One of the most underappreciated reggae artists of his time, Beres Hammond was something of a throwback during his '90s heyday: a soulful crooner indebted to classic rocksteady and American R&B, one who preferred live instrumentation and wrote much of his own material. Hammond specialized in romantic lovers rock, but he also found time to delve... [+] Read More

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Cobra was a shortened alias occasionally used by dancehall star Mad Cobra. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

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Cocoa Tea was one of the few early dancehall stars to carve out a consistent, productive career as the genre evolved over the years. His cool-toned, laid-back vocals were perfect for sweet, smooth lovers rock, and gave him a distinct identity amid his more aggressive peers. Still, he was also capable of toughening up his sound on his cultural... [+] Read More

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Dancehall singjay Half Pint recorded some of the genre's early classics during the first half of the '80s. His appeal outside Jamaica was somewhat limited by his willingness to repeat simple musical ideas, but the best of his work was frequently brilliant. He was the first major artist produced by Prince Jammy (later King Jammy), and together... [+] Read More

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Christened the "King of Lovers Rock" by his fans, British reggae star Maxi Priest was one of the most internationally popular reggae singers since Bob Marley. Priest's pop and modern R&B influences didn't exactly endear him to reggae purists, but they gave him a strong crossover appeal that paid off in the trans-Atlantic chart-topper "Close to... [+] Read More

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Birmingham, England reggae singer/toaster Pato Banton (born Patrick Murray) made his debut on the English Beat's third album, 1982's Special Beat Service, helping out Ranking Roger on the track "Pato and Roger a Go Talk." Five years later, Banton returned with his debut solo release, Never Give In, which featured backing by Birmingham's Studio... [+] Read More

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Perhaps the quirkiest, most unique voice in Jamaica, Roy Shirley twists, contorts, whines, and prowls his way through three octaves in his course of musical mayhem. "Hold Them" may be the tune that birthed rock-steady -- it is indubitably a classic. His output is often hysterically funny and nearly always compelling in a "My God how can he get... [+] Read More

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Theirs is the ultimate musical marriage, a partnership that, once formed, re-etched the very landscape of not just Jamaican music, but the entire world's. Such hyperbole is oftentimes rolled out by publicity machines whenever two musical talents come together, but in the case of drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare, it really was an... [+] Read More

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One of dancehall's most eccentric DJs, Tiger rose to fame during the latter half of the '80s with a distinctively offbeat toasting style, full of growls (true to his name), grunts, odd vocal effects, rapid-fire rhymes, and witty asides. Tiger was born Norman Washington Jackson in Kingston on June 6, 1960, and got his first taste of the music... [+] Read More

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Jamaica's first dancehall superstar, Yellowman ushered in a new era in reggae music following Bob Marley's death. His early-'80s success brought the popularity of toasting -- the reggae equivalent of rapping -- to a whole new level, and helped establish dancehall as the wave of the future. For better or for worse, he also epitomized dancehall's... [+] Read More

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