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MG115 – Dancehall Music

Course Outcomes:

  1. Describe what Dancehall Music is
  2. Tell what instruments are usually used in Dancehall Music
  3. To understand the rhythm pattern of Dancehall Music

Watch Video:

Watch the Video Lesson above multiple times until you fully understand; and attempt the lesson’s assignment by clicking the button below.
NB: Students who perform below average will be asked to re-do their assignments.

Dancehall Music Genre

Dancehall Origin:

Also called Ragga or Dub, started in Jamaica in the political turbulence of the late 1970s and progressed to the 80s and 90s.

Dancehall Characteristics:

a DJ raps or “toasts” over a pre-recorded rhythm track. Talk over or under a “riddim”. Part talking and part singing seductively

Dancehall Lyrics:

  • Politics
  • Sex
  • Gun-talk
  • Slackness
  • Rastafarian Consciousness

Dancehall Major Instruments:

  • Bass
  • Drums
  • Guitars
  • or “dub”.

Dancehall Artists:

  • Yellowman
  • Buju Banton
  • Beenie Man

Gospel Dancehall Artists

  • Lieutenant Stichie
  • Papa San
  • Carlene Davis