Reggae Dancehall

There is one genre of Jamaican great music that is very popular today and that is Dancehall Reggae Music. It was started during the 1970s and though not much accepted then, is very popular among reggae music fans all over the world today. It was a more scattered variant of the more popular roots music of the day.

The slower rhythms gave way to faster reggae beats due to the digital instruments and the versatility of creators to change the music to invoke more interest. This faster reggae music has little connection to the earlier slower beats. Dancehall owes its popularity to the sound systems who did not hesitate to air the tunes and the supporters who readily consumed it.

Some of the Reggae artists who should be hailed for its popularity are people like Sugar Minott, Roots Radics, Barrington Levy, Frankie Paul, Junior Reid, Don Carlos, Triston Palmer, Al Campbell, Gregory Isaacs, Bunny Wailer, Captain Sinbad, Ranking Joe, Josey Wales, Charley Chaplain, General Echo and Yellowman. Of course these reggae artists could not have paved the way by themselves. It also took the sound systems and producers to play the music to the public. Studio one was very influential to dancehall music during the 1970s and some of the producers who I must mention here are people like Junjo Lawes, Linval Thompson, Gussie Clack, and Jah Thomas.

Yellowman was very popular in dancehall reggae music and was one of the first to be signed to a major label. Female DJs also added a new dimension the dancehall reggae. Lady Saw, Shelly Thunder and Sister Nancy were the most dominant at the time. A new generation of dancehall reggae stars emerged along with a new style of music. Many times vulgarity and violence tarnished their lyrical content. These were people like Buju Banton, Shaba Ranks, Capleton, Buccaneer, Beanie Man, Bounty Killer, Cobra, Ninjaman etc.