dancehall
From dancehall to soca, here are a few rising stars of the West Indies to keep an eye on in the new year.
In July, Jamaica’s most influential living artist walked out of a Kingston prison after 13 years, drove straight to his mother’s house for a tearful reunion over steamed fish and okra — and dove immediately into preparations for Freedom Street: his first performance since his release, and the biggest concert the country would see in nearly 50 years.
Locked up for the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams, Vybz Kartel went away as a 35-year-old man at the height of his career with seven children, two of whom would make their own musical debuts in 2014. But even behind bars, he never stopped making music — managing to secretly record and release five projects that would reach the top 10 of Billboard’s Reggae Albums chart.
“Being in prison, you can’t feel sorry for yourself. I didn’t have time to do that. I had kids to feed. I had family to take care of. I had health issues, too,” Kartel tells Billboard in a private room at Downsound Records, the live-entertainment producer behind Freedom Street, in Kingston. “There was no time to be weak. You just fight the case and do the right thing.”
Trending on Billboard
Now, just days before Freedom Street — his New Year’s Eve show that will draw over 35,000 people to Kingston’s National Stadium — Kartel tells me he’s been holding daily three-hour rehearsals to ensure a “Taylor Swift- or Madonna-style” show while he records a new album at several studios, including one his children built for him while he was away. As I follow the Teacha around Kingston over the course of a sunny December day, fans of all ages stop him to profess their love and grovel for selfies — and if they aren’t trying to get his attention, they keep their eyes glued to him and hum whatever song of his comes to their minds.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Vybz Kartel is the most influential Jamaican recording artist since Bob Marley. But understanding Kartel’s singular career means grasping that his pop stardom and underground dominance have always worked in tandem. For every song of his that became a global mainstay, one of his raw, evocative mixtapes simultaneously ruled the streets of Kingston. Born Adidja Azim Palmer in Portmore, Jamaica — a coastal municipality about 15 miles outside of Kingston — Kartel has racked up 1.58 billion official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate, making him one of dancehall’s commercial giants. But his countless controversies and towering sociopolitical influence have also made him a divisive cult figure.
His ’90s Alliance era cemented him as one of dancehall star Bounty Killer’s protégés and the genre’s fastest-rising star, wielding an impressive songwriting approach that blended his private and public personas through riveting gangster narratives and sexually explicit anthems. In the early to mid-2000s, Black Kartel reigned, with spunky, lewd hits like “It Bend Like Banana” launching his near-absolute rule over Jamaican society, which culminated in a seismic yearslong beef with fellow dancehall star Mavado (born David Brooks). By the dawn of the ’10s, White Kartel — by this point, the skin-bleaching he controversially sung of in 2011’s “Cake Soap” had visibly altered his skin tone (and spawned a new nickname) — had achieved several bona fide global crossover hits despite Jamaica’s banning of “daggering” songs (extremely sexually explicit tracks).
Fittingly, the Kartel I meet today is clearly a changed man. This newest iteration of Kartel is calmer and more collected; he seems firmly in his Unc era — cream Amiri beanie, custom tour T-shirt and a naughty joke always in his back pocket. His excitement for his upcoming show beams through the black sunglasses he never takes off, and the reverent air of gratitude around him is unmistakable. Kartel and his co-accused — Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St. John — have always maintained their innocence, and their second chance at freedom was hard-fought. According to a unanimous Court of Appeal ruling in summer 2024, the trial judge marred the original guilty verdict by allowing the jury to proceed despite knowing that one juror had attempted to bribe the others.
“Towards the end of my incarceration, I started connecting more with God. That’s why I tattooed ‘love God’ on my forehead,” Kartel reveals. “Nobody can tell me that God isn’t real. Ten years ago, I would have been saying something else, but God is real.”
Destinee Condison
Kartel’s return marks the start of a new era for both him and dancehall at large. In a Downsound Records rehearsal room, a poster displays five different Kartels with varying hairstyles, fashions and skin tones, each representative of a different chapter of his illustrious career. But whether he’s sporting a New York fitted or showing off his locs, the 48-year-old man known to his fans as Worl’ Boss has always been a chameleon, unafraid to alter his appearance to deepen his own mythos.
Inspired by dancehall icon Ninjaman and uncles who “used to DJ around the sound system,” Kartel began “writing 10 to 15 songs a day” as a teenager and released his debut single, “Love Fat Woman,” in 1993, which eventually landed him a spot in The Alliance, a group of dancehall DJs. “I’ve been fascinated with writing ever since I found out Babyface wrote [Karyn White’s 1989 hit] ‘Superwoman,’” he recounts. “As a kid, I was like, ‘How does a man write a song for a woman?’”
Two major factors ignited Kartel’s mainstream ascent in 2003: The release of his debut album, Up 2 Di Time, and a contentious clash with Ninjaman at Sting, Jamaica’s longest-running one-night-only reggae/dancehall showcase. At the time, Sean Paul was leading the early 2000s stateside dancehall crossover wave, but Kartel’s gritty “gun tunes” and X-rated “gyal tunes” were a far cry from the sugary-sweet riddims that made their way to top 40 radio. He smartly gilded his edgier lyrics with slick wordplay and head-spinning flows; Kartel could, and still can, dictate Jamaica’s culture with the flip of a single phrase. But some of those lyrics courted levels of controversy that threatened his — and the genre’s — continued crossover: In 2004, the U.K. Music of Black Origin Awards revoked Kartel’s nomination for best reggae act, alongside fellow Jamaican dancehall artist Elephant Man, over homophobic lyrics — a longtime point of tension in the genre as a whole. Twenty years later, speaking to Billboard, Kartel alludes to an evolution in his point of view: “The world has changed, and sometimes, you got to change with the times.”
By 2006, Kartel’s highly publicized split with The Alliance culminated in him joining the Portmore Empire — a collective of artists hailing from the neighborhood and signed to his Adidjahiem Records, which he’d established three years prior — leading to a feud with The Alliance’s Mavado, who took it upon himself to reply to Kartel’s disses. From 2006 to 2009, Kartel and Mavado lobbed searing disses at one another over the hottest riddims; Kartel even once carried a coffin with Mavado’s name on it onstage. Jamaica’s youth divided themselves between the camps — Kartel’s Palestine-referencing Gaza crew and Mavado’s hood-repping Gully clan — and, in certain cases, committed street violence in their names. On Dec. 7, 2009, in an effort to end that strife and unite the country’s youth, the two officially ended their feud with a joint performance; the next day, both met with Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
Like any good dancehall clash, the Gaza-Gully feud only boosted Kartel’s popularity. Buoyed by its irresistible interpolation of Ne-Yo’s “Miss Independent,” Kartel and Spice’s intensely carnal “Ramping Shop” duet reached No. 76 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in 2009, marking both artists’ charts debut. His crossover continued with 2010’s “Straight Jeans & Fitted” and “Clarks,” the latter a team-up with Popcaan, Kartel’s most successful protégé — a testament to his influence on late-’10s dancehall crossover artists. But as Kartel finally started to snag true crossover smashes, he continued oscillating between being dancehall’s global face and an underground provocateur: In 2011, he became the first musician to receive an artist-specific ban from Guyanese radio.
Kartel calls Lil Wayne his “favorite rapper,” and his life outside the studio mirrored that of the hip-hop legend in 2011. Charged with two separate murder counts, Kartel was found not guilty of murdering Jamaican businessman Barrington Burton by one jury, while a different jury found him guilty of the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. On April 3, 2014, Kartel was sentenced to life in prison after a 65-day trial, one of the longest in Jamaica’s history.
While incarcerated, Kartel clandestinely recorded — with the help of an iPad and his producer, Linton “TJ” White — a litany of projects, including 2016’s King of the Dancehall, which spawned “Fever,” arguably the biggest dancehall crossover hit of the latter 2010s. “Fever” entered two Billboard airplay charts and has earned over 104 million official on-demand U.S. streams — a win for Jamaica in a year when non-Jamaican artists such as Drake and Justin Bieber had propelled dancehall back onto top 40 radio. But between his incarceration and dancehall’s nonstandardized approach to music distribution (compilations of years-old singles tend to lord over regular studio album cycles), Kartel’s impressive consumption numbers don’t paint the full portrait of his cultural impact.
“Freedom Street [will] bring dancehall back as a serious contender in the international market,” says Downsound Records owner and CEO Joe Bogdanovich, who also notes that 700 police officers and private security workers were enlisted for the event. “[Kartel] is more conscious of good over evil and he’s doing something really positive for the youth and himself. That kind of positivity is going to make Jamaica uplift fans around the world.”
Destinee Condison
The concert — which featured explosive appearances by Spice, Popcaan, Busta Rhymes and more dancehall heavyweights — set the stage for Kartel’s incredibly busy 2025. A deluxe version of his 2015 Viking (Vybz Is King) album is due later in January, while a proper comeback album is currently in the works. “Kartel won’t say nothing. Then, tomorrow, he drops a banger that he recorded last night or the day before,” producer Cordell “Skatta” Burrell jokes. “So there’s not much I can say!”
Outside of the studio, Kartel can finally focus on the kinds of major life activities he couldn’t address in prison — like treating his Graves’ disease and wedding planning (he got engaged in November). The evolved, post-incarceration Kartel is ready to reclaim his throne — but don’t expect a run for Parliament. “Everybody loves me on both sides — I want to keep it that way!” he quips.
“Freedom Street is about Vybz Kartel’s journey for the past 13 years,” Worl’ Boss explains. “The concept is me coming out of prison, the road to that freedom and celebrating with the fans as I go into the new year a free man. We were planning this concert before I even got released. I’ve been prepping for this concert since birth.”
What was your first time back in the studio like after you were released?
The first song I recorded when I came out was at my house. When I got arrested, my kids were [so small]. Now, I’m out and recording in a studio that my children built.
How exactly did you record while incarcerated?
Initially, I figured out how to record using an iPad but a lot of times, the sound was metallic because the cell didn’t have padding like a recording studio. The sound bounced all over the place. Then, I figured out that I could use my mattress as a sponge over my head.
Me and Linton “TJ” White produced the riddim for “Fever.” At the time — don’t come for me! — I used to love watching Gossip Girl and Vampire Diaries. Every time this show ended, a voice would say, “XOXO, Gossip Girl,” so that’s where I got the concept from to start “Fever” with “XOXO, my love is very special.” I recorded the song line by line, looking outside to see if anyone was coming. One line, look outside; two lines, look outside. It was necessary at the time to do what I love most. I would send the iPad out to TJ and then he got it mixed by Dunw3ll and the rest is history.
The entire process probably took a half hour. If I was in a studio, it would take maybe five or six minutes.
Did you ever get caught?
Never. I had people in other cells. If someone was coming, they would knock on the grill. [The guards] found a recording device lots of times, but they never caught me in the act of recording.
Were you aware of just how big “Fever” was even while you were away?
Not initially, but when we released the video and the numbers started going up, I [understood]. I wanted to shoot a video for “Colouring This Life,” but TJ thought how I was flowing on “Fever” was tough. I was like, “Alright, do whatever, man,” and he shot the “Fever” video. Bro, in a few months… Jesus Christ! I was like, “Good choice!” (Laughs.)
Being in prison, you can’t feel sorry for yourself. I didn’t have time to do that. I had kids to feed. I had family to take care of. I had health issues, too. There was no time to be weak; you just fight the case and do the right thing. It was crazy seeing the impact the song had, especially when it [got certified] gold [by the RIAA].
How far into your sentence were you when you started recording new material?
In 2013, we started running out of prerecorded material, so we started recording new songs. I dabbled in it one time in 2012 with “Back to Life,” but the quality [wasn’t the best]. Young people were in the comment sections of the new songs like, “No way Kartel can see the future!” (Laughs.) They knew what was up.
What went through your head when you learned your sentence was overturned?
We had been fighting for so many years, so the feeling was overwhelming. The other guys I was charged with started getting ready and putting their clothes on, but then the judge said, “The case is overturned, but we are sending it back to Jamaica [from the United Kingdom] to let them decide if they’re going to retry the case or throw it out.” I was just listening because, as a ghetto yute, I’m used to disappointment. I don’t get excited too quickly. It’s never over till the fat lady sings, right? I was sitting with my legs crossed in my cell, listening to the radio and talking to my lawyer on my cell in my cell — get it? (Laughs.) He was like, “Yo, I think this is it,” and I said, “I’m going to put my clothes on.”
Immediately as I hung up, it was like an earthquake. [The decision] came over the radio and everyone in the prison was listening. Imagine 2,000 people shaking the bars and rumbling and celebrating — that’s when I knew, “Yeah. This is it.” I put my clothes on, jumped up, they came for me, I packed and left. I didn’t even bring anything with me; I gave my sneakers and TVs and stuff to the guys still in there.
What was the first meal you had after your release?
Steamed fish with okra. My mom made it for me. I went to her house first before I went anywhere else. It was a tear-jerking moment; tears of joy, and, in a sense, tears of sadness to know that I missed out on so much with my mother and my kids. [Kartel has five sons and two daughters.] My mom didn’t say anything to me when I went away because I never made her come visit me. It’s not her fault that I was in there. Why would I want her to see me in that place? I only saw her once during my incarceration; I was so sick that they had to take me to the hospital. I said to the superintendent, “Can you grant me a special visit, so I can see her?” And she and my dad came to the hospital.
How does present-day Kartel compare to the man that went away 13 years ago?
The Vybz Kartel of now is more chill and more mature. He’s more laid-back. The one that went in was a beast. I’m still a beast musically, but Iooking back at my personal evolution, I like who I am now. The Vybz Kartel of old gave me musical fame and fortune, so I don’t have any regrets about him. But I don’t want to go back to that Kartel. I’m good right here. That evolution was something I never knew I needed, but I did — especially having faith in God and believing and seeing him work.
I was born in the ’70s, so of course I grew up going to church. I started going around 11 years old, and, like most Jamaicans, when you reach a certain age, you start to fuss about going. I haven’t been to church yet since I’ve come home; every day my mom is asking me, but I’m going soon, mom!
Destinee Condison
How has Kingston changed from when you first went away?
The roads look different. The other day, my fiancée [Sidem Öztürk] had to tell me where to drive, and I’m like, “You’re from England!” But she’s been here for two years while I was locked down, so she got to know the place. Even on the highway going to the country, she had to drive me. It’s like relearning your own country. It’s fun, though! The other day, I literally got lost. I couldn’t believe it. I eventually figured it out, but so much has changed.
In hip-hop, there have been a few instances where prosecutors tried to use artists’ lyrics against them, which has sparked interesting debates about music censorship. Do you have any thoughts?
I don’t think art should be censored for the artist. It should be censored for the consumer. For example, “Vybz Kartel does adult songs, don’t let your kids listen.” But you can’t tell me that, because your children have ears, I can’t sing what I want to sing. That’s rubbish. The same shop that sells sweets also sells alcohol. If you catch your 10-year-old son drinking a beer, you’re not going to run to the beer-maker like, “What the hell are you doing?” So, if you catch your child listening to Kartel, don’t come to me. That’s a “you” problem.
Drake has called you one of his “biggest inspirations.” How do you think he handled his feud with Kendrick Lamar last year?
I’m not a fan of Kendrick. I don’t even listen to Kendrick, so I wouldn’t know. What does he rap? I saw it on the internet, but no disrespect to the dude, I hear him, but I don’t listen to him. Drake is more in tune with Jamaica and the culture. Drake is a better and bigger artist.
When did you and Mavado last speak?
When I came out! But we spoke a lot of times while I was inside. His son is also in the same prison that I was in. His appeal is coming up next year. Our sons grew up together, were in the same class at school and went to each other’s houses for birthdays. They’re still friends to this day. Me and David cool.
Since you went away, Afrobeats has exploded in global popularity. How in tune with that world are you?
Shatta Wale, Wizkid and Burna Boy are my three favorite Afrobeats artists. I like Tems too. Afrobeats is nice, you can just vibe to it. I think Buju Banton was saying something [controversial] about it [during an interview last year], but I understand where he’s coming from. Buju is a dancehall/reggae artist, so he’s going to be singing more conscious stuff about society. But there is a space for happy, fun music.
Destinee Condison
How can dancehall score another crossover moment?
What they do now is called trap dancehall, so it’s going to take a minute for the big markets to get used to it. It’s the kids’ time now. I like Kraff Gad and Pablo YG. Once the sound catches on in mainstream markets — London, New York, Toronto — I think they will have success.
There was a big thing a few years ago — I was even a part of it — with older artists saying, “This music is not going to go anywhere!” The music that runs the place is dictated by the kids at all times. That doesn’t mean the legends can be removed, but don’t fight the kids. Let them do what they’re doing.
I think the lyrics could [also] be a bit more tolerant and less X-rated. Says Kartel! (Laughs.) Afrobeats made such a big global impact because it can be played anywhere and for all ages. The lyrics need to be more commercialized and more tolerant, and sky’s the limit. Jamaica gave the world five genres: reggae, rocksteady, ska, mento and dancehall. We had hands in creating hip-hop and reggaetón. We’re not short of talent.
You’re nominated for your first Grammy, for best reggae album for Party With Me. How does it feel to finally earn that recognition?
If I wasn’t incarcerated, I would have been nominated already. But I understand, why would they want to nominate a dude in prison? I know if I wasn’t arrested, based on the trajectory that my career was on, I would have definitely won. But I’m very, very grateful.
[The 2024 Party With Me EP] was done in prison. I was under a vibe and got some beats from [producer] Din Din. It was getting closer to crunch time because the case was now in England. I was writing to keep my mind occupied, ended up with these songs and said, “Let me just put them on a little EP.” Bam, Grammy.
How’s the process of organizing your catalog been going?
Slowly but surely. I’m going to shoot videos for a lot of those songs I released while in prison. I’m in talks right now with a few American companies that want to give me a distribution platform so I can sign artists and get Jamaican dancehall music released in a more standardized way. We’re also working on a new album.
Destinee Condison
When will you be back in the United States?
We put the documents in. It would be a good look for all of us who are nominated to be at the Grammys. I’m headlining Wireless Festival in England this year. I’m already booked for some German shows in July. My No. 1 market was always America, but, over the last two years, my biggest streaming market is now the U.K. My fiancée is from the U.K. too. [The couple met during his incarceration in 2015 after she found him by “stalking his babymother’s Instagram”; he moved her to Jamaica in 2022.] I think that has a lot to do with the love, like, “Oh, wow. He’s dating one of us.”
When’s the wedding?
We wanted to do it in January on my birthday, but we’re going to wait because of unforeseen circumstances. Maybe Valentine’s Day. I’m such a romantic, right?
How did you prepare for Freedom Street?
We did roughly three hours of rehearsal each day, but the first one was four hours and eight minutes — and we still didn’t DJ half of the songs. We sacrificed around 1,000 songs and ended up down to three hours. And that’s just like my performance. Everybody and their mom wanted to come. And I have no problem with that anyway, because it’s New Year’s! Let’s ring it in in a star-studded manner.
Where are you most excited to perform?
The entire Caribbean and New York — that’s Jamaica outside of Jamaica.
Speaking of New York, would you ever hop on a song with Cardi B? She recently jumped to your defense when people criticized your post-release appearance.
I love Cardi! We got a song coming out next year. We are actually in the process of writing it. Even if I have to walk, I’m performing that song in New York!
In July, Jamaica’s most influential living artist walked out of a Kingston prison after 13 years, drove straight to his mother’s house for a tearful reunion over steamed fish and okra — and dove immediately into preparations for Freedom Street: his first performance since his release, and the biggest concert the country would see in […]
Decemeber has arrived, and that means we’ll be getting more than a few tastes of the soca anthems seeking to dominate Carnival season next year. But December also means the return of Sting — a notoriously length reggae and dancehall showcase that has been held annually in Jamaica on Dec. 26 since 198. Home to countless iconic moments in the worlds of reggae and dancehall, Sting will return this month with a genreation-bridging lineup, including Tommy Lee Sparta, Turbulence, Teflon, Gyptian, Jamal, Quada, Jahmiel, Bushman, Dwayne Stephenson, Shane O, Macka Diamond, Laden, Skippa, Kant10t, Ace Gawd and more.
“We’re trying to slide away from all the things that may hamper us in the future,” said CEO of Supreme Promotions Tahheer Lain said at the press launch. “So, I’m trying to give the show a softer feel. As much as it’s a rough cut show, I’m trying to soften it because we realise that a lot of our younger artists they may not have the capability, or pattern of thinking as the older artists… one time it was just Sting, now it’s Sting Live.”
Trending on Billboard
There’s one other major performance set to take Jamaica by storm this month, and that’s Vybz Kartel‘s Freedom Street New Year’s Eve homecoming concert — his first live show since being released from prison after serving a 13-year sentence.
Naturally, Billboard’s monthly Reggae/Dancehall Fresh Picks column will not cover every last track, but our Spotify playlist — which is linked below — will expand on the 10 highlighted songs. So, without any further ado:
Freshest Find: Bunji Garlin, “Carry It”
Bunji Garlin is one of the most dependable soca artists that we have, and he already has is eyes set on the 2025 road soundtrack. Self-written and produced by Stemz Productions alongside some live guitar from Kyle Peters, “Carry It” finds Bunji uses the frenetic energy of power soca drums to sing a triumphant story in remembrance of his roots and the unique dynamism that comes the resilience of soca music. “Where can I find that energy, the raw raw magic that comes down from the grass-roots/ Yes ah from a place where soca the resounding power/ Yuh could feel anytime any hour, sunshine or shower,” he proclaims in the opening verse.
Hey Choppi, “Titanic”
With production from Spine and Sucre and writing credits from soca legend Machel Montana, “Titanic” was always destined to be a homerun. Nonetheless, it takes a remarkably committed vocal performance — like that of Hey Choppi — to make sure every last piece falls into place. For his take on the “Kompa Fever” riddim, Choppi builds on Rose and Jack’s iconic Titanic love story with a tender, melodic vocal that plays well against the kompa guitars weaved throughout the soundscape.
Nessa Preppy, “Go Bestie”
To close out November, Badjohn Republic and NMG Music teamed up for the “Yes Please” riddim, which Trinidadian soca star Nessa Preppy absolutely slid across. “Go bestie, go twin/ Go bestie, go twin/ Yuh badder den alla dem/ Yuh hotter den alla dem,” she decalres at the song’s outset, seamlessly switching from a flirty flasetto to a comparatively more commanding chest voice as she sings her support for her bestie as they both enjoy themselves at a given function. “Yes Please” also appears on Nessa’s new Little Miss Arima album, which arrived on Nov. 11 featuring collaborations with Yung Bredda, Lady Lava, Freetown Collective and V’ghn.
Konshens, Silent Addy & 1Mind, “Slow Motion”
For the past decade, Konshens has been a formidable force across dancehall music and this new collaboration with Silent Addy and 1Mind’s Mac Sutphin only reiterates that fact. “Slow Motion” finds the Kingston MC relishing his time spent caught up in the hypnosis of the night’s reigning bad gyal. “How yuh full a style suh? How yuh full a vibes suh?/ What is it about you? How mi jus’ a smile suh?/ Tek di money, tek di money, baby hold a coil nuh/ Cool and deadly, dah love yah nuffi wild up,” he sing-raps over the slow-burninng, synth-laden production. A master when it comes to gyal tunes, Konshens adds another banger to his arsenal with “Slow Motion.”
Malie Donn & Byron Messia, “Alive”
This summer, Malie Donn quickly followed-up last year’s “V6” breakthrough with “Whats Popping,” and now he’s finally unleashed his debut studio album. One of the standout tracks on the album is “Alive,” a collaboration with Byron Messia that trades in a particularly grim brand of gratitiude. The two dancehall stars are, of course, happy with their success and riches, but even the twinkling piano can’t conjure up the warmth that’s noticeably missing from the simmering track.
Shuga, “Love Doctor”
Lovesickness is an emotion that thousands of songs across genres have explored — and Shuga has dropped off one of her own. Set as the lead single from her forthcoming Girl from Montego Bay album, the Donovan Germain-produced “Love Doctor” is inspired by Shuga’s then-boyfriend (now husband). “I’m calling for the love doctor/ ‘Cause tonight, I need some healing/ I’ve got to see the love doctor/ ‘Cause right now I’m in my feelings,” she earnestly sings over gentle reggae guitars in the hook. Grown and tasteful, “Love Doctor” is the kind of intergenerational banger that makes reggae so special.
Jaz Elise, “Unforgettable”
From an opening that recalls the synthesized harp of “The Boy Is Mine” to that whimisical swell of the final chorus, “Unforgettable” is yet another gorgeous release from Jaz Elise. “I won’t take this thing we have for granted/ Feels so good, so natural/ Nuh odda one compare to you, you have it/ A kiss from you, so magical,” she proclaims over a J.L.L. and IzyBeats-helmed soundscape that uses an ebullient horn section to contour its traditional reggae production. Following “Gunman” earlier this year, Jaz Elise is two for two when it comes to 2024 solo releases.
A-Suh Boss, “Chappa Cry”
Beyoncé gifted us her Renaissance album in 2022, and now it’s A-Suh Boss’ turn. For “Chappa Cry,” the opening track of his debut album — also titled Renaissance, to be clear — A-Suh Boss provides a gritty, reflective soundtrack for all the ghetto youths who dream far bigger than their present circumstances. “The house used to leak when rain fall/ Used to dress, guh school inna same shorts/ Life never sweet, dem days hard/ Life change from mi mek di sweepstakes call,” he sing-raps over the Monk Music-helmed production.
Kes, “Cocoa Tea”
Few can hold a candle to Kes when it comes to groovy soca, and “Cocoa Tea” is just further proof why. After dropping off Man With No Door earlier this year — the award-winning soca band’s first studio LP in a decade — Kes has returned with “Cocoa Tea,” an endlessly sweet ode to a love that warms you up like a mug of the chocolate-y beverage. “Darling, heat me up/ Only you alone could put fire back in me soul/ Heat me up/ And they telling me ah should leave that fire alone/ Well, the more they tell me is the more I holding you close,” lead singer Kees Dieffenthaller croons in the pre-chorus before the song explodes into a groovy soca fantasia in the chorus.
Lady Lava & Jordan English, “Baddd B”
For his “Bad B” remix, Jordan English staged a collaboration between Barbados and Trinidad, tapping Lady Lava, who recently received her flowers from Cardi B, for a sizzling guest verse. “Bad B” is English’s take on DJ Vibes, Hit It Records and Supa Nytro’s “Pressure” riddim — a sparse, percusssive number with ample room for MCs to flow over. An easy-rocking, tongue-in-cheek tune sure to set the dance floors ablaze as we enter the new year, look for “Bad B” to have some legs going into the spring.
British R&B star Mahalia has made a comeback with lively new single “Pick Up the Pace.” The track, which sees her team up with Jamaican artist Bayka, incorporates elements of dancehall and reggae – a sonic development for the 26-year-old and her typically soulful sound.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
“I wanted to celebrate artists like Bayka – these incredible Jamaican voices – and give the U.K. a moment to reconnect with the dancehall and reggae that helped shape our sound,” Mahalia said in a press release. The singer added that the track also serves as an ode to her Afro-Caribbean roots, having grown up with a Jamaican mother in Leicester.
Explaining the meaning behind “Pick Up the Pace,” she continued, “I love love. But lately, I’m embracing the fun, unserious side of it all. There’s so much heaviness in the world, so I’m just trying to find those moments of joy and playfulness in my music.”
Trending on Billboard
Writing on her Instagram, Mahalia spoke on the fitness-inspired music video. “I’ve held onto a lot of insecurities about my body that were born in school that I haven’t been able to shake as an adult,” she shared. “And being an artist/maybe a role model to some has forced me to keep those insecurities tightly away in Pandora’s box so nobody can see that I am also a little broken.”
“Broken by the impossible beauty standards of western society. Broken by all of the men and women who told me my boobs were too big or my belly not toned enough,” she continued. “Broken by my own insomniac thoughts about my body whenever I’m going through a depressive phase.”
The single marks the first offering of new material from Mahalia since her second studio album, IRL, which was released in July 2023 via Atlantic Records. The LP reached No. 31 on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart and was supported by a run of U.K. headline shows, including a night at London’s iconic Hammersmith Apollo. In the year since, she has also toured Europe, North America and Australia.
IRL included a wealth of guest artist features, including Stormzy, Joyce Wrice and JoJo. The latter featured on single “Cheat,” one of the album’s key singles. Speaking to Billboard, Mahalia explained the significance behind choosing JoJo as a collaborator. “I just really, really wanted her. There wasn’t really anyone else that I wanted on that record, to be honest,” she said.“I think I had ideas of backup plans if she said no. But I hit her [up] and said, ‘Would you be up for doing this?’ She was like, ‘Absolutely. Send it to me.” I sent it and we got it done within a few weeks. We had a great time.”
Over the course of a 12-year career, Mahalia has been nominated for multiple MOBO and BRIT Awards, plus a Grammy nod for “All I Need,” her 2020 collaboration with Jacob Collier and Ty Dolla $ign. In 2019, she released her debut album “Love And Compromise,” which featured the likes of Burna Boy, Ella Mai, and New Orleans vocalist Lucky Daye.
Check out “Pick Up the Pace” below:
Between the triumphant, box office-topping Bob Marley biopic and the long-awaited release of dancehall legend Vybz Kartel, Jamaica has had a lot to celebrate in 2024. This year also marks the ten-year anniversary of Where We Come From – the landmark 2014 debut studio album from Popcaan, one of the most important dancehall artists of the past decade and half.
Following early Stateside crossover success with heaters like “Only Man She Want,” “The System” and “Unruly Rave,” Popcaan released Where We Come From via Mixpak Records, the Brooklyn-based indie label founded by record producer Dre Skull. Upon release, Where We Come From became the first of Popcaan’s five consecutive projects to reach the top three on Reggae Albums. According to Luminate, Popcaan has moved over one million career album equivalent units, with Where We Come From accounting for 130,000 of those units.
Trending on Billboard
To commemorate ten years of Popcaan’s debut, Mixpak has released a new deluxe edition featuring three previously unreleased songs: “Beat the Struggle,” “Don’t Finesse Me” and an acoustic version of the set’s title track.
“Part of me wonders why the hell they weren’t a part of the original album,” Dre Skull tells Billboard. “It’s exciting to dust off some songs from that era and share more about what was happening in the studio and in Popcaan’s head at the time.”
As executive producer of Where We Come From, Dre Skull developed an incredibly intimate partnership with Popcaan. The two dancehall maestros first crossed paths in 2010 during the recording sessions for Kartel’s Kingston Story, the first full-length release for Mixpak. Though they met before “Clarks,” a globe-conquering collaboration between Popcaan and Kartel, dropped, Dre Skull instantly recognized Popcaan’s “natural star power.” By the end of 2011, he signed Popcaan to a three-single deal that yielded “The System,” a song that combined the politically conscious lyricism of roots reggae with the bombastic tempos of dancehall, laying the groundwork for an album that would usher dancehall into a new era.
Around the time Popcaan signed that initial deal, Kartel, his mentor since he joined Gaza Music Empire in 2008, was arrested for cannabis possession. That charge would trigger a decade’s worth of legal ordeals, including a life imprisonment sentence for a murder charge that would take until 2024 to overturn. With his mentor imprisoned, there was an opportunity for Popcaan to assume the leading role Kartel had occupied for years – but this time with a twist that prioritized emotional vulnerability and melodic delivery over brash braggadocio. Dre Skull started conversing with Popcaan’s team about a larger album deal around the end of 2012; though he encouraged them to pursue deals with majors should they be offered, his work with Kartel and on Kingston Story earned the trust of both Popcaan and his team, setting the stage for the first of two Mixpak-backed Popcaan LPs.
Contrary to America’s most dominant genres, dancehall’s affinity for the album as an artistic statement is relatively recent; dancehall albums are often compilations of an artist’s hottest songs from the past few years. “As a fan, I love that, but the press was not giving their full attention to pure singles,” Dre Skull says. “You’re going to be hard pressed to get on the cover of The Fader with just the hottest single. I’m not saying it’s never happened, but it’s rare.” Kartel did end up landing the cover of The Fader for Kingston Story, as well as a print feature in the Arts & Leisure section of The New York Times. Those PR wins provided a blueprint for Popcaan’s Where We Come From rollout – and foolproof confirmation that a fully realized LP was the best way to formally introduce and break Popcaan in America outside of hubs of Caribbean immigrants like New York City.
Ten years later, Where We Come From still stands as a stunning amalgamation of mid-2010s dancehall and the boisterous dance-pop that dominated top 40 at the time. “Everything Nice,” the album’s lead single – which was originally recorded on a completely different beat, according to Popcaan — slyly combines elements of dancehall’s sunny synths and drums with the languid emo-rap vocal stylings that were beginning to creep into mainstream hip-hop at the time.
There’s also “Waiting So Long,” a pop-dancehall fantasia that casts Popcaan as the conductor of a kaleidoscopic orchestra of syncopated handclaps, stirring strings, ethereal chimes and tinny synths that keep the track in lock-stop with the electro-pop of the times. Those EDM-adjacent flourishes also pop up on “Addicted,” a song tucked away in the album’s back half that flaunts Popcaan’s knack for catchy pop melodies that don’t betray the roughest edges of standard dancehall delivery.
“There’s so much subtlety. Because of his mastery with melody, his songs can be catchy in different ways,” says Dre Skull, who produced five of the album’s 13 tracks. “For a certain subset of songs, my view was the riddim should almost contrast with that.
Where We Come From was impressive upon its debut – and remains so – because of how deftly Popcaan balances the record’s party moments with its stints of introspection on tracks like “Give Thanks,” “Where We Come From” and cinematic album opener, “Hold On.” After impressing Dre Skull with his grasp on weightier topics like violence, poverty, remorse and guilt, the Brooklyn producer “had a feeling the melody and the chords on ‘Hold On’ would resonate” with Popcaan. And they did. “Everything we still get the minimal/ Society still treat we like criminals/ But one day we’ll be free at last/ Jamaica,” he croons at the end of the song’s first verse.
“At the time of creating Where We Come From, I said exactly what I wanted to say and sang about how I was feeling,” Popcaan tells Billboard. “I just wanted to touch people’s hearts while being real. I always try to motivate the yutes who are still in the struggle to never give up, and in doing that through music you expose some vulnerability.”
For Dre Skull, “Hold On” felt like a “mission statement.” “Some of those songs are like hymns,” he muses. “He’s giving music to help anyone get through their hardest day or week. At the same time, he’s singing hymns that are based on things going on in his life. I have come to see that he’s writing those for himself, and they serve a purpose internally.”
Notably, Where We Come From houses just one collaboration, the Pusha T-assisted “Hustle.” Popcaan and Pusha previously worked together on 2013’s “Blocka,” and the Virginia Beach rapper was the only artist he reached out to while making the album. “Sometimes it might make good business sense or a be a good look [to have big-name features on an album] – but this was a very important building block in Popcaan’s career. We wanted it to be a reflection of who he was,” notes Dre Skull.
Arriving on June 10, 2014, Where We Come From materialized at the same time the music industry was on the precipice of a culture-shifting transition to streaming as the dominant form of consumption. Billboard started incorporating YouTube data into its chart rankings the year before Where We Came From dropped – but Dre Skull was already familiar with just how important the video-sharing app was to the dancehall ecosystem. He remembers a digital scene dating back to 2009, where kids in Brooklyn would run YouTube channels like music blogs, uploading the year’s hottest dancehall singles to their tens of thousands of followers. “Dancehall artists and their managers were paying those teenagers to upload their music, because they wanted to be part of that stream of consumption,” he recalls. “It was a similar thing to rap’s mixtape era, where there was all this unmonetized and uncheckable consumption happening. Those artists weren’t getting money off those streams, but they were getting show bookings.”
Following the strategy they employed with Kartel’s Kingston Story – Dre Skull notes they were an early adopter of uploading lyric videos for every song on an album – Mixpak capitalized on Popcaan’s YouTube pull with complete uploads of his early radio interviews, “Unruly Clash Wednesdays” series (a weekly showcase for burgeoning deejays to battle-test their skills in front of live, participatory audience) and commercials compiling the album’s rave reviews. Though streaming would truly explode by the time Popcaan’s sophomore effort, 2018’s Forever, rolled around, the inroads he made on those platforms with Where We Come From set the stage for streaming juggernauts like 2020’s Drake and Partynextdoor-assisted “Twist & Turn.”
In the ten years since he dropped his debut album, Popcaan has morphed into one of the most recognizable dancehall stars of the 21st century, working with everyone from Chris Brown to Burna Boy. To date, he’s earned over 1.7 billion official on-demand U.S. streams – a testament to his remarkable ability to sustain crossover success.
“Popcaan showed how to be a successful artist in this new era,” proclaims Dre Skull. “He’s proven to be a very strong operator who knows how to follow his own vision for his career instead of another person’s template. With [Where We Come From], he showed other dancehall artists that albums are important and reminded them that they’re a very good way to push your career to career to new levels. More people are putting out proper albums as an artistic statement and not just a compilation of previously released singles. And musically, he also showed that you can make a serious album and not go chasing hits but still end up with some.”
As dancehall figures out where the genre is headed next, other stars looking to emulate Popcaan’s success would do well to revisit Where We Come From and its pivotal rollout. Though his focus is currently on celebrating the 10-year anniversary of his debut, Popcaan has new music on the way with Dre Skull. Now signed to Drake’s OVO Sound label, Popcaan and Mixpak formally parted ways in 2020, but their work together continues to inform the future of both Popcaan’s career and dancehall as a whole.
“We made a classic,” exclaims Popcaan. “A timeless and boundary-breaking album that still resonates today. 10 years later and still going strong!”
The 2025 Grammy nominations landed this morning (Nov. 8), and two Jamaican powerhouses have earned their first Grammy nods for their own work.
In 2017, Shenseea made waves with a remix of Vybz Kartel‘s “Loodi”; today the dancehall star joins Kartel as a 2025 Grammy nominee for best reggae album thanks to Never Gets Late Here. Released on May 24, Never Gets Late Here serves as Shenseea’s sophomore studio album and features collaborations with Masicka, Di Genius, Anitta, Coi Leray and Wizkid. The album reached No. 4 on Reggae Albums, becoming Shenseea’s second consecutive LP to reach the chart’s top five.
“I was in the office getting my ID done, and I started screaming. The people in the office were like, ‘Oh my God! Who died?’” Shenseea exclusively tells Billboard about her initial reaction to her nomination. “I finally made it amongst the greats, that’s what I first thought. It’s [been] a long road to get here for my country and my culture. Momentum and hype [are] more quickly accepted than quality sometimes, especially in this new generation. For me to even make it here after all I’ve been through from stage zero, I feel like I’m at ten. It’s just the icing on the cake to win.”
Shenseaa earned a pair of Grammy nominations (album of the year and best rap album) in 2022, thanks to her work on Ye‘s Billboard 200-topping Donda LP. She appeared alongside Roddy Ricch on “Pure Souls,” which reached No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100. “I told myself I would not attend the Grammys until I get nominated for best reggae album for my own project,” she reveals. “Even when Donda got nominated, I did not go to the awards. [This nomination] means everything to me. I feel like my hard work continues to pay off. I’ve been dreaming about this moment ever since I found out I could sing!”
Trending on Billboard
If given the opportunity to perform at either the telecast or the premiere ceremony, Shenseea selects “Face Lift (Intro)” — which features her son — as her song of choice. Should she take home the Grammy next February, Shenseea would join fellow JA star Koffee as the only women to ever win best reggae album.
Just a few months after he regained his freedom, Portmore’s very own Vybz Kartel earned his first career Grammy nomination with Party With Me, which was released this spring (May 31) via Adidjahiem Records. For over three decades, Kartel has been a leader in the dancehall genre thanks a near-constant stream of releases and sizzling crossover joints ranging from 2009’s Spice-assisted “Romping Shop” to 2016’s “Fever.”
Earlier this summer (July 31), Kartel regained his freedom after the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled that he and his co-accused — Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St. John — will not face a new trial for the 2011 murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. Kartel was originally sentenced to 35 years in prison after a historic 64-day trial back in 2014, but he and his co-accused have always denied their involvement in Williams’ death.
The 2025 Grammy nominees for best reggae album are Play With Me (Vybz Kartel), Never Gets Late Here (Shenseea), Take It Easy (Collie Buddz), Bob Marley: One Love – Music Inspired By The Film (Various Artists) and Evolution (The Wailers).
The Grammys return to Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 2.
With just days to go before the reveal of the 2025 Grammy nominations, a few of the hottest stars from across Caribbean music could earn their first nomination for best reggae album.
This year, Teejay (I Am Chippy), Masicka (Generation of Kings), Jah Lil (Can A Man Cry), Govana (Legacy), Shenseea (Never Gets Late Here), Gyptian (Guarded), Stalk Ashley (Stalky the Brat), Romain Virgo (The Gentle Man) and Vybz Kartel (Party With Me) are among the artists who have submitted their eligible albums from consideration. Previous nominees such as Spice (Mirror 25), The Wailers (Evolution) and Protoje (In Search of Zion) are also in contention.
If the final slate of nominees once again includes American reggae band SOJA — who’s contending this year with Beauty In the Acoustic — stay tuned for a repeat of the controversy that their 2022 triumph (for Beauty in the Silence) sparked.
Trending on Billboard
Outside of Grammy news, all eyes are on the United States presidential election (Nov. 5), where Vice President Kamala Harris, who is of Jamaican and Indian descent, could become the first Asian-American and first woman president.
Naturally, Billboard’s monthly Reggae/Dancehall Fresh Picks column will not cover every last track, but our Spotify playlist — which is linked below — will expand on the 10 highlighted songs. So, without any further ado:
Freshest Find: Protoje, “Barrel Bun”
On Oct. 18, two-time Grammy nominee Protoje released a collection of tracks previewing the full soundtrack to a forthcoming short film. Stacked with songs specifically written to accentuate the film’s storyline, The Jamaican Situation: Side A houses several knockout tracks — including the fiery “Barrel Bun.” A straightforward, brass-accented reggae jam, “Barrel Bun” finds Protoje calling for radical systemic change in a country marred by government corruption and violence, with Ziah.Push’sstine production beautifully complementing Protoje’s narrator-esque delivery. “It depends pon what you choose/ Fi make it out or make it pon the news/ The system ya rough/ Everybody wicked and tough,” he croons in the chorus, between verses that follow different characters as they fight to survive and live with themselves under varying systems of oppression.
Skip Marley, “Close”
Maxi Priest’s “Close to You” — which topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990 — already put the “pop” in reggae-pop, and Skip Marley’s reimagining of the track doubles down on its dancefloor bonafide. Produced by Rykeyz, Marley ups the reggae feel of Priest’s original chorus, his raspy upper register playing well against the groovy percussion that grounds the smoldering verses between each party-ready hook. Marley has already visited the top 10 of the Hot 100 (alongside Katy Perry with 2017’s No. 4-peaking “Chained to the Rhythm”), and “Close to You” has the potential to bring him back there.
Teejay feat. Masicka, “Never Complain”
You know it’s serious business when two of dancehall’s hottest stars join forces. With “Never Complain,” Jamaican powerhouses Teejay and Masicka a menacing dancehall track that finds the former delivering a smooth, coolly confident hook, while the latter spits rugged, rapid-fire verses that offer a peek into how fame and success have altered the outlook of both stars. With slinky guitar riffs providing a lighter complement to the brooding lyricism and overall production, “Never Complain” is a surprisingly texturally rich offering that previews just how incredible a joint project between Teejay and Masicka could sound.
Beach Boii & Simon Said, “Bad Gyal”
Who has the time to be worried about colder weather when Beach Boii and Simon Said are dropping sizzling joints like this one? “Bad Gyal,” a sultry trap-infused dancehall slow-burner, continues the genre’s long-standing tradition of tributing beautiful women, but Simon Said’s relaxed delivery and his and Beach Boii’s lyrics prioritize praising women’s independence as much as they express their desires to be with her. “Anything yuh want, baby girl that’s it/ Gucci from Milan, Louis Vuitton, Français/ Put it pon di Gram, make these hoes upset/ Real bad gyal, so mi know yuh don’t play,” Simon croons over Beach Boii’s string-inflected beat.
Major Lazer & Vybz Kartel, “Nobody Move”
Originally teased back in 2017 — with an additional Lorde feature, no less! — “Nobody Move” is finally here. Released as a part of the 15-year anniversary reissue of Major Lazer’s 2009 debut album Guns Don’t Kill People…Lazers Do, “Nobody Move” finds Kartel interpolating bits of Yellowman’s 1984 dancehall classic “Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt.” A far more traditional reggae joint than 2009’s “Pon De Floor” — the last time the two acts linked up for a collaboration with no other guests. It’s a brief track with just one full verse, but it’s prime for easy listening. “Nobody move, nobody get hurt/ Mi feel di vibes, put in di best work/ Jamaica land we love/ I love fi see di gyal dem inna short mini skirt,” Vybz proclaims in a curiously wistful cadence.
Juls, Black Sherif & Projexx, “Timing”
Released as a single from Juls’ Peace & Love album, “Timing” is a world-bridging collaboration between the British-Ghanaian producer, Ghanaian singer Black Sherif and Jamaican artist Projexx. Juls’ ethereal soundscape pulls from Afrobeats as much as it pays tribute to dancehall rhythms and grooves, with Black Sherif’s buoyant energy playing well against the laid-back, reserved approach Projexx takes, each style accenting different pockets of the airy beat.
Jada Kingdom, “Somebody Else”
Jada Kingdom kicked off the year with one of dancehall’s fiercest clashes, and now she’s back with “Somebody Else,” her first release under her new independent entity Kingdom Mab. A characteristically seductive kiss-off, “Somebody Else” finds Twinkle purring her way through an R&B-infused track that balances vulnerability with strength sourced from introspection. “Cause after all the heartbreak, I still gained nothing/ Best of luck, I’m sorry/ It’s too late to want me/ I got my eye on somebody else,” she declares.
Nailah Blackman, “Banana”
Nailah Blackman literally has soca history cousing through her veins — and she does her lineage proud with each successive release. “Banana,” Nailah’s take on the “Double Dip” riddim, brings her over to the power soca as she sings, “A girl no want no soft man/ Gimme a roughneck/ A man to slap it up and/ Gimme some roughness/ Want a man with strong back.” Tailor made for the road, “Banana” is sure to soundtrack some of the wickedest wines in the West Indies and beyond come next Carnival season.
Kenroy Mullings, “Brighter Days”
Analog instrumentation will never go out of style — and Kenroy Mullings is here to remind us of that. A renowned guitarist who works frequently with Buju Banton released his highly anticipated instrumental album, Brighter Days, on Oct. 23, and the title track is one of the strongest offerings. Centered on a sunny guitar melody and accented with ebullient horns and steady, earthy percussion, “Brighter Days” positions itself as the musical equivalent of the first few sun rays breaking through the clouds. There’s hope coursing through every chord, so much so that lyrics feel like a bonus accessory here as opposed to a necessity.
Patrice Roberts, “Kitty Cat”
At the top of October, Trinidadian soca icon Patrice Roberts put her own spin on Suhrawh’s “Cat Attack” riddim. “Yuh have a weakness for sweetness/ Beggin’ for the kitty cat/ So, you have a weakness for sweetness/ I have the sweetness,” she coos over the beat, which sounds just a step or two away from something you might hear on a poppier Brazilian funk track. A tantalizing ode to the power of the kitty and a sultry showcase of both Patrice’s power and sexual prowess, “Kitty Cat” is the perfect song to channel the flirtatious energy of Carnival — even if the season may be over.
Worl Boss is finally free — and now the Jamaican musical and cultural icon is getting the podcast treatment.
Worl Boss: The Vybz Kartel Story, an eight-part podcast series from SALT, Big Wave More Fire and Gulfstream Studios, is set to debut on Dec. 16, 2024. Created by Tahir Garcia and Sam Griesemer and executive produced by Nick Panama and Max Musina, the audio series will explore the life, career and influence of the dancehall icon.
“There’s so many incredible stories that exist within dancehall and reggae music and the culture here in Jamaica, and so many of them don’t get shared with the public. The only time you hear these stories is if you’re lucky,” Garcia, who also narrates the series, tells Billboard. “We took a step back, two or three years ago, and decided that we wanted this space to be able to tell the story properly. Obviously, podcasting has become this huge thing. But one thing that’s missing, especially in Jamaican culture, is this concept of [podcasts] being scripted. There’s so much more that can be brought to it with sound design and actually sitting down and editing interviews to tell the narrative in a way that captures everything and really preserved the essence of [Vybz Kartel’s] story.”
The new podcast series is told entirely by Jamaican voices and will exclusively feature interviews with important figures within Kartel’s circle, including the first female member of Kartel’s Portmore Empire crew Lisa Hyper, Kartel’s former DJ Creep Chromatic and famed musician Wayne Marshall. These key players will also be joined by Winford Williams — host of On Stage TV, the longest-runnning dancehall interview series — as well as essayist Carolyn Cooper, author and professor Donna Hope, and Milk and Jay Will, two important collaborators on Teacha’s Pet, Kartel’s reality show.
Trending on Billboard
Earlier this summer (July 31), just over a week before Jamaica’s Independence Day (Aug. 6), Kartel regained his freedom after the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled that he and his co-accused — Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St. John — will not face a new trial for the 2011 murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. Although he was originally sentenced to 35 years in prison after a historic 64-day trial back in 2014, Kartel (and his co-accused) have always denied their involvement in Williams’ death.
“We have a lot of assets and we spoke to people at the source, including his camp, people in and around his orbit, fans and musicians. We did a pretty extensive job covering all the bases,” says Panama. “We have a lot of voices that are going to be represented and using that as a way to help breakthrough and create the world around the story is part of how we’ll successfully bring this to market. We’ve got some really great partners in the audio space that we’ll be announcing soon, and I think they’ll help amplify this project even more.”
Known for hits such as “Fever” and his Spice-assisted “Romping Shop,” Vybz Kartel’s raunchy music and slick wordplay have soundtracked multiple generations of dancehall listeners, and Garcia promises the new series will be for everyone: from first-time listeners to lifelong fans. “If this is your first introduction [to Vybz Kartel], it’s supposed to be just as impactful as it would be to someone who’s listened to him forever.”
In addition to his music and efforts to support Jamaica, Kartel’s legal woes have also become a major part of his legacy — one that Worl Boss does not shy away from. “Everything gets addressed and talked about. We just don’t dwell on that. It’s a part of the journey, but it doesn’t define the character,” explains Garcia, who also tells Billboard that, “the hardest part was getting people who are close to [Kartel] to speak freely — especially while he was still incarcerated — because nobody wanted to do anything that could potentially incriminate [him or themselves]. Everyone was very, very cautious about agreeing to do it, and what put them at ease was us not focusing on the mess.”
Although there are currently no additional details about the podcast’s distribution, Panama stresses that the podcast series is just one part of the story they hope to tell. “The second [part] is a documentary series and feature film that are in development with arguably one of the biggest Jamaican directors, and UTA’s representing the project,” he reveals. “That will probably be more of a late 2024 thing, but the reason we did those together is because the story is so dynamic. Dancehall is such a small genre from a small country that has an enormously outsized impact globally. To have a revered yet controversial figure at the heart of that with Vybz [Kartel] is such a fascinating character and cultural study.”
Since his release, Kartel has remained outside partying and enjoying his freedom ahead of a massive “Freedom Street” concert at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica, on Dec. 31 — his first performance in 13 years. Production and filming for Worl Boss began before Kartel regain his freedom, but now “there’s a third act to his story,” Panama muses. “He wasted no time walking out of prison and getting his entrepreneurial and music endeavors back up and running and continuing to build his mythology.”
From February’s box office-topping Bob Marley: One Love biopic to Worl Boss, Jamaica has remained at the forefront of global popular culture throughout 2024. For his part, Garcia hopes this new podcast series is the beginning of several projects chronicling and preserving Caribbean culture and music history. “That’s one of the things we spoke about very early on in this process, what does the next step within this space look like?” he says. “Once [Worl Boss] starts rolling out, hopefully it reshapes what people think is possible, and that’s going to be even more exciting.”
Buju Banton’s viral Afrobeats-lambasting Drink Champs appearance (Aug. 28) previewed a particularly contentious month for reggae and dancehall music, and September did not disappoint.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
After announcing the removal of the reggae recording of the year category from the forthcoming 2025 JUNO Awards, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) has reversed its decision, allowing a new crop of competitors to join past winners like Leroy Sibbles, Exco Levi and Kirk Diamond. The news came just a few weeks before an update in the curious removal of Drake‘s “Blue Green Red” from streaming services. The dancehall-inflected track — which peaked at No. 63 on the Billboard Hot 100 as a part of the rapper’s 100 Gigs EP — allegedly lifted elements from Tiger’s “When” (1991) without proper clearance. Later disputes about who actually serves as Tiger’s publishing representative continues to keep the song off streaming services, but producer Boi-1da asserts that the song could “possibly be back up” once those issues are resolved.
In live performance news, R&B icon Usher brought out a pair of Jamaican powerhouses for his Past Present Future Tour: Grammy-nominated reggae star Barrington Levy delivered renditions of “Here I Come,” “Black Roses” and “Tell Them A Ready (Murderer)” at the trek’s final Brooklyn show (Sept. 10), while Caribbean Music Award winner Masicka performed “Fight For Us” at the final Toronto Show (Sept. 3). At the latter stop, Canadian rapper and producer Kardinal Offishall also joined forces with Usher for a special cover of Chaka Demus & Pliers’ “Murder She Wrote.”
Trending on Billboard
Naturally, Billboard’s monthly Reggae/Dancehall Fresh Picks column will not cover every last track, but our Spotify playlist — which is linked below — will expand on the 10 highlighted songs. So, without any further ado:
Freshest Find: Azato, “Disconnect to Connect”
As a global society, we’re probably past the point of no return when it comes to the unhealthy amount of time and energy we collectively give to technology and social media. With “Disconnect to Connect,” a warm, full-bodied mélange of soulful roots reggae and notes of soft rock and jazz, Hawaiian reggae band Azato deliver something greater than a finger-wagging “get off your phones” anthem. “Are we truly free, or just followers of likes?” he questions us, urging us to detox, if only for a moment. Roots reggae has proven to be rich soil for sociopolitical commentary for decades, and Azato offers up a distinctly 21st-century lens through “Disconnect to Connect.”
Runkus, Royal Blu & Kush Arora, “No Long Talking”
“Life In the Jungle” might be the main attraction, but “No Long Talking” is a much more intriguing offering from Jamaican artists Runkus and Royal Blu and Bay Area producer Kush Arora. A fiery amalgam of drill and dancehall, complete with machine gun sound effects, rapid fire flows, and a promise to get “straight to the action, don’t wanna play.” Built around Kush’s “Desi Cowboy” riddim, both Runkus and Royal Blu embody the lawless spirit of the Wild West with this slinky gun chune.
Morgan & Byron Messia, “Wheel Up”
It’s been over a year since “Talibans” dominated the summer across the Caribbean diaspora, and Byron Messia still stands as one of the biggest dancehall breakout stars in recent memory. On his new collaboration with U.K. pop/R&B arist Morgan, Messia proves himself a surprisingly strong supporting player. A sleek fusion of R&B and dancehall, “Wheel Up” is a sultry ode to Jamaican sound clash culture and the heated nights of passionate dancing and flirting that follow. “One more sin inna mi cup/ Dis ting we affi wheel up,” Morgan croons in the chorus of the Slim Typical-helmed track. Ain’t nothing with rewinding those fleeting moments of connection to make them last a little while longer!
Gyptian, “In the Dark”
Gyptian has been cranking out love and lust-minded dancehall classics for years now, and he’s showing no signs of letting up anytime soon. With his latest single, “In the Dark,” the Billboard chart-topping star zeroes in on the love affairs that thrive when the night falls. “She said, ‘I can come over tonight’/ ‘And do with you whatever’/ Wait till it’s dark outside/ And just make your way over,” he sings over the guitar-inflected reggae-pop beat, painting a thrilling narrative of a secret relationship that can only live in the darkness. It’s a less heartwarming story than the one he tells on “Hold Yuh,” but it’s equally enthralling because of the forbidden spaces it pushes his songwriting to.
Shenseea, “Dating SZN”
It’s wild to think that in 2024, people still (figuratively) clutch their pearls when women speak about balancing different partners, but leave it to Shenseea to render that faux outrage null and void. “You a nuh mi man, mi nah haffi explain/ Mi nuh have no obligation/ Journey might be slow/ But mi haffi sure say you’re the one/ So mi have couple a unuh inna rotation,” she explains in the first verse, letting it be known that she sets the terms of all these arrangements — nobody else. The Supa Dups-produced track references the iconic instrumental hook from TLC’s Hot 100-topping “No Scrubs,” an increasingly rare instance of a newer song referencing a classic track and building on that song’s narrative and concept. These guys are scrubs, why would Shenyeng ever lock herself down like that?
Jahmiel & Minto Play Da Riddim, “Self Worth”
Always good for a poignant, introspective track, Jahmiel delivers yet again with “Self Worth,” a tender collaboration with Minto Play Da Riddim. Emphasizing themes self-empowerment, the track balances somber piano keys, a spoken interlude, and an undercurrent of gospel melodies to create a sonic comforter of hope and reassurance. “A user nah go ever love you like you love yourself,” he croons, reminding us all that our sense of self should always be grounded in an intimate understanding of our own individual self-worth.
Popcaan, “Show Me”
The Unruly Boss is back with a new drop. “Show Me,” the dancehall icon’s latest offering is standard sexed-up dancehall fear, and that’s perfectly fine. Produced by Teejay of TJ records, “Show Me” is as playful as it sensual, with Popcaan begging his prospective lover to “show me what you can do.” His smooth delivery offers a nice complement to the hip-hop-inflected riddim, but there’s just enough fire in his exclamations and ad-libs to make sure the flame never dies.
Vybz Kartel, “The Comet”
As the whole world knows by now, Vybz Kartel is finally free. He’s already dropped off a collection of new bangers since his release and in a wholly characteristic move, he’s given us some more. If anything, “The Comet” feel like a foreboding prelude to a new set of bangers ahead of his highly anticipated return to the stage in Jamaica later this year. “Mi f–k yuh madda thru di prison grill/ Mi f–k yuh gyal thru di prison window/ Wet up ‘e p—y wid mi middle finger/ Then mi dig it out hard wid di timber,” he snarls in trademark badman fashion before chanting, “I thought I told you that the comet is comin’” in the chorus. Who knows what “The Comet” is warning for, and, honestly, it doesn’t even matter — it’s a heater all on its own.
Bamby, “Guyane”
Guyanese dancehall and shatta singer Bamby infuses those two Jamaica-indebted genres with a healthy dose of her own Creole roots. Complete with a video shot in her home country, Bamby sings in both French and Creole as she waxes poetic about the beauty, strength and virtue of Guyana. “Yé ka mandé pou kissa nou fâché (They ask why we are angry)/Babylon pa pé rété (Babylon can’t stay)/ Malè ki zot voyé (This misfortune they sent)/ Lanmè ké fine pa chariél (The sea will no longer carry it),” she croons over a sparkly, thumping dancehall beat.
Amanda Reifer & Sean Paul, “Sweat (Part II)
A sequel to the opening track from her Island Files project earlier this year, “Sweat (Part II)” finds Barbados’ Amanda Reifer joining forces with Jamaica’s Sean Paul for a sexy reggae-pop jam. The new version of the song changes very little from the original, but Sean Paul’s mellow guest verse offers a nice male perspective to complement both Amanda’s POV and her loftier vocal register. “You waan me touch it girl/ Me well conscious me want you trust it girl/ The stars and the moon shine for us girl/ You are my Isis , I am Osiris girl,” he proclaims to close out his verse. Who said the breezy reggae love jams have to stop when the weather gets chillier?