The Specials’ Ghost Town lands at No 2, following entries from Donna Summer and Dead or AliveAs the coronavirus lockdown continues, the Guardian’s music desk thought you might be in need of a distraction – something to send you down memory lane, or to divert the annoyance at your housemates or children on to us. We present to you a ranking of the 100 greatest UK No 1 singles since the charts began in 1952. Continue reading...

Dancehall artiste Gage has taken to social media to lash out at what he says is a negative bias towards him in the industry because of Vybz Kartel.

As tensions continue to rise in the US following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police on May 24, dancehall artistes have been weighing in on the situation. 

‘Queen of Dancehall’ Spice was spotted in a Black Hypocrisy t-shirt along with other peaceful protesters in Atlanta, where she is presently living.

In the wake of the Beenie Bounty Verzuz showdown held Saturday, May 23, Demarco expresses ‘special honor and respect’ in his new single entitled Homage, dedicated to the two hailed veterans of the dancehall.

It is shaping up to be a bad week for dancehall artiste Shenseea, who can’t seem to catch a break as she tries to promote her work.

If anything the coronavirus has taught us about dancehall artistes is that they are resilient and innovative.

Young and upcoming Jamaican comedian Deno Crazy is happy that he was given the chance to boost his already thriving career by appearing on popular dancehall artiste Govana’s “Hamants Convo” series. 

Alkaline is the first dancehall artiste to claim the Nos. 1, 2 & 3 spots on Apple Music in Jamaica.

40 years ago this week, Bob Marley played in Crystal Palace park, debuting Redemption Song and enchanting the crowd – but signs of his decline were already thereWhat turned out to be the last Garden Party in Crystal Palace, on 7 June 1980, had already been pretty memorable. Joe Jackson was booed off stage after swearing at the audience before several people fell into the lake when a branch broke off a tree. But like most in the crowd that day 40 years ago, a teenage Rob Baker had come to see one act: Bob Marley and the Wailers.“For the last song, the sun came out,” says Baker, who travelled from his home in Salisbury to south London for the concert. “And he came back on stage to play Redemption Song with just an acoustic guitar. It was a very special moment because no one had heard it before.” Continue reading...

Reggae sensation Skip Marley has some new music to share. His single No Love dropped Friday, May 29th, on his VEVO page.

It’s been five years in the making, and the time has finally arrived. For Dre Island, the release of his new album Now I Rise was motivated by an inclination.

Dancehall newcomer Intence seems to be experimenting with a new look, but it has not been well received by fans.

Popcaan got unruly after a follower highlighted what he thought to be the artiste’s strained relationship with Vybz Kartel.

From St Lucia, here comes singer, songwriter and producer Kingdom Soldier (Lenny Deneb) with his third album entitled The Watchman. Due for release at the beginning of September this will be his third studio album and it reveals his thoughtful and religious inspiration throughout. Lenny says: “the Watchman album was inspired in me to write

The city’s young jazz community has flourished by drawing on everything from hip-hop to calypso and highlife, creating a unique cosmopolitan soundAlthough its live scene is currently on pause, jazz has been thriving throughout London, with names such as Shabaka Hutchings, Nubya Garcia and Binker and Moses all attracting attention and media coverage around the world. But what is not often remarked on is how utterly un-American these British musicians sound: listen to their music and you’ll hardly hear any swing or bossa nova rhythms, the usual pulse of American jazz. You won’t even hear that much funk, the rhythm that has been the vehicle for most “fusion” over the past 50 years. Instead, a generation of Londoners – who I spoke to before the coronavirus crisis – are redefining jazz in a different accent. Related: ‘History needs to be set alight’: Shabaka Hutchings on the power of jazz American jazz still thinks that blending hip-hop with jazz is something quite radical. In London, that’s taken as read Continue reading...

Producer who worked with artists such as Shabba Ranks, Garnett Silk and Morgan Heritage was a maverick of the dancehall eraRenowned Jamaican record producer Robert “Bobby Digital” Dixon died in a Kingston hospital on 21 May, aged 59. The cause of death was kidney disease.One of the most respected producers of the dancehall era, Dixon transformed contemporary reggae several times over, enjoying tremendous international success with Shabba Ranks, Garnett Silk, Sizzla Kalonji and Morgan Heritage. He is also considered as an architect of the reggaeton genre that swept Latin America in the early 1990s, since some of its earliest hits sampled his work with Ranks. Related: Bob Marley at 75: how a ghetto reggae star rebranded Jamaica Continue reading...

Samur-I is a reggae producer working as part of a music collective in South West England, writing and recording rhythm tracks for different singers to voice over. Samur-I Sounds have previously released dub-heavy music featuring the likes of Paul Divers. This new release (May 2020) features Grove, a Bristol based singer and together they come

In Listener’s digest, our writers help you explore the work of great musicians. Next up: the world’s most famous reggae star who people are turning to for solace in lockdownRead all the other Listener’s digest piecesThe best arts and entertainment during self-isolationExodus (1977)Picking a top Bob Marley and the Wailers LP is tough. The revelatory arc his albums form over the two-plus decades before his death aged 36 in 1981 is a progression, a string of black diamonds in which Marley found new ways to tell hard truths. Since the start of the coronavirus crisis, Marley’s music has been downloaded 27 times more than usual, a remarkable leap confirming that he and the Wailers provide healing sustenance in times of trouble. Continue reading...