During the 1980s, the most popular musical styles in Jamaica were dancehall and ragga. 'Dancehall' is essentially reggae music with a basic rock and drum beat integrated with pop lyrics rather than the former political and spiritual lyrics which was popular in the 1970s. Ragga is characterized by the use of computerised beats and sequenced melodic tracks in reggae songs. Ragga is usually said to have been invented with "Under Mi Sleng Teng" rhythm by Wayne Smith. Ragga went on to barely edge out dancehall as the dominant form of Jamaican music in the 1980s. DJ and vocalist team Chaka Demus and Shabba Ranks proved themselves more long-lasting than the competition, helped to inspire an updated version of the rude boys. This new culture of rude boy sentiment became known as raggamuffin. Dancehall was sometimes violent in lyrical content, and several rival performers made headlines with their feuds across Jamaica, most notably Beanie Man vs. Bounty Killer. Dancehall emerged from pioneering recordings in the late 1970s by Barrington Levy with Roots Radics backing and Junjo Lawes as the producer. The Roots Radics were the pre-eminent backing band for dancehall style. Yellowman, Ini Kamoze, Charlie Chaplin and General Echo helped popularise the style along with producer and singer Sugar Minott. The 1980s saw a rise in reggae music from outside of Jamaica. The UK had long been a hotbed of Jamaican culture in exiles. |
