Category
page 1Jamaican styles of music

reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also refers to the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. The 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals titled "Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use the word reggae, effectively naming the genre and introducing it to a global audience.
==Origins and influences==
Reggae developed from earlier Jamaican genres including mento, ska, and rocksteady, and is rooted in traditional drumming styles such as Kumina, Pukkumina, Revival Zion, Nyabinghi, and burru. It incorporates elements of rhythm and blues,

ska
thumb|Madness (band)|Madness performing in 2005

dancehall
Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s. This music genre was not officially named until the 1980s, when the two words Dance and Hall (referring to the common venue) were joined to form Dancehall, which was then promoted internationally for the first time. At that time digital instrumentation became more prevalent, changing the sound considerably, with digital dancehall (or "ragga") becoming increasingly characterized by faster rhythms.
dub music
music genre originating from Jamaica

rocksteady
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish reggae, including harmony groups such as the Techniques, the Paragons, the Heptones and the Gaylads; soulful singers such as Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Bob Andy, Ken Boothe and Phyllis Dillon; musicians such as Jackie Mittoo, Lynn Taitt and Tommy McCook. The term rocksteady comes from a popular (slower) dance style which is the subject in the Alton Elli
ragga
Raggamuffin music (or simply ragga) is a subgenre of dancehall and reggae music. The instrumentals primarily consist of electronic music with heavy use of sampling.

mento
thumb|right|350px|Mento rhythm;
riddim
In Jamaican dancehall music, a riddim is the instrumental accompaniment to a song and is synonymous with the rhythm section and of a song's "groove" in its bass and low drum parts. Jamaican music genres that use the term consist of the riddim plus the voicing (vocal part) sung by the deejay. A given riddim, if popular, may be used in dozens—or even hundreds—of songs, not only in recordings but also in live performances.
dub poetry
form of performance poetry
Kumina
Kumina is a branch of the Myal religion, dance and music form. Kumina has practices that include secular ceremonies, dance and music that developed from the beliefs and traditions brought to the island by Kongo enslaved people and indentured labourers, from the Congo region of West Central Africa, during the post-emancipation era. It is mostly associated with eastern Jamaica particularly the parish of St. Thomas Portland, St. Mary and St. Catherine, and the city of Kingston.