Who Is "King of The DANCEHALL" ?

I am sure by now you have seen, heard, or even taken part in the ongoing debate regarding the question of the decade: “Who is the KING of the Dancehall”?

Many fans of the Dancehall culture have been proclaiming that the World Boss - Vybz Kartel, is the one true “King”, while others claim that The Doctor - Beenie Man is “King”.

Here are my two cents on the subject.

King Stitt

Let us go back a few decades, 1950s/1960s. Do you recall a once-popular artist known as King Stitt?

King Stitt was crowned “King of the Deejays” in 1963. Deejaying in the 1960s was very different from deejaying in the 1990s and more so in the 2020s. Music as a whole has evolved into something almost unrecognizable from the authentic Jamaican culture as we know it. In my opinion, the only thing that keeps our music identifiable as Jamaican is the fact that our artists have a distinct sound, namely the Jamaican patois/accent. If we strip away the vocals, we will find that the instrumentation in today’s music strongly mimics the Trap, R&B, and Hip-hop grooves, sounds, and melodies of the American music culture.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing the music, I’m just stating the facts regarding the evolution of our music. Our music has evolved from rocksteady, ska, etc., spanning decades of generational changes in styles, tempo, and melodies, which has brought us to where we are today.      

Do you recall U-Roy?

U-Roy

Also referred to as The Originator and The Teacher. U-Roy was also one of the pioneers of the Jamaican Deejay culture, beginning his career around age 18 in 1961. Back then, Deejaying was known as toasting. Toasting was the act of an MC holding the mic at a dance/party and talking (or chanting) over the instrumentals of whatever the DJ/Disc jockey was playing at the time. This was a means of getting the party going, bringing vibes, and adding a spontaneous element to the evening’s entertainment. U-Roy, among many others, started his career as a toaster; his style and charisma attracted the attention of popular record producers, which ultimately led him to become an Icon and inspiration to many other Deejays.

Yellowman

Okay, so you probably never heard of King Stitt or U-Roy. What about Yellowman? Or King Yellowman.

He, too, was (and still is by many) touted as King. Yellowman dominated the 80’s with his unique sound and provocative lyrics. He was one of the first deejays to sing about sex, which was taboo in Jamaican culture.

The Jamaican music scene pre Yellowman was predominantly about the struggles, the oppression, social injustice, freedom from poverty, and liberation for blacks on a global scale. 

Yellowman gained popularity not just because he, like many other artists, came from nothing and made a career for himself, but also because he dug deep inside his creative essence to cross the lines of the cultural norms to give birth to tunes like “Mad Over Me”, Morning Ride and more. He, like King Stitt, was crowned “King” at the peak of his career by his peers.

Our culture has produced many icons, kings in their own right, as each generation from the 1960s through to the 2020s will all have their personal favorites.

Ninja Man, Super Cat, Shabba Ranks, Buju Banton, Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Sizzla, Capleton, Vybz Kartel, Mavado, Alkaline; I’m sure there are many more who can be added to the list.

So, who is the King of the Dancehall?

Beenie Man

I’ve worked with both Beenie Man and Vybz Kartel. Both are extremely talented, calculated, and, not to mention, two of the hardest-working artists in the genre.

However, I don’t think there should even be a debate on this matter. Here’s why.

A King, like a president or any great leader, has a limited time to reign. Absolutely no king reigns for eternity. The logical conclusion would be to pass the proverbial crown to The World Boss - Vybz Kartel. Beenie Man had a phenomenal run and still manages to maintain a career based on numerous hits recorded between the 1990s and 2000s. It is time to pass the crown to who is the most obvious next in line. Sidenote - Beenie Man was never officially crowned by his peers at any event; I’m just stating the facts.

Vybz Kartel has proven to be one of the most cunning, calculated, and controversial artists in our music. Yet his lyrical prowess is undeniable. Launching out with “inna mi Karl Kani, wid a bottle a cold Canei, tuff a lie?” Kartel was set to dominate. Before that, being booed at a live stage performance gave him the motivation and drive to step up his writing and performance skills. His rivalry with Mavado also made him realize that the only thing he was lacking was melody in his delivery of songs. Vybz was always clever and witty lyrically; however, adding melodic inflections was the icing on the cake. There was no stopping him.

Vybz Kartel

Kartel’s incarceration in 2011 had only set the stage to solidify his legacy as the King of the Dancehall. It was almost as if the entire world had transformed into his “Gaza Nation”, rooting for and anticipating his release.

In 2024, fans were eager and excited to take out personal loans and sell whatever they could just to be able to afford the cover charge of his first concert in Jamaica after his release. The anticipation didn’t stop there; it filtered to the diaspora within the US as well as to the super fans across the Caribbean and the rest of the world.

I would say that Adidja Palmer, aka Vybz Kartel, has checked all the boxes and achieved all the accolades that have solidified him as the current King of the Dancehall.

Sidenote – Vybz Kartel was crowned “King” by his peers at an event; I’m just stating the facts.

Who do you believe is the "King of the Dancehall"? Let me know in the comments.

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Thank you for stopping by.