From the pit
Friday the 13th in Providence, and nobody in The Strand was worried about luck. Shaggy headlined The Strand Ballroom & Theatre on March 13, 2026, with Tanto Metro & Devonte, Tifa, Teejay, Jay Banks and Pritty Di General on the bill, and the room came ready for him.
Two Grammys in, Shaggy still works a stage like he has something to prove. Boombastic won Best Reggae Album in 1996, and 44/876, his album with Sting, won it again in 2019. More than thirty years after Mr. Boombastic first hit, the catalog is deep enough to carry a whole night: Boombastic, It Wasn't Me, Angel.
That same night, Voice of Genius sat down with him at the Graduate Hotel in Providence. They talked about his new album Lottery, his years as a U.S. Marine, giving back to Jamaica, and why, after all this time, he is still betting on himself. The full interview is in this gallery. Tap the video to watch it. Interview writer: Bobby Shakes. Camera: Crazy Dazzle. Key grip: Tando.
These frames are that night: Grammy winner Shaggy live in Providence.
Words & photography — Bobby Shakes