This will mark the Collective’s first return to Canada since the death

of Andy Palacio. Fronting the Collective in Andy’s absence will be the

Umalali Singers; Desiree Diego, Sofia Blanco, and Marsella Aranda..

According to producer, Ivan Duran, the focus of these shows will be the

women. “For the first few years the Umalali Singers were sort of guest

artists who would occasionally join Andy and the Collective on stage.

Now they have grown as performers to the point where they are the front

people for the group. It creates a whole new dynamic for the Collective

and it is very exciting.” The trio will be performing selections from

both /Umalali/ and the Garifuna Collective’s breakthrough album /Watina./

The return of the Collective, along with the Umalali singers, has

already been creating a buzz in the Canadian media as the women have

been busy doing pre-publicity radio interviews. Two concerts on the tour

will be broadcast live on radio; CIUT in Toronto and CBC in Montreal.

Following the upcoming Canadian tour The Garifuna Collective and Umalali

Singers look forward to performing a series of concerts in Belize. The

group returns home on July 28.

The Garifuna Collective/Umalali Singers continue to be Belize’s most

recognized international music ambassadors. To date they have performed

in over 20 countries on 3 continents. The women recently completed a

one-month tour of Germany and have been back in studio recording new

material with the Garifuna Collective. The forth coming album will be a

tribute to Andy Palacio and will also feature Lloyd Augustine. That

project should be released in early 2010.