, again with Shaggy, Marcia Griffiths, Wayne Wonder and Inner Circle. Its returns, Grange said, will be disclosed shortly. Further benefit shows have been staged in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

The announcement came as Reggae Month 2026 opened with Etana as its first ambassador, a February 1 wreath-laying for Dennis Brown at National Heroes Park, a Bob Marley concert at Emancipation Park on February 6 and the fifth Reggae Gold Awards on February 27.

Editor’s note: On April 3, the Jamaica Information Service reported that the I Love Jamaica concert series had reached its US$1 million target after a US$400,000 donation from the Hard Rock Heals Foundation, generated by the Florida show. “You were among the first responders when the hurricane hit Jamaica,” Grange told the entertainment community.

Listen and dig deeper

Sources: Jamaica Observer — “Funds raised from ‘Melissa’ concerts rolling in” (Howard Campbell, Jan 23, 2026); Jamaica Observer — “Entertainers support I Love Jamaica telethon, concert” (Kevin Jackson, Nov 28, 2025); Jamaica Gleaner — “Caribbean warmth fills UBS Arena at sold-out ‘Jamaica Strong’ concert” (Anthony Turner, Dec 15, 2025); JIS — “‘I Love Jamaica’ Initiative Raises US$1 Million” (Apr 3, 2026). The Observer gives the New York date as December 3; the Gleaner’s review places the concert on Friday, December 12.

Editor’s note: This story is part of an archive backfill covering Jamaican music news from 2022 to 2026. It is dated to the events it reports.