Teino Evans, Staff Reporter
Sean Paul
IN THE early '90s it was against the norm for Jamaican dancehall artistes to collaborate with a major international artiste.
However, as dancehall/reggae music grew, it caught the eye, ear and general interest of audiences worldwide and today, dancehall artistes are doing major collaborations with international hip hop superstars.
In the past, artistes like Bounty Killer, Beenie Man, Lady Saw, Super Cat and Barrington Levy, to name a few, have all teamed up to record big hits with international artistes, giving dancehall music a favourable face on the world map.
Bounty Killer, for example, has recorded hits with Busta Rhymes, the Refugees and No Doubt; Beenie Man has recorded with Janet Jackson, Mya, Wyclef Jean, T.I and others; Super Cat with Sugar Ray and 112, Lady Saw won a Grammy with No Doubt, Barrington Levy with Shyne. Even gospel artistes are in on the collaborations. Papa San was featured in one of Kirk Franklyn's songs.
DANCEHALL/HIP HOP
COLLABORATIONS
The slew of dancehall/hip hop collaborations has not slowed down either, as recent duos featuring Sean Paul and Beyonce, Vybz Kartel and Akon, Junior Gong and Nas, Sizzla and Foxy Brown and Elephant Man with the likes of R. Kelly, Janet Jackson, Usher, Little Jon and others, have taken the airwaves by storm.
These combinations are apparently made that much easier when the hip hop stars are big fans of dancehall/reggae music and dancehall artistes are likewise, big fans of hip hop music.
The Game, who recently came to Jamaica to perform at the MTV Tempo 'Caribbean Rising' event, held at the James Bond Beach in Oracabessa, St. Mary, said in an interview featured on TVJ's 'Entertainment Report' that he was a big fan of reggae music.
"My family grew up loving the music of Bob Marley and now it's good to see that his sons have carried it on," The Game said.
Elephant Man says he could hardly believe it when he heard that some hip hop artistes wanted to record songs with him.
"Yow when dem tell mi seh a R. Kelly, mi dash weh di phone! Mi seh yow uno leave mi alone," Ele says. However, Sean Paul, who recorded a major hit single, Baby Boy, with Beyonce of Destiny's Child, believes that it is good for the growth and popularity of reggae/dancehall music is good, but there can be negative repercussions.
MISCONCEPTION
"As much as the recent popularity of reggae music is a great thing, nuff people worldwide have a misconception as to what real reggae and dancehall music sound like," he said, recalling an incident where he was on an aeroplane and a woman, upon discovering that he was a reggae/dancehall artiste, thought that he could speak Spanish, obviously confusing his style of music with that of reggaeton.
That is why on his latest album, The Trinity, Sean Paul says he used only Jamaican artistes and producers in an attempt to set the record straight and shed some light on the reality.
"That's why with The Trinity mi use straight Jamaican artistes and straight Jamaican producers," he said. For Vybz Kartel, working with hip hop artistes like Jay Z, Missy Elliot, Akon, Rihanna (recently signed by Jay Z) and others is a feeling of family as both genres of music tend to draw from each other.
HISTORY
"Well, yuh done know, is a feeling of family same way, to me, hip hop and dancehall music is like cousin an definitely dem (hip hop fans) a fan of dancehall artistes and dem know di whole history of hip hop and dancehall, they feed off each other," Kartel said.
Kartel says right now, with his album due out next month, it was all about preparing the way and creating his network with more international hip hop artistes, as he says the partnership will only get stronger.
"Inna mi likkle three-year career mi like it, it (collaborations with hip hop artistes) a guh continue fi happen and wi a network yah now ... the future of dancehall is looking bright and Kartel a dancehall yah now suh Kartel future a look bright to. Right now mi deh pon Missy album wid di song Bad Man, mi deh pon Rihanna album, Jay Z jus sign ar an mi do a tune wid Akon," suh a whole heap in store," Kartel said.
Whether dancehall/reggae music is being confused with reggaeton or not, the fact still remains that dancehall/reggae music has taken over the international airwaves and will continue to penetrate mainstream market and interests.
