Music

Nkrumah Manley Thomas – a.k.a. Jah Thomas – was born in 1955 in Kingston, Jamaica, and grew up between the districts of Trench Town and Rose Town. He was named after Kwame Nkrumah, the African nationalist who secured Ghana’s independence from the British in 1957. After completing his education, Jah Thomas started working in a […]

Jah Shaka is considered the father of sound systems in the U.K. and hailed for his forward-thinking style with dub experimentalism incorporating electronic elements without losing any heaviness. Born in Jamaica around the 1950s, Jah Shaka moved to Southeast London with his parents at the age of eight. Jah Shaka’s real name is not known

Dub mixer and record producer Lloyd James – better known as Prince Jammy or King Jammy – was born in 1947 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. He moved to Kingston and took to music at an early age, also thanks to the fact that he lived in the Waterhouse district on the same street as the

Donat Roy Mittoo, a.k.a. Jackie Mittoo, was born on March 3, 1948, in Browns Town, Jamaica. Mittoo was taught to play the piano by his grandmother from age four and began performing in public before he was ten. As a teenager, Mittoo performed professionally in groups including the Vagabonds and the Vikings and hooked up

Born Cecil Campbell in a seaside shack in Jamaica on 9 October 1957, Ini Kamoze was the son of an authoritarian police superintendent dubbed “The Scorpion” and a factory worker mother. In a fit of anger over not hearing from his father, his mother placed the baby in a cardboard box and left him at

The Mighty Diamonds was a Jamaican vocal trio composed by founder and harmony singer Pat “Lloyd” Ferguson (the Judge), lead singer Donald Shaw (Tabby or the Prophet), and harmony singer Fitzroy Simpson (Bunny or the Jester). Raised in the poverty and despair of Kingston’s ghetto of Trenchtown, the group formed in 1969 and eventually became

Cornell Campbell was born in 1945 in Kingston, Jamaica. Some sources claim that his birth year was 1948. His voice was noticed immediately at the Church choir when he was a young boy. In an interview with Reggae Vibes, Cornell remembered people being fascinated, saying: “Bwoy, this child have an angelic voice, him sound like

Yabby You was one of the most unique figures in Jamaican music, beginning from the fact that he was a committed Christian yet wore dreadlocks and lived amongst one of the most militant Rastafari communities of Kingston’s ghettos. This is how he got his ironic nickname “Jesus Dread”. His music was characterized by sublime lyrics

Byron Lee, leader of one of Jamaica’s top bands – the Dragonaires – played an instrumental role in popularizing Jamaican music around the world in the years before reggae and ska were known outside of the Caribbean. He was born Byron Aloysius St Elmo Lee in Christiana, Jamaica, in 1935. His father was an immigrant

In the early 1970s, Dennis Alcapone was one of the toasters that ruled Jamaica, alongside U-Roy and Big Youth. Crashing out of the sound systems and onto the airwaves like a tidal wave, these artists were responsible for bringing the art of deejaying to the forefront. Born in Clarendon, Jamaica, on August 6, 1947, Dennis

Known as the “Cool Ruler” for his remarkably smooth and passionate voice, Gregory Isaacs was one of reggae music’s most popular singers in the 1970s and 80s. He remained active as a recording artist, live performer, and producer in the decades that followed. Gregory Anthony Isaacs was born in the Fletcher’s Land area of Kingston,

Earl “Sixteen” Daley was born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1958. His passion for music started at home, where his ingenious dad would create simple string instruments, such as a banjo made of coconut, fishing lines and bamboo strings. At the age of 13, Earl entered a talent show and won it, beating future stars such

Discover some of Jamaica’s top child stars, from classic reggae singers to dancehall DJs. Many proceeded to have successful careers as adults. Billy Boyo Billy Boyo was a teenage star of pre-digital dancehall. He was born in 1969 in Kingston, Jamaica. His real name was Billy Theophilus Rowe. Legendary producer Henry “Junjo” Lawes discovered Billy

Discover Nasio Fontaine’s biography in his own words! The following is an extract of Nasio’s interview that ran in The Beat in the December 2003 issue. Scroll down for a shorter biography, and to discover where Nasio Fontaine is now. “I was born in Bagatelle/Carte-Bois, a little village on the South-eastern coast of Dominica. The

Linval Thompson was one of the finest reggae singers from the roots renaissance and a very influential figure in the spread and creation of dancehall reggae. Not only was he a singer, but also a writer and pioneering producer whose credits include working with Dennis Brown, the Wailing Souls, Eek-A-Mouse, Freddie McGregor, the Viceroys, and

There are many great reggae documentaries, ranging from the evolution of this music genre to pioneering Jamaican reggae musicians. Here is a selection of some of the best documentaries about reggae, many of which are available in their entirety on Youtube. Studio One Story (2002) Studio One Story is a documentary that is a staggering

Born in 1957, Michael George Haynes – aka Michael Prophet – grew up in the western Kingston ghetto of Greenwich Farm. He was discovered 20 years later by legendary producer Vivian Jackson, better known as Yabby U. Michael Prophet had a distinctive voice and became known for his unusual “crying” tenor vocal style. Yabby You

Born Hopeton Overton Brown, Scientist is a talented recording engineer and producer. He was one of the leading dub artists of the 1980s, famous for his extravagant mixing style, his wild album titles and distinctive cover artwork. Scientist was born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1960. He learned basic electronics from his father, and when he

The Jamaican record producer Clement “Sir Coxsone” Dodd fostered the career of almost every reggae artist that is famous internationally. He was one of the first to record local talent and he contributed to the evolution of reggae for more than 50 years. Clement Seymour Dodd was born in Kingston in 1932. He was a

Here is a list of reggae artists you probably didn’t know are musical siblings! Trinity and Clint Eastwood Reggae deejay and producer Trinity (born Wade Brammer) was the older brother of Clint Eastwood (born Robert Brammer), who also had a successful career as a deejay. [They are pictured in the image above: Trinity on the

Along with producer Bunny “Striker” Lee, Joe Gibbs is without doubt one of the most important of Jamaica’s musical giants. Joel A. Gibson was born in 1943 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. When he was a young man, he worked at a US naval base in Guantanamo, Cuba, as an electronics technician. When he returned in

Eek-A-Mouse was one of the first artists to be described as a “singjay” thanks to his unmistakable style that mixed singing and deejaying. He created a sensation in the dancehall scene with his bizarre, humorous, and original style, and he was one of the most unique reggae talents to emerge in the 1980s. Eek-A-Mouse was

The Wailers and Bob Marley & the Wailers are often used interchangeably to inaccurately refer to recordings that were made by different people. Who were the members of The Wailers and how did this legendary reggae band evolve throughout the years? The origins of The Wailers “The Wailers” was a vocal group that formed in

Cecil Spence, Albert Craig and Lascelle Bulgin became one of the finest groups in Jamaica’s history – Israel Vibration – after overcoming adversity, poverty and illness. The trio’s lesson in fortitude began in the late 1950s when they were three young victims of the polio epidemic that struck Jamaica. Cecil (1952-2022), Albert (1955–2020) and Lascelle

Osbourne Ruddock, a.k.a. King Tubby, was a legendary sound engineer, producer and a major influence on the development of Dub in the 1960s and 1970s. He is credited with inventing the idea of the remix that later characterized the production of electronic music. According to singer Mikey Dread, King Tubby understood sound scientifically because he

Bunny “Striker” Lee was a crucial figure in the history of Jamaican music: he pioneered the art of the dub and was one of the most successful and prolific reggae producers. He was born Edward O’Sullivan Lee in Kingston, Jamaica, on 23 August 1941. He grew up in the Greenwich Farm district and, after attending

Randy’s was the historic record shop in Kingston, Jamaica, from which one of the world’s most influential reggae labels was born: VP Records. The shop was founded by Vincent Chin, born in Kingston in 1937. He was the son of a Chinese carpenter who had moved to Jamaica in the 1920s. During his school days,