Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first popular song to use the word reggae, effectively naming the genre and introducing it to a global audience. While sometimes used in a broad sense to refer to most types of popular Jamaican dance music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that was strongly influenced by traditional mento as well as by American jazz and rhythm and blues, and evolved out of the earlier genres ska and rocksteady. Reggae usually relates news, social gossip, and political commentary. It is instantly recognizable from the counterpoint between the bass and drum downbeat and the offbeat rhythm section. The immediate origins of reggae were in ska and rocksteady; from the latter, reggae took over the use of the bass as a percussion instrument.
Italian hip hop started in the 1980s. One of the first hip hop crews to catch the attention of the Italian mainstream was Bologna's Isola Posse All Star, then and still today produced by Sandro Orru, who had written the soundtrack to the animated TV series Signor Rossi in the 1970s. The European Music Office's report on Music in Europe claimed that, in general, hip hop from the south of Italy tends to be harder than that from the north.
Lee "Scratch" Perry was a Jamaican record producer, composer and singer noted for his innovative studio techniques and production style. Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development of dub music with his early adoption of remixing and studio effects to create new instrumental or vocal versions of existing reggae tracks. He worked with and produced for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Marley and the Wailers, Junior Murvin, The Congos, Max Romeo, Adrian Sherwood, Beastie Boys, Ari Up, The Clash, The Orb, and many others.
Wicked Beat Sound System is a Sydney based group whose sound is best described as a mixture of electronica, dub and soul. The group formed in 1992, following a series of live "jams" instigated by DJ Dave Carnovale in collaboration with Damian Robinson and other DJs Scott Pullen and Mark Walton which took place at the Bentley Bar c. 1991 in Sydney's Darlinghurst area. They have released five albums to date. Originally featuring reggae and hip hop, the group expanded their sound to incorporate elements of soul, jazz, Latin, funk and breaks. They have been nominated for three ARIA Music Awards and an Australian Dance Music Award as well as creating dozens of remixes for others.
Manley Augustus Buchanan, better known as Big Youth, is a Jamaican rapper and singer, mostly known for his work during the 1970s.
The Mighty Diamonds were a Jamaican harmony trio, recording roots reggae with a strong Rastafarian influence. The group was formed in 1969 and were best known for their 1976 debut album, Right Time, produced by Joseph Hoo Kim, and the 1979 release, Deeper Roots.
Half Pint, and sometimes credited Lindon Andrew Roberts, is a Jamaican dancehall, ragga, and reggae singer.
Lawrence Chatman, better known as DJ Collage or Mista Chatman, is a reggae vocalist and electronic music producer. Raised in Chicago, he moved to the Bay Area in the early 1990s, and now calls Seattle home. His style of music is referred to as reggae fusion.
Matthew Paul Miller, known by his stage name Matisyahu, is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer, and alternative rock musician.
Massive Dread was a reggae deejay who first recorded in the late 1970s for Tapper Zukie and came to prominence in the early 1980s, touring with Byron Lee and The Dragonaires. Dread also worked on Peter Metro's Metromedia sound system.
Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. Australia has several bands and sound systems that play reggae music in a style faithful to its expression in Jamaica. Australia has a relatively small Jamaican community, but reggae penetrated local consciousness via the popularity of reggae among the non-Jamaican population of England in the 1960s and 1970s. Many indigenous musicians have embraced reggae, both for its musical qualities and its ethos of resistance. Examples include Mantaka, No Fixed Address, Zennith and Coloured Stone.
Ophlin Russell, better known as Sister Nancy, is a Jamaican dancehall DJ and singer. She is known to the world as the first female dancehall DJ and was described as being a "dominating female voice for over two decades" on the dancehall scene.
Irie Maffia is a Hungarian pop band formed in 2005. Their music is based on reggae and dancehall, which they blend with hip hop, funk and rock. The band also has a sound system formation, where András Kéri sings ragga lyrics on the reggae/dancehall riddims played by band leader Márton Élő and Gáspár Horváth from vinyl records.
B.R. Stylers is an Italian reggae dub band from Pordenone founded in 2000. Current members are Michela Grena (voice), Paolo Baldini (bass), GP Ennas (drums), Filippo Buresta (keyboards) and Manuel Tomba (mixing).
Saskia Laroo, is a Dutch jazz musician who has been dubbed the "Lady Miles Davis". Her music style can be described as a combination of jazz, pop, electronic dance music, Latin and world music.
Mellow Mood is an Italian reggae band from Pordenone, Italy that formed in 2005.
Mohammed Abood Uraibi, best known as DJ MoCity or simply Mo, is an Iraqi-born DJ, MC and promoter, known for having co-founded Reggae Rajahs, the first Reggae Sound System in India. MoCity also founded The 264 Cru, a Dubai-based music, arts and culture collective, 264 Records, a record label based in Dubai, and most recently boxout.fm, South Asia’s first online community radio.
Dubblestandart is a dub reggae band from Vienna, Austria. They were founded in 1987 and achieved breakthrough success in 1992. The band has collaborated with Lee "Scratch" Perry, Ari Up from the Slits, and film director David Lynch, on their studio album Return From Planet Dub in 2009. They describe their style as "hi-energy dub" or "21st century dub".
Kerida Shushana Johnson, known professionally as Hempress Sativa, is a contemporary reggae singer and songwriter from Jamaica. Her music aligns with the roots reggae tradition with variants of hip hop, afrobeats and R&B.
