Stir It Up

When Andre Mazelin was growing up in Montego Bay, Jamaica, he went to school with Ziggy Marley and remembers his father, Bob, waiting to pick him up in the courtyard. Fast forward years later and Mazelin, who is now the house and rental manager at the Creative Alliance, is hosting a party that commemorates the reggae legend’s birthday. “Even if I wasn’t from Jamaica, I could still identify with his songs of triumph and love,” Mazelin says. The party, on February 2, celebrates Bob Marley, but it also honors all things Caribbean. Vendors will be selling Afro-centric jewelry and photos, reggae band Jah Works will perform, and Trinidad native DJ Neil Mattei, pictured, left, with Mazelin, will spin roots music. Plus, chef Mama Saray is cooking up authentic island cuisine like jerk chicken and plantains, while local Trini-Michelle mixes a bona fide rum punch. “Bob’s music is universal, so this will be a great cross-section of people,” Mazelin says. “You can be transported to the islands, and we’ll save you the plane fare.”