Reggae Genres

This a list and descriptions of reggae music genres.

  • Early reggae (or skinhead reggae), is generally considered to be the period before the Rastafari movement entered mainstream Jamaican music from 1968 to 1970. It can be distinguished from rocksteady by the slightly faster beat marked out by the drummer using the hi-hat, heavy organ lines, lower mixing of the bass, and electronically doubled rhythm guitar stroke. It met great success in the UK, especially with the skinhead subculture. Major artists include John Holt, Toots & the Maytals, The Pioneers and Symarip.
  • Nyabhingi is a roots subgenre related to the Rastafarian grouping of the same name. It's characterised by hand-drumming derived from religious ceremonies. Well-known artists are Count Ossie or Ras Michael & the Sons of Negus.
  • Dub is an instrumental genre built around the application of electronic equipment on existing recorded tracks. Its sound (built around individual instrumental tracks changing volume, appearing, disappearing, all while various effects and filters are applied to them) has proven very influential on modern dance music. Major artists include King Tubby, Lee "Scratch" Perry and Scientist.
  • Deejaying or Dancehall is the Jamaican precursor to hip hop, based on Deejays (Jamaica's emcees) toasting (talking) over instrumental tracks or riddims. Famous deejays from before the dancehall era include U-Roy, Big Youth and King Stitt.
  • Roots reggae is perhaps the best-known form of reggae today, with its Rastafarian message. Early reggae production is further developed with electronics and influences from contemporary western music. Although largely supplanted in the popular imagination by Dancehall in 1979, the style continues even today as a minority underground genre. Bob Marley is the internationally most famous exponent of the style, but Peter Tosh, Horace Andy, Black Uhuru and The Abyssinians are also well known.
  • Dub poetry is a genre which consists of spoken word over dub/reggae music. The main difference with toasters is that the vocal performer is accompanied by a band playing his own tunes, instead of singing over a pre-existing riddim. Two of the most well-known figures of dub poetry are Linton Kwesi Johnson and Mutabaruka.
  • Rockers style was created during the mid-1970s by Sly & Robbie, who at the time were the rhythm section of The Revolutionaries. Rockers is described as a militant, mechanical, and aggressive style of playing reggae music.
  • Singjay was the name given to toasting DJ's who added some melody into their otherwise spoken lines. Eek-a-Mouse was the most notable exponent, and subsequently it became part of the Dancehall repertoire.
  • Sensi-beat was the name for a rhythm that originated as part of Barrington Levy's hit "Under me sensi" and that was used throughout the follow-up "Here I Come". The first Jamaican style to emphasise the first beat in the bar, it spread from the UK, where Levy had been developing the sound, and became another influence upon dancehall.
  • Digital Dancehall was a style of reggae that sounded like early Skinhead, but played on synthesisers. Hugely popular for about 6 months in the middle of the 1980s. "Under me Sleng Teng" was the first song of the genre, which spawned dozens of imitators. Later evolved into Ragga.
  • Dancehall (also referred to as Rub-a-Dub), starting in 1979, is characterised by stripped-down, spacious productions, prominent basslines and the inclusion of dub-style effects, often coupled with bawdy 'slackness' lyrics. The genre spawned a new generation of Jamaican stars, including Barrington Levy, Yellowman, Eek-a-Mouse and Bunny Wailer.
  • Lovers rock (also known as British Lover's rock), became popular in the late-1970s to mid-1980s. It is characterized by its smooth, Quiet Storm-type musical style infused with a gentle reggae beat. This genre of reggae began in the UK but spread out quickly; reaching popularity in Jamaica as well. Janet Kay, Audrey Hall and Maxi Priest are some examples of Lover's Rock performers.
  • Ragga, or raggamuffin, is electronic dancehall music. Originating from Digital Dancehall in 1985, the genre originally was produced on simple keyboards but eventually other synthesisers have been added. Super Cat, Shabba Ranks and Charlie Chaplin are some of the well-known artists of the eighties and early nineties.
  • Reggae fusion, or reggaefusion, is a mixture of reggae and/or dancehall with different influential elements of other genres whether it be hip-hop reggae, R&B reggae, jazz reggae, rock 'n roll reggae, Indian reggae, Latin reggae, drum and bass reggae, punk reggae, polka reggae, etc. It is recognized as a sub-genre or fusion genre of reggae and dancehall music. It is also used to describe artists who frequently switch between the dancehall and reggae genres and other genres, mainly rap and r&b. It first became popular in the late 1990s and originated in Jamaica, North America and Europe.
  • Rumble is a mixture of roots reggae, garage, soul and ska first created and popularised by Mandeville the house band of the popular reggae group Me & You.
  • Roots & Culture or Roots/Reality & Culture are modern terms for Roots Reggae reggae. This genre of reggae uses many of the same techniques that modern dancehall reggae uses as far as instrumentatation and presentation. However this genre features more singing than dancehall and more socially conscious or Rastafari-oriented themes. Notable performers include Capleton, Sizzla, Morgan Heritage, Tony Rebel, Lucky Dube, Alaine, Jah Cure and Freddie McGregor.
  • Steppa is a form of contemporary, digital and uptempo dub music. Originated in the late 1990s in the UK, its leading artists are Vibronics, Iration Steppas and The Bush Chemists.