MELANESIAN MAGIC: From the slums of Vanuatu, the Younglife Band pumps out its unique reggae sound in Wanganui tomorrow.PHOTO/SUPPLIED YOUNGLIFE-BAND
An award-winning Pacific reggae band from Vanuatu with an interesting back story will play in Wanganui tomorrow night.
Formed in 2008, the Younglife Band has toured extensively throughout the Melanesia region and as far as Kenya.
Based in Port Vila, the band has its roots in the youth culture of
Vanuatu, often singing about the trials that beset the increasingly urbanised young people who are living in shanty towns around the capital.
The urban slums in which they have their homes are far removed from the somewhat idyllic existence their ancestors enjoyed before colonisation pushed them into an urban environment. Poverty, poor health, unemployment, violence and corruption are now constantly present in the daily lives of the youth, but they manage to maintain a happiness and vibrancy.
Most of the band members had a limited education, being unable to read or write, and have been unemployed, but they have evolved from an amateur village group into a reggae powerhouse.
