Roots Rock Reggae resurged locally this past year with renewed vigour and enthusiasm, and has seen several upcoming conscious artistes stamping their names into the dancehalls. It seems cultural music has taken over Jamaica for most of this year, but has it done so to the detriment of dancehall music?
As reported in THE STAR on March 6 this year, the February 28 issue of the Billboard magazine listed six dancehall artistes on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles and tracks charts. They were Sean Paul, TOK, Elephant Man, Beenie Man with Miss Thing, and Baby Cham.Nine months later, the December 4 issue of the same magazine shows that only two artistes representing dancehall are on the chart. They are Beenie Man with the tune King Of The Dancehall, and Lady Saw with I've Got Your Man.
This situation coincides with Tuesday's official release of the Grammy nominations, which saw no individual dancehall acts being nominated in the Best Reggae Album category. The nominees read: Jimmy Cliff with Black Magic; Sly and Robbie with The Dub Revolutionaries; Steel Pulse with African Holocaust; Toots & The Maytals with True Love, and the Def Jamaica, Various Artistes album.
In this year's Grammy nomination lineup, the only dancehall acts featured are those which are on the Def Jamaica album.
To some, the dancehall disappearance from the Billboard charts, plus the shortage of individual dancehall acts in the Grammy lineup are the warning signs that dancehall music may be sliding downhill on the international scene.
Not slipping
Not so, says one of this year's Grammy nominees Sly Dunbar.
Sly and Robbie have already won Grammy awards twice, (1984 and 1998), and this year they have become the first reggae musicians to be nominated based on a totally instrumental album.
"I can't say that dancehall is moving back because the Grammys is a funny thing," he explains. "They picked these albums based on what was out there at the particular time, and what they probably liked."
In terms of the charts, Sly notes that it doesn't mean that dancehall is slipping either, and in his view, dancehall music has actually done quite well for itself over the years.
"The charts just show the records selling at the moment. For you to have more on the charts, you will have to increase the output... actually we are not doing too badly. We are outsiders in their domestic market and for us to have two songs on it now, that is good."
"I think we are doing great because some countries don't have any at all on the chart. We have to give credit to the deejays who always have tunes on the charts over the years. Remember it is a chart dominated by Rap and R&B, so it is just for us to get the lyrical quality up there and give better production. It is their market and we have to tap into it."
Probably it is too early to call. Several of our dancehall acts such as Baby Cham, Sean Paul, Vybz Kartel, and reportedly Shabba Ranks are currently inside their labs concocting tunes for their respective albums for next year. Depending on the mix, dancehall may just take the charts with even greater force when the time comes.
