Reggae has brought the world to a wonderful peaceful place. It has evolved from a simple music art form known as Mento, which was developed in the early 20th century by labor workers and direct descendants of the Maroon Society. Maroon is actually still present today.
As the art form took shape, it integrated external mainstream influences, such as Rock .
and Roll in the 50's, which brought the Ska music form in Jamaica. With this new generation of peppy horn melodies and uptempoed vocal sounds, Reggae for the first time had potential to cross over into the mainstream music industry and finally .
share some fame with all the other big stars of this time. It happened with a hit from a girl names.
Millie Small. Her debut single "My Boy Lollipop" brought it all in. This sparked a creative explosion in the local industry and literally overnight labels and studios popped up all over downtown Kingston. Artists to emerge from this era were Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, and King Stich (just to name a few). .
With the war era of the 60's approaching, reggae finally took form with a mellow beat and mind bending lyrics. Rebel Bands spoke the words of .
the people. The mystical influence of reggae captured fans worldwide and for the first .
time ever, reggae was a real influence internationally. Bob Marley and the Wailers .
expelled songs of hope and freedom that stretched to the war of Vietnam and the heart aching mothers, girlfriends, and wives in the US. This gave protestors a voice to carry them on. The song "War" by Bob Marley and the Wailers impacted the world. .
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Then came the wild 70's. It was a new stage in the evolution of the art form. The birth of dancehall came unexpectedly, with Daddy Uroy emerging as a pioneer in the creation of the new sound. Sound clashes were quietly in the background, and dancehall was a fresh style that brought up beats. Sound clashes came to the frontline and it was all about one drop riddims, and versatile lyrics.
