jahdan blakkamoore

Jahdan blakkamoore  Where Is Jahdan Blakkamore? Jahdan Blakkamoore has long made a name for himself as a gifted and inspiring Reggae/Dancehall/Hip Hop/Dubstep artist – both nationally and internationally. His music has been described as ‘Urban World Music with a message.’ Jahadan’s sense of melody, superb song writing skills and ability to effortlessly cross over genres has solidified his status as Reggae royalty. His group Noble Society,...

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MALAKHI

MALAKHI With a name that resounds the meaning Messenger of God, MALAKHI Revolutionist & Reggae Recording Artist Extraordinaire, delivers his potent lyrics with the sting of the Forefathers such as Bob Marley, Peter tosh, Burning Spear, Jah-cure, Stephen Marley, Midnite, Beres Hamond and Sizzla Kolonji to name a few The name chosen for him by a friend, resonates when Malakhi delivers his message to his following as if Martin Luther King...

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stikki-tantafari

stikki-tantafari Brian Williams was born March 4th 1980 in Spur Tree district in the Parish of Manchester. He is the 4th child for his parents Sesciel Hayden and Ralph Williams.  He grew up with his brothers and sister and soon started to sing at church where his musical interest was inspired. After gaining his early childhood education at Fairfield All Age, he moved to Bellefield Comprehensive high School where he started to write...

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Askala Selassie

Askala Selassie  The Fruit of the Holy Trinity. Born in London England and raised to the beat of the Caribbean. The rhythm of Jamaica forever rooted in her soul; finally lead her back to her roots. Helping to keep Bob Marley’s legacy alive, she performed with the remaining Wailers band; keeping roots and culture alive for the next generation. With music forever running through her veins, she writes and performs her own amazing music...

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Mavado Big Move

Mavado A reggae singer influenced by the likes of Bounty Killer and Cutty Ranks, David Constantine Brooks, aka Mavado, was born and raised in one of Kingston, Jamaica's more dangerous ghettos, Cassava Piece. Church and a desire to deliver a socially conscious message to the people kept Mavado out of serious trouble. Encouraged by a friend, Mavado visited Junior Reid's recording studio in Kingston, where he met his hero, Bounty Killer....

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Anthony Cruz

 Anthony Cruz Anthony Cruz with his soulful voice, captivating eyes, sexy physique, classy attire, shy-guy demeanour, fun-loving attitude and slick stage act, is regarded as one of the most charismatic entertainers around. There’s no mistaking the mesmerising effect he has on the ladies. After a decade of holding his own in the music business, this talented singer is cruising his way to becoming one of Jamaica’s greatest singers. Born...

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Chiz Chizzem

Chiz Chizzem ...

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Lloyd Barnett

Lloyd Barnett Lloyd Nicholas Barnett, known as (Mr. Lace), born at 7 Burcham Lane in Maxfield Kingston, Jamaica, March 6, 1974, and grew up in Cockburn Pen and Waterford, Portmore St. Catherine where he attend the Waterford Primary School and the Waterford Comprehensive High School. Lloyd Barnett was destined to be a musician or a talented musical artist, knowing the facts that he was born into a musically incline family, where all...

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CatEyes

 CatEyes Once in a while a singer comes along that has the full package, The Voice, The Looks and The Charisma to captivate an audience. Famous producers and reggae artistes like Beenie Man, Little Hero, Daville and Sizzla, have also felt the same about this artiste that they have started recording duets and productions that will soon show off her talent. She goes by the name of “CatEyes”. Born, Rochelle Marie Farquharson and hailing...

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Chronixx Chronixx was the 'stage' name his friends bestowed on him, replacing the name 'Little Chronicle' he was given as the 'junior' to his father, the artist Chronicle. A little star amongst his peers, he had shown a love for music and song writing from an early age. He was born October 10, 1992 and was named Jamar Rolando McNaughton. His father, a musician, recognised his talents and nurtured him in an environment in which...

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Jah9 Cunningham

Jah9 Cunningham Janine “Jah9″ Cunningham Old school blues improvisation meets hard hitting lyrical prowess in a rich imaginative blend of vocal clarity and complexity. Singer/songwriter/activist Janine ‘Jah9′ Cunningham brings her refreshing mix of contemporary and conscious poetry to the stage and delivers a mature, sophisticated style with a unique and captivating energy all of her own. She has been credited as the creator...

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Randy Valentine

Randy Valentine The Jamaican born vocalist is a talented versatile singer song-writer/ producer who is currently under the umbrella of Riga (Hemp Higher Productions / Cali P producer) and J.O.A.T (Jack of all tradez) . Nick Named RV by his friends, his laid-back approach to life can be hypnotising once your drawn into his world. It goes without saying his core fan base are young ladies who seem to be in awe of his songs and performances wherever...

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Francheno Reggae Artist

Francheno Reggae Artist Born Frantz Morris in St. James, Montego Bay, Francheno knew that he wanted to sing as a child. It all begin when he started to sing in Church and the choir released a gospel single. The experience was so invigorating that Francheno began to work with several other labels trying to quench his thirst and zeal for music. Through Divine Productions, “All Night Long,” was released but after they tried to sign Francheno...

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Lyrical Themes

Reggae is noted for its tradition of social criticism in its lyrics, although many reggae songs discuss lighter, more personal subjects, such as love and socializing. Many early reggae bands covered Motown or Atlantic soul and funk songs. Some reggae lyrics attempt to raise the political consciousness of the audience, such as by criticizing materialism, or by informing the listener about controversial subjects such as Apartheid. Many reggae songs...

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Keyboards

From the late 1960s through to the early 1980s, a piano was often used in reggae to double the rhythm guitar's skank, playing the chords in a staccato style to add body, and playing occasional extra beats, runs and riffs. The piano part was widely taken over by synthesizers during the 1980s, although synthesizers have been used in a peripheral role since the 1970s to play incidental melodies and countermelodies. Larger bands may include either...

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Guitars

The guitar in reggae usually plays on the off beat of the rhythm. So if one is counting in 4/4 time and counting 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +, one would play a downstroke on the "and" part of the beat. A musical figure known as skank or the 'bang" has a very dampened, short and scratchy chop sound, almost like a percussion instrument. Sometimes a double chop is used when the guitar still plays the off beats, but also plays the following 8th beats...

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Bass

The bass guitar often plays the dominant role in reggae, and the drum and bass is often the most important part of what is called, in Jamaican music, a riddim (rhythm), a (usually simple) piece of music that's used repeatedly by different artists to write and record songs with. Literally hundreds of reggae singers have released different songs recorded over the same rhythm. The central role of the bass can be particularly heard in dub music...

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reggae drumbeats

An emphasis on beat three is in all reggae drumbeats, but with the Rockers beat, the emphasis is also on beat one (usually on bass drum). This beat was pioneered by Sly and Robbie, who later helped create the "Rub-a-Dub" sound that greatly influenced dancehall. Sly has openly stated he was influenced to create this style by listening to American drummer Earl Young as well as other disco and R&B drummers in the early to mid-1970s, as stated...

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Drums and Other Percussion

A standard drum kit is generally used in reggae, but the snare drum is often tuned very high to give it a timbales-type sound. Some reggae drummers use an additional timbale or high-tuned snare to get this sound. Cross-stick technique on the snare drum is commonly used, and tom-tom drums are often incorporated into the drumbeat itself. Robbie Shakespeare Reggae drumbeats fall into three main categories: One drop, Rockers, and Steppers....

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Precursors

Although strongly influenced by traditional African, American jazz and old-time rhythm and blues, reggae owes its direct origins to the progressive development of ska and rocksteady in 1960s Jamaica. An important factor in this development was the influence of Rastafari, with Rasta drummers like Count Ossie contributing to seminal recordings, bringing the influence of these rhythmic patterns into the music. Ska arose in the studios of Jamaica...

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Reggae historian

Reggae historian Steve Barrow credits Clancy Eccles with altering the Jamaican patois word streggae (loose woman) into reggae. However, Toots Hibbert said: There's a word we used to use in Jamaica called 'streggae'. If a girl is walking and the guys look at her and say 'Man, she's streggae' it means she don't dress well, she look raggedy. The girls would say that about the men too. This one morning me and my two friends were playing and...

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Etymology

The 1967 edition of the Dictionary of Jamaican English lists reggae as "a recently estab. sp. for rege", as in rege-rege, a word that can mean either "rags, ragged clothing" or "a quarrel, a row". Reggae as a musical term first appeared in print with the 1968 rocksteady hit "Do the Reggay" by The Maytals, but there are many different theories as to how the term originated. The music itself was faster than rocksteady, but tighter and more...

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Reggae

Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. 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 and sound that evolved out of the earlier genres of ska and rockstea...

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