No matter what class you're from - uptown or downtown - when you're in the dancehall everyone's equal, and it's how you choose to express yourself that makes you stand out.
Dancehall music is perceived as party music, which it is because of the rhythm, but there are messages that do come through or a purpose of an artist saying something to the world. People usually don't get the messages because of the partying.
Dancehall is just like hip-hop in that it doesn't always talk about bling; it talks about conscious issues.
In the dancehall world, we have crews and they battle. It's part of the entire culture surrounding dancehall.
I see dancehall reggae and hip-hop as fused together, When I was a kid, they were the two kinds of music that spoke to me and said 'Move!
Jamaica is one of the most musically influential nations in the world. Throughout the entire globe, there are pockets that are constantly in touch with what goes on in the dancehall community, from Germany to Japan, to different parts of Africa like Ghana.
Music didn't really hit me again until the '90s, when the dancehall scene got going. The '90s were perfect for me. I would have really liked to have had The Slits out in the '90s again, to do tours and albums, because I think the '90s was a brilliant decade for music.
I used to buy records in high school. Mainly dancehall: Super Cat, Buju Banton.
I started DJing soundclashes. I used to go to Jamaica a lot. I was like a hip-hop sound boy, where I took the dancehall culture and mixed it up with the hip-hop as well. I kept going, going, and I got real hot in the streets of Miami - you know, doing pirate radio - then ended up doing 99 Jamz, the big station out there.
For performances I have my favorite go to's like Prince, Donna Summer, Vanity 6, Sheila E, but it also depends on the type of show I am giving. I could pull references from Broadway musicals, Rock Steady Crew, a Jamaican dancehall or gentlemen's club, etc. all within one show. It truly is a playground with no restrictions for me.
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