The Caribbean is one of the great music exporters in history. But it also manages to attract some great musical talent to come to its many festivals over the course of the year, and 2014 is no different, with high-profile musicians heading across the region to headline musical fetes. Here are 10 world-class musicians, both from the region and abroad, you can hear this year. Of course, they’re just a few of a host of great musicians that will be performing at all of these festivals.
John Legend
The nine-time Grammy Award winner is heading to Tobago this month.
Tobago Jazz Festival
April 18-27
Alison Hinds
The “Queen of Soca” continues to reign over one of the region’s most popular forms of music, and she’s taking her talents to St Lucia.
St Lucia Jazz Festival
April 30-May 12
Riseupsound
When it comes to electronic music, this group of DJs from Martinique is taking the lead in the region.
Martizik — Martinique
May 2-4
Robin Thicke
The star of “Blurred Lines” is coming to the Dutch Caribbean.
Soul Beach Music Festival — Aruba
May 21-26
Barrington Levy
The Jamaican star is heading for the premier music festival in Guadeloupe.
Terre de Blues — Marie Galante, Guadeloupe Islands
June 6-9
Angelique Kidjo
The Beninoise sensation is highlighting Dominica’s signature summer event.
Jazz N’ Creole — Dominica
June 8
Shaggy
The Jamaican music luminary will be performing at Warner Park this summer.
St Kitts Music Festival
June 26-28
Tessanne Chin
She shocked the world on “The Voice” and she’s now returning home to headline Jamaica’s premier summer festival.
Reggae Sumfest — Montego Bay, Jamaica
July 13-19
Bruno Mars
The Hawaii native continues to wow audiences over the world, and he’ll be doing so in Curacao, too.
Curacao North Sea Jazz Festival
August 29-30
Levi Silvanie
The Curacao native is one of the Caribbean’s up-and-coming musical stars.
Bonaire Heineken Jazz Festival
August 1-3