Dancehall music is a rhythmic type of reggae that has admirers all over the world. Discover the subgenre’s history, sounds, and key players.
What is Dancehall Music?
Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that evolved in the late 1970s from the country’s prolific and diverse music industry. Dancehall music inherited reggae music’s sinuous rhythms but replaced its energetic live performers with prerecorded or digitally generated tunes built on pure, driving grooves. The subgenre also favored lyrical content that glorified earthly pleasures over traditional or roots reggae’s spiritual and mystical language.
Dancehall’s popularity spread beyond Jamaica’s borders, bringing international exposure to dancehall musicians such as Sean Paul, Beenie Man, and Lady Saw. In contrast, pop performers such as Drake and Rihanna gained their own dancehall songs.
What are the 3 characteristics of Dancehall Music?
- Lyrics: One of the critical ways dancehall music distinguished itself from roots reggae was through its lyrical content. It replaced Jah (God) festivities and political debate with issues that drew parallels to various hip-hop styles: Most dancehall songs reflected an outlaw mentality and a focus on the racy subject matter.
- Elements of hybridity: Early dancehall included performers toasting or singing over pre-recorded sounds from Jamaican record labels such as Studio One. Digital dancehall, also known as ragga, was popular in the 1980s and 1990s and featured creative compositions recorded using electronic equipment. Modern dancehall is a fusion of dancehall rhythms and American hip-hop and R&B tracks.
- Reuse: Many musicians employ riddims, the rhythm tracks used in dancehall music, on multiple recordings. A single riddim, such as the one featured in Wayne Smith’s “(Under Me) Sleng Teng”),” fuelled a dozen or more creative songs. By 2006, the riddim that anchored 1967’s “Real Rock” had appeared in over 250 recordings. This unique practice dates back to the origins of dancehall, when a deejay would salute the selector’s albums live.
Who is the founder of Dancehall Music?
Recognizing the popularity of sound systems, Jamaican music producers such as Duke Reid and Henry “Junjo” Lawes developed the first dancehall recordings in the 1970s by rerecording existing instrumental tunes or parts from songs with vocals with other singers and deejays.
Source: www.ghgossip.com
