Back in March we wrote about the resurgence of Reggae and Dancehall music
following the successful releases of several Reggae/Dancehall albums in the 3rd
& 4th Quarters of 2011 led by Shaggy's "Summer in
Kingston." The 2nd & 3rd quarters 2012 have been just as
prosperous. I-Octane's "Cry To the Nation,"
Busy Signal's "Reggae Music Again,"
Groundation's "Building an Ark," Romain
Virgo's "The System" VP Record's own
"Soca Gold" and "Ragga Ragga Ragga" series, and most recently,
Mr. Vegas's "Sweet Jamaica" have all topped
Billboard's Reggae Albums charts.
As we stated, the
presence of these artists on Billboard's charts means that
people are listening to Reggae and Dancehall music (via various modalities) as
well as purchasing the music (evidenced by digital sales and otherwise).
Obviously, the artists owe a debt of gratitude to the diehard fans who
have remained faithful to the genre despite its lukewarm reception from the
mainstream music industry. There's also a great deal to be said of the marketers
who've utilized digital music distribution giants such as Itunes and Amazon to
pop-u-larize the music. Famed Reggae and Dancehall music producer Johnny
Wonder (21st Hapilos) and Rhona
Fox owner of FoxFuse are among the few independent companies
that have capitalized on the success of digital distribution to promote Reggae
and Dancehall artists' music.
So here it is, the Reggae and
Dancehall music industry is thriving despite the naysayers and it will continue
as long as there are artists stepping up and producing quality work, labels
distributing the music (VP Records distributors of all things
Caribbean), Dj's playing the music (major audiences in Atlanta, New York, Miami)
and promoters pushing the music. And yes Reggae and Dancehall may endure a
restructing every decade or so, but those that can survive, do.
Just
like the 80's campaign "Make it Jamaica again and make it your own..."
