After years of dormancy, dancehall music seems to be getting a second wind in North America. One man who notices this trend is Tad Dawkins Snr, owner of Tads International Record.
That independent company recently launched Dancehall Kickout, its fifth compilation series. Released digitally July 15 on iTunes, it will be out on compact disc soon.
It contains songs like Champion Boy by Alkaline, Mavado’s Big League and Tom Cruise by Don Andre, all of which rocked Jamaican dancehall’s this year.
Dawkins said albums by dancehall artistes have also made a comeback in the United States.
“Vybz Kartel’s King Of The Dancehall, and Alkaline’s New Levels Unlocked, topped all (reggae) charts including Billboard and iTunes. That’s what started the resurgence, and both these albums have outsold all other reggae and dancehall albums released in the same period,” he pointed out.
Significantly, Canadian rapper Drake sampled songs by a number of Jamaican acts for his latest album, Views, which has sold over two million units worldwide.
Rihanna’s massive hit song, Work, is also dancehall-inspired.
Alkaline and Vybz Kartel have five and four songs, respectively, on Dancehall Kickout which is Tads’ latest dancehall compilation. The others are The Ultimate, Reggae Jammin, The Hit List, and Phantom.
Dancehall music had a golden run in the US during the 1990s. Shabba Ranks, Patra, Shaggy, Super Cat and Mad Cobra all had massive hits on the Billboard pop charts.
Shaggy, Sean Paul and to some extent Elephant Man and Gyptian, did well before sales fell off close to 10 years ago.
Source: Dancehall alive once again in North America – Tad Dawkins Snr | Loop News Jamaica
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