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71-583: Dancehall saw initial mainstream success in Jamaica in the 1980s, and by the 1990s, it became increasingly popular in Jamaican diaspora communities. In the 2000s, dancehall experienced worldwide mainstream success, and by the 2010s, it began to heavily influence the work of established Western artists and producers, which has helped to further bring the genre into the Western music mainstream. Dancehall

142-592: A DJ Saved My Life states that sound systems were a product of Jamaican social lifestyle. The success of music wasn't just in the hands of one person anymore, it was a factor of the DJ, speaking poetic words to the audience, the Selector, harmonizing beats in an aesthetically pleasing way, and the Sound Engineer, wiring the sound systems to handle deeper and louder bass tones. Music became a factor of many elements and

213-603: A Jamaican diaspora presence. In New York City a large percentage of the Jamaican High School & College graduates are associated with their High School Alumni organizations which are unified into the Union of Jamaican Alumni Associations (USA) Inc http://ujaausa.org/ . In Toronto , the Jamaican community is also large, with a metropolitan population of approximately 200,330 (3.4%). Jamaican populated areas of

284-507: A UK MOBO award for Best Reggae Album in 2015. The year of 2016 saw Popcaan's rival-artist Alkaline release his debut album 'New Level Unlocked' under DJ Frass Records, which topped the charts in Jamaica, as well as being well received in the US and UK. Popcaan and Alkaline have always been rival music artists in Jamaica and it is much debated who is the new Dancehall King, since Vybz Kartel

355-471: A change reflected by the 1981 Junjo Lawes-produced album A Whole New Generation of DJs , although many went back to U-Roy for inspiration. He utilized talking over or under a " riddim " which is now known as the deejay's seductive chant, part talking and part singing. Deejay records became, for the first time, more important than records featuring singers. Another trend was sound clash albums, featuring rival deejays /or sound systems competing head-to-head for

426-427: A lesser extent, Auckland), Mexico , Japan , Malaysia and Indonesia . Jamaica continues to have a severe problem with barrel children - those left with family members (primarily grand parents) or selected guardians, by parents seeking a better life abroad. The term "barrel children" refers to the common practice of shipping goods, gifts and necessities in shipping barrels to these children (and family members). Once

497-491: A little help from deejay sound, "sweet sing" (falsetto voice) singers such as Pinchers , Cocoa Tea , Sanchez , Admiral Tibet , Frankie Paul, Half Pint, Courtney Melody, and Barrington Levy were popular in Jamaica. Nearing the end of the '80s Jamaican Dancehall artists gained a lot of appeal through their no-nonsense music. This expanded the genre's reach beyond the Land of Wood and Water 's borders. The main appeal of Dancehall

568-504: A mixture of both. These crews created their own dances which developed fame in the Dancehall scene. Some of the artists who popularised this new era of Dancehall were Bounty Killer , Beenie Man , Elephant Man , Shalkal Carty, Popcaan , Vybz Kartel , Konshens , Mr. Vegas , Mavado , Ward 21 , Lady Saw and Spice , some of whom saw international success. This success brought forward mainstream appeal toward Dancehall which lead into

639-724: A place to use their voice and make a mark due to the opportunities afforded by InnerCity Promotions.[26] This is from the International Reggae Awards special awarded honors(irawma awards).[26] Sound systems such as Killimanjaro, Black Scorpio , Silver Hawk, Gemini Disco, Virgo Hi-Fi, Volcano Hi-Power and Aces International soon capitalized on the new sound and introduced a new wave of deejays . The older toasters were overtaken by new stars such as Captain Sinbad , Ranking Joe , Clint Eastwood , Lone Ranger , Josey Wales , Charlie Chaplin , General Echo and Yellowman —

710-463: A platform for artists to be seen and heard. From 1982 The team started a series called "Saturday Nite Live" at Harbour View Drive-In. Promoting one of Jamaicas finest acts along side a US soul group. That year ‘83 it was Gladys Knight & the Pips that headlined the initial concert and the showcase also featured boxing presentations from Muhammad Ali. The tested events were so successful that the next step

781-653: A site of collective memory that functions as ritualized memorializing, a memory bank of the old, new, and dynamic bodily movements, spaces, performers, and performance aesthetics of the New World and Jamaica in particular. These same notions of dancehall as a cultural space are echoed in Norman Stolzoff's Wake the Town and Tell the People . He notes that dancehall is not merely a sphere of passive consumerism, but rather

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852-402: A song of the same name, being used in at least 269 songs by 2006 over the course of 39 years. Peter Manuel and Wayne Marshall noted in 2006 that most songs were set to one of about a dozen riddims that were in vogue, with the exceptions being the work of individual, often high-ranked, artists. Recording over riddims forms the basis of dancehall, with modern dancehall layering vocals over ostinatos;

923-485: Is an alternative sphere of active cultural production that acts as a means through which black lower-class youth articulate and project a distinct identity in local, national, and global contexts. Through dancehall, ghetto youths attempt to deal with the endemic problems of poverty, racism, and violence, and in this sense the dancehall acts as a communication center, a relay station, a site where black lower-class culture attains its deepest expression. Thus, dancehall in Jamaica

994-932: Is an annual event in the city. The parade is held downtown on the first Saturday of August, shutting down a portion of Lake Shore Boulevard . Jamaica Day is in July, and the Jesus in the City parade attracts many Jamaican Christians. Reggae and dancehall are popular among Toronto's youth, of various ethnic backgrounds. Outside the Greater Toronto Area , cities such as Montreal , Ottawa , and Hamilton also have sizable Jamaican communities. More recently many resort- and wild-life-management-skilled Jamaicans have been trending emigration toward such far-flung nations as Australia , New Zealand (especially in Wellington and, to

1065-517: Is home to a large Jamaican diaspora community. The Brooklyn communities are centred along Flatbush, Nostrand and Utica Avenues in the neighborhoods of Prospect Heights , Lefferts Gardens , Flatbush , East Flatbush , Crown Heights , Canarsie , and Flatlands . Flatbush, Nostrand, and Utica Avenues feature miles of Jamaican cuisine, food markets and other businesses, nightlife and residential enclaves. The Bronx neighborhoods are Wakefield , Eastchester , Baychester . The borough of Queens also has

1136-404: Is inseparable from sound system culture. The term 'Dancehall', while now typically used in reference to the specific and uniquely Jamaican genre of music, originally referred to a physical location. This location was always an open-air venue from which DJs and later "Toasters", a precursor to MCs, could perform their original mixes and songs for their audience via their sound systems. The openness of

1207-412: Is named after Jamaican dance halls in which popular Jamaican recordings were played by local sound systems . It both refers to the music and dance style. It faced criticism for negatively influencing Jamaican culture and portraying gangster lifestyles in a praiseworthy way. Dancehall music, also called ragga or dub, is a style of Jamaican popular music that had its genesis in the political turbulence of

1278-492: Is said to coincide with the influx of slack lyrics within dancehall, which objectified women as apparatuses of pleasure. These women would team up with others to form "modeling posses", or "dancehall model" groups, and informally compete with their rivals. This newfound materialism and conspicuity was not, however, exclusive to women or manner of dress. Appearance at dance halls was exceedingly important to acceptance by peers and encompassed everything from clothing and jewelry, to

1349-402: Is usefully maintained in the Jamaican popular cultural context." In discussion of the possibility of a self identifying homosexual dancer performing to homophobic music she writes, "In appropriating the culture and working from within its very center, he produces a bodily performance that gains him power. It is the power or mastery, of parody, and of getting away with it." Ellis not only examines

1420-465: Is well in-tune with the boost of urban acts in the UK rising up, and the rebirth of Grime in 2014. In the late 2010s, a new wave of artists rose to popularity in Jamaica. These artists come from rural parishes, especially Montego Bay , outside of the commercial center of the Jamaican music industry. They are influenced by American trap music , and sometimes refer to lottery scamming in their lyrics. Some of

1491-473: Is what creates a space for queer expression in Jamaica. She describes the phenomenon of all male dance groups that have sprung up within the dancehall scene. These crews dress in matching, tight clothing, often paired with makeup and dyed hair, traditional hallmarks of queerness within Jamaican culture. When they perform together, it is the bodily performance that give the homosexual dancers power. Jamaican diaspora The Jamaican diaspora refers to

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1562-541: Is yet another example of the way that the music and dance cultures of the African diaspora have challenged the passive consumerism of mass cultural forms, such as recorded music, by creating a sphere of active cultural production that potentially may transform the prevailing hegemony of society. In Out and Bad: Toward a Queer Performance Hermeneutic in Jamaican Dancehall Nadia Ellis explicates

1633-466: The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 possibly influenced increases in Jamaican migrants over-staying contract limits. Jamaican-U.S. emigration increased dramatically during the 1960s, primarily of skilled Jamaican nurses. Possible factors behind this increase include high U.S. labor demand for nurses and medical workers during the 1960s, a shift in emigrant destinations after restrictions from

1704-456: The Rastafari movement were overtaken by lyrics about dancing, violence and sexuality. Though the revolutionary spirit was present in Jamaica due to this social upheaval, the radio was very conservative and failed to play the people's music. It was this gap that the sound system was able to fill with music that the average Jamaican was more interested in. Alongside this music was the addition of

1775-520: The Toronto metropolitan area (around 200,000), other parts of Southern Ontario , Quebec , and Alberta . Krista Thompson (art historian) Krista Thompson is an art historian. She serves as Weinberg College Board of Visitors Professor and Professor in the Department of Art History at Northwestern University . Her work focuses on modern and contemporary art and visual culture of

1846-903: The Windrush Generation , named after the first ship that carried passengers from Jamaica to the UK, Empire Windrush . One of the largest and most famous Jamaican expatriate communities is in Brixton , South London . More large Jamaican communities in London are Tottenham in North London , Hackney in East London, Harlesden in North-West London and both Croydon & Lewisham in South London. The highest concentration of Jamaicans are more precisely in

1917-399: The socialist government of Michael Manley ( People's National Party ) to Edward Seaga ( Jamaica Labour Party ), were reflected in the shift away from the more internationally oriented roots reggae towards a style geared more towards local consumption and in tune with the music that Jamaicans had experienced when sound systems performed live. Themes of social injustice, repatriation and

1988-502: The 1940s, and unemployment during the 1950s, both of which continued following the country's independence in 1962, and slow economic growth at home also influenced increased Jamaican emigration. Ample immigration opportunities in Canada, the US and Britain also helped, providing Jamaicans with a thriving community of their kinsmen to join. In the late 20th and early 21st century close to a million Jamaicans have emigrated , especially to

2059-809: The British Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962 , and the American Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 favoring higher skilled Jamaicans and other West Indians. Concentrations of expatriate Jamaicans are large in a number of cities in the United States, including New York City, Buffalo , Miami , Atlanta , Orlando , Tampa , Baltimore , Washington, D.C., Houston , Philadelphia , Hartford , Providence , Boston and Los Angeles . Westchester County, New York and nearby Stamford, Connecticut also have significant Jamaican ex-pat communities. New York City

2130-638: The Carnival which starts on Saturday and finishes late on Monday. Jamaicans have many food stalls, soundsystems and floats involved in the procession. Well over a million Londoners come to Notting Hill on the Monday. There is also a much smaller carnival called the Tottenham Carnival which takes place in Tottenham during June, approximately 40,000 people attend. Other Jamaican communities include

2201-448: The DJs providing the vocals thus, in the words of Manuel and Marshall, carry the song, unlike older dancehall where vocals were interwoven with full songs. These practices' roots can be described with the concept of families of resemblance as coined by George Lipsitz in 1986 – similarities between other groups' experiences and cultures (Lipsitz, p. 160). Here, the term might describe

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2272-620: The MT-40, a practice that first became popular in 1985 with the release of ' Under Mi Sleng Teng ,' whose success made the accessibility of digitally-composed riddims apparent (Manuel-Marshall, p. 453). A single riddim can be used in multiple songs, paired with different sets of lyrics, and the inverse is also possible with a single set of lyrics being attached to different riddims.  Riddims and lyric sets are not exclusive to any one artist, and these can be and are spread around with one particular riddim, ' Real Rock ,' first recorded in 1967 for

2343-675: The South London boroughs of Lambeth , Lewisham & Croydon . On the last bank holiday of the year during late August the Annual Notting Hill Carnival takes place in west London which is the second biggest street party in the world after Rio Carnival . It spans areas of north-west London such as North Kensington , Ladbroke Grove , Kensal Green and of course Notting Hill . Many other Caribbean nations have large communities in this part of London such as Trinidad and Tobago , Barbados and Antigua . The Caribbean community including many Jamaicans are involved in

2414-661: The US Billboard Hot 100 . Unlike earlier Dancehall, this new evolution was characterized by structures of music commonly heard in mainstream pop music , such as repeated choruses, melodic tunes, and hooks . Some lyrics were cleaner and featured less sexual content and profanity. At this point it was a part of the public consciousness. Cross-genre collaborations soon became normalized, with songs such as Beyonce & Sean Paul 's 2003 hit " Baby Boy " and Beenie Man & Mya 's 2000 single " Girls Dem Sugar ." Alongside this growth many crews were formed by men, women or

2485-541: The United States, Canada, other Caribbean nations, Central & South America mainly in Panama and Colombia . There has also been emigration of Jamaicans to Cuba and to Nicaragua . The United Kingdom, and in particular London and Birmingham , have a strong Jamaican diaspora. An estimated 4% of Londoners and 3.5% of Brummies are of wholly or partly Jamaican heritage. Many are now at least second, if not third or fourth-generation Black British Caribbeans. Currently

2556-486: The United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Though this emigration appears to have been tapering off somewhat in recent years, the great number of Jamaicans living abroad has become known as the "Jamaican diaspora". Most Jamaican emigrants have followed a path first to the UK. Many who do not remain in the UK move on to other Commonwealth countries such as Canada. Jamaican emigrants also migrate directly to

2627-561: The appreciation of a live audience, with underground sound clash cassettes often documenting the violence that came with such rivalries. Yellowman, one of the most successful early dancehall artists, became the first Jamaican deejay to be signed to a major American record label, and for a time enjoyed a level of popularity in Jamaica to rival Bob Marley 's peak. Yellowman often incorporated sexually explicit lyrics into his songs, which became known as "slackness." He did this to address his radical opinions on society through sex and politics due to

2698-833: The areas of St Pauls in Bristol, Chapeltown in Leeds , Moss Side , Longsight and Hulme in Manchester , Toxteth in Liverpool, Burngreave in Sheffield , Handsworth , Ladywood , Lozells , and Aston in Birmingham, and St Ann's , Top Valley , and Basford in Nottingham . Throughout the 1920s, Jamaican-U.S. migration was circular, with Jamaicans returning to home after working abroad. Immigration restrictions from

2769-694: The body of Jamaicans who have left the country of Jamaica , their descendants, and to a lesser extent the subsequent developments of their culture. Jamaicans can be found in the far corners of the world, but the largest pools of Jamaicans, outside of Jamaica itself, exist in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, the Cayman Islands and all across the Caribbean Coast of Central America, namely Panama , Cuba , Costa Rica , Nicaragua , and Honduras . Early instances of Jamaican emigration were motivated by employment opportunities abroad. During

2840-936: The city are located in the neighbourhoods of Rexdale in Etobicoke ; Jane and Finch , Downsview and Lawrence Heights in North York ; Malvern and West Hill in Scarborough ; Regent Park , Alexandra Park , and Parkdale in Old Toronto ; and Weston , Mount Dennis , Silverthorn , and Oakwood–Vaughan in York , which also includes a Little Jamaica district that is identifiable along Eglinton Avenue West . In recent years, many Jamaicans have been moving out to suburbs such as Mississauga , Brampton and Ajax . The Jamaican community has had an influence on Toronto's culture. Caribana (the celebration of Caribbean culture)

2911-405: The concept of remixing. As a result, production level and sound system quality were critical to Jamaica's budding music industry. Since many locals couldn't afford sound systems in their home, listening to one at a dance party or at a festival was their entry into audible bliss. Stage shows were also an entry for exposing artists to bigger audiences. Writer Brougtton and Brewster's book Last Night

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2982-432: The culture of combined homophobia and unabashed queerness within Jamaican dancehall culture. She details the particular importance of the phrase "out and bad" to Jamaica when she writes, "This phrase is of queer hermeneutical possibility in Jamaican dancehall because it registers a dialectic between queer and gay that is never resolved, that relays back and forth, producing an uncertainty about sexual identity and behavior that

3053-427: The dancehall reggae world by storm. Many credit this song as being the first digital rhythm in reggae, featuring a rhythm from a digital keyboard. However, The "Sleng Teng" rhythm was used in over 200 subsequent recordings. This deejay-led, largely synthesized chanting with musical accompaniment departed from traditional conceptions of Jamaican popular musical entertainment. Dub poet Mutabaruka said, "if 1970s reggae

3124-461: The deejay would rap or "toast" over came from earlier reggae songs from the 1960s and 1970s. Ragga, specifically, refers to modern dancehall, where a deejay particularly toasts over digital (electrical) rhythms. Sound systems and the development of other musical technology heavily influenced dancehall music. The music needed to "get where the radio didn't reach" because Jamaicans often were outside without radios. Yet they eventually found their way into

3195-432: The development of Reggae en Español . By the early 2000s, Dancehall had gained mainstream popularity in Jamaica, as well as in the United States, Canada, Australasia and Western parts of Europe. There was also a big evolution in sound allowing artists to refine and broaden the genre. This was first seen with artists such as Sean Paul , whose single " Get Busy " (2003) became the first dancehall single to reach number one on

3266-420: The disenfranchised selves in postcolonial Jamaica that occupy and creatively sustain that space. Structured by the urban, a space that is limited, limiting, and marginal yet central to communal, even national, identity, dancehall's identity is as contradictory and competitive as it is sacred. Some of Jamaica's significant memories of itself are inscribed in the dancehall space, and therefore dancehall can be seen as

3337-602: The economic transition from slavery to wage labor, Indian-Jamaican migration to former slave industries (like sugar production) allowed select Black Jamaicans to find work in more skilled industries and to attain higher social statuses. Jamaicans of various skill levels supplied labor internationally, especially during the two phases of the Panama Canal's construction in the 1880s and 1910s. Job opportunities aimed at Jamaicans in Britain starting with post-war reconstruction in

3408-485: The failed Jamaican experiment of socialism while under Prime Minister Michael Manley. The early 1980s also saw the emergence of female deejays in dancehall music, such as Lady G , Lady Saw , and Sister Nancy . Other female dancehall stars include artistes like Diana King and in the late 1990s to the 2000s Ce'cile , Spice , Macka Diamond and more. Beenie Man , Bounty Killer , Mad Cobra , Ninjaman , Buju Banton , and Super Cat becoming major DJs in Jamaica. With

3479-458: The fashion, art, and dance that came along with it. This made Dancehall both a genre, and a way of life. In contrast to roots reggae, which aimed for respectability and international recognition, dancehall did not hesitate in dealing with the day-by-day realities and basal interests of the average Jamaican—especially that of lower classes—and observing society in a provocative, gritty, and often vulgar manner. Since this put spreading via radio out of

3550-569: The fastest growing ethnic minority group in Britain is the mixed race category, with the mixed black & white Caribbean category (many of whom are half Jamaicans) being the single largest mixed ethnic minority. Jamaicans first started migrating to Britain in the 1950s. After World War 2, Great Britain experienced a massive labor shortage. To solve this problem they invited people from the West Indies, mostly Jamaicans, to migrate to Britain. This lasted from 1948 to 1971. These people are known as

3621-1016: The genre's modern era. Dancehall saw a new wave of popularity in Western markets in the mid-late 2010s, with immense commercial success being achieved by a number of dancehall-pop singles, including Rihanna's " Work " (2016) and Drake's " One Dance " and " Controlla " (2016). Dancehall also reached the attention of many R&B artists who continued to change and evolve the genre. A variety of western artists have spoken of being inspired by Dancehall music, including Major Lazer , whose commercially successful singles Lean On (2015), Light It Up (2015) and Run Up (2017) all heavily rely upon dancehall music. Several hip-hop and R&B artists have also released material inspired by dancehall music, including Drake , who has cited Vybz Kartel as one of his "biggest inspirations." In 2014, Drake took an interest into Popcaan and linked him up with MixPak producer Dre Skull to release his debut album 'Where We Come From'. This saw huge commercial success and went on to receive

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3692-420: The intersection of queerness and masculinity within the Jamaican dancehall scene, but suggests that the overt homophobia of certain dancehall music actually creates a space for queer expression. In general, homosexuality and queerness are still stigmatized in dancehalls. In fact, some of the songs used during dancehall sessions contain blatant homophobic lyrics. Ellis argues, however, this explicit, violent rhetoric

3763-401: The late 1970s and became Jamaica's dominant music in the 1980s and ’90s. It was also originally called Bashment music when Jamaican dancehalls began to gain popularity. They began in the late 1970s among lower and working-class people from the inner city of Kingston , who were not able to participate in dances uptown. Social and political changes in late-1970s Jamaica, including the change from

3834-704: The links between different artists via shared riddims and lyric sets and through common experiences incorporated into the music. Donna P. Hope defines dancehall culture as a "space for the cultural creation and dissemination of symbols and ideologies that reflect the lived realities of its adherents, particularly those from the inner cities of Jamaica." Dancehall culture actively creates a space for its "affectors" (creators of dancehall culture) and its "affectees" (consumers of dancehall culture) to take control of their own representation, contest conventional relationships of power, and exercise some level of cultural, social and even political autonomy. Kingsley Stewart outlines ten of

3905-442: The major cultural imperatives or principles that constitute the dancehall worldview. They are: Such a drastic change in the popular music of the region generated an equally radical transformation in fashion trends, specifically those of its female faction. In lieu of traditional, modest "rootsy" styles, as dictated by Rastafari-inspired gender roles; women began donning flashy, revealing – sometimes X-rated outfits. This transformation

3976-662: The most popular artists in this style are Chronic Law, Rygin King, and Squash. Three major elements of Jamaican dancehall music are the use of digital instruments, particularly the Casio Casiotone MT-40 electronic keyboard, the Oberheim DX drum machine, and the use of riddims , instrumentals to which lyrics are added, resulting in an unusual process of creating songs from separate components. More specifically, many riddims are created using digital instruments like

4047-401: The nature and type of events and venues, and their use and function. Most notable is the way in which dancehall occupies a liminal space between what is celebrated and at the same time denigrated in Jamaica and how it moves from private community to public and commercial enterprise. In Kingston's Dancehall: A Story of Space and Celebration , she writes: Dancehall is ultimately a celebration of

4118-565: The parents become financially or legally stable, the children usually join the parents abroad. Around 800,000 Britons are of Jamaican origin. Located especially in London, Birmingham , Luton , Nottingham , Liverpool, Manchester , Leeds , Sheffield and Slough and Bristol . Around 1,171,915 people of Jamaican origin live in the United States, mostly concentrated in New York City (416,000), Connecticut , Rhode Island , Massachusetts and Florida . Around 309,000, especially in

4189-415: The people came to see along with their own original sounds. With the extreme volume and low bass frequencies of the sound systems local people might very well feel the vibrations of the sounds before they could even hear them, though the sound itself did travel for miles. This visceral sensory pleasure acted as an auditory beacon, redefining musical experience. Jamaica was one of the first cultures to pioneer

4260-508: The physicality of that sound was a strategic puzzle left for musicians to solve. If you read the archives of the Jamaica Gleaner Newspaper you will begin to realize the context written; there was a venue like the lawns where music was played and a style on the rhythms but it was different from what was being “projected” as Reggae and had no name until Michael Tomlinson head of InnerCity Promotion and Lois Grant(Partners at

4331-405: The question, dancehall initially gained popularity only through live performances in sound systems and specialized record dealing. Dancehall's violent lyrics, which garnered the genre much criticism since its very inception, stem from the political turbulence and gang violence of late 1970s Jamaica. In the early days of dancehall, the prerecorded rhythm tracks (bass guitar and drums) or "dub" that

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4402-480: The space of entertainment to journalist, radio and TV managers, some who refused to run the commercials or play the music to promote the DanceHall series.The series continued into the early 1990s, the team Michael “Savage” Tomlinson and Lois Grant played an important role in nurturing and promoting the young talents of the inner city and sound system culture. Through their DanceHall live concerts, many performers found

4473-431: The streets. However, because the audience of dancehall sessions were lower-class people, it was extremely important that they be able to hear music. Sound systems allowed people to listen to music without having to buy a radio. Therefore, the dancehall culture grew as the use of technology and sound systems got better. The Jamaican dancehall scene was one created out of creativity and a desire for accessibility, and one that

4544-404: The time) staged an event that changed the culture titled "DanceHall" one word… Before this event Dance And Hall (two words) were used in Jamaican lingo; but it did not represent the music of the culture but rather the venue where music was played. Their promotion company through a series of concerts led to the then emerging music which they labelled, "DanceHall" with the year of its staging, creating

4615-433: The types of vehicles driven, to the sizes of each respective gang or "crew", and was equally important to both sexes. One major theme behind dancehall is that of space. Sonjah Stanley Niaah , in her article "Mapping Black Atlantic Performance Geographies", says Dancehall occupies multiple spatial dimensions (urban, street, police, marginal, gendered, performance, liminal, memorializing, communal), which are revealed through

4686-464: The venue paired with the innately mobile nature of the sound system, allowed performers to come to the people. Inner city communities were able to gather for fun and celebration. It was all about experiencing a vibrant and trendsetting movement. Krista Thompson 's book Shine further expresses the experience of this trendsetting movement and how particularly women were able to confront gender ideologies to enact change. The use of video light specifically

4757-417: Was a way to express oneself and seek visibility in the social sphere in order to be recognized as citizens in a postcolonial Jamaican society. At the onset of the dancehall scene, sound systems were the only way that some Jamaican audiences might hear the latest songs from a popular artist. Through time, it transformed to where the purveyors of the sound systems were the artists themselves and they became whom

4828-727: Was incarcerated in 2011. It has been said that Popcaan's success is largely due to early support from Vybz Kartel (KOTD) and more recent support from Drake . By 2016, Dancehall had re-emerged into global popularity, artists such as Alkaline , Popcaan , Spice , Aidonia and Rygin King are known as some of the most profound and active artists of this period to date. There have also been prominent global collaborations with dancehall artist such as Beyonce & Shatta Wale's 'Already', Davido & Popcaan on 'Story', and Stefflon Don & French Montana on 'Hurtin' me'. Since 2017, Dancehall artists from Jamaica have been frequently collaborating with UK acts such as Chip , Stefflon Don and J Hus . This

4899-851: Was red, green and gold, then in the next decade it was gold chains". It was far removed from reggae's gentle roots and culture, and there was much debate among purists as to whether it should be considered an extension of reggae. This shift in style again saw the emergence of a new generation of artists, such as Sean Paul , Capleton , Beenie Man and Shabba Ranks , who became famous ragga stars. A new set of producers also came to prominence: Philip "Fatis" Burrell , Dave "Rude Boy" Kelly , George Phang , Hugh "Redman" James, Donovan Germain , Bobby Digital , Wycliffe "Steely" Johnson and Cleveland "Clevie" Brown (aka Steely & Clevie ) rose to challenge Sly & Robbie 's position as Jamaica's leading rhythm section. The faster tempo and simpler electronic beat of late-1980s and early-1990s dancehall greatly influenced

4970-477: Was the music, and so it gained a lot of popularity overtime. Back in Jamaica hand-made posters were used not just to pull in would-be attendees to parties and dances. This process of making vibrant and colorful posters soon became an icon of the genre. It had helped in providing visual aesthetic of how Dancehalls had taken up the space and grown in the country. King Jammy 's 1985 hit, " (Under Me) Sleng Teng " by Wayne Smith , with an entirely-digital rhythm hook took

5041-466: Was to officially launch the name of the series “DanceHall.”InnerCity Promotions was responsible for establishing and promoting numerous events which was significant because it marked the beginnings of the music's recognition as the "DanceHall" genre. Mr. Tomlinson triumph is one to share for generations as he opened the door for a new art in a sense to emerge from it beginnings. The journey began with massive opposition received from those who wanted to control

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