Event Title
Beyond Desmond Dekker and Bob Marley: Rastafarianism in Contemporary Reggae and Reggaetón
Date of Publication
3-26-2021
Document Type
Paper
Abstract / Program Notes
Rastafarianism is an Afro-centric cultural consciousness movement and religion with political views that emerged in Jamaica in the 1920s, influenced by Judaism, Christianity, Ethiopianism, and Hinduism. It was popularized through Reggae music, especially that of Desmond Dekker (1941-2006) and Bob Marley (1945-1981) in the 1970s. Rastafarianism highly values the African heritage of black people, believes in repatriation to Ethiopia (“Zion”), which is the true home of black people, and envisions the eventual fall of “Babylon”, which is the corrupt and oppressive world of white people. Most Rastafarian symbols are either of Biblical nature or related to Ethiopia, e.g.: the Exodus story of Moses leading the Hebrews out of Egypt became a Rastafarian liberation symbol; the dreadlocks and beards relate to the law of the Nazarites that forbade cutting hair; etc. To reflect their beliefs and ways of life, Rastafarians changed some of the Jamaican-English language (Jamaican Creole), creating a dialect or language referred to as Rasta Talk, which can be observed in Reggae and Reggaetón. Changing the “colonial” English language was an emancipatory tool to confront the oppressive, decadent Babylon. Much research has focused on early Reggae and its relationship to Rastafarianism, but very little research has been published about contemporary music developments. This paper will highlight contemporary reggae and reggaetón all over the world, such as Janine “Jah9” Cunningham (born 1983), Jah Cure (born 1978), Takana Zion (born 1986), Etana (born 1983), Rootz Underground (formed in 2000), Baby Rasta & Gringo (formed in 1998), and Buju Banton (born 1973).
Biography
Dr. Nico Schüler (born 1970) is University Distinguished Professor of Music Theory and Musicology at Texas State University. His main research interests are interdisciplinary aspects of 19th/20th century music, methods and methodology of music research, computer applications in music research, music theory pedagogy, and music historiography. He is co-editor of the research book series Methodology of Music Research, the author and / or editor of 21 books, and the author of more than 120 articles. Among his most recent books are Musical Listening Habits of College Students (2010) and Computer-Assisted Music Analysis (2014).
Keywords
Desmond Dekker, Bob Marley, Rastafarianism
Beyond Desmond Dekker and Bob Marley: Rastafarianism in Contemporary Reggae and Reggaetón
Rastafarianism is an Afro-centric cultural consciousness movement and religion with political views that emerged in Jamaica in the 1920s, influenced by Judaism, Christianity, Ethiopianism, and Hinduism. It was popularized through Reggae music, especially that of Desmond Dekker (1941-2006) and Bob Marley (1945-1981) in the 1970s. Rastafarianism highly values the African heritage of black people, believes in repatriation to Ethiopia (“Zion”), which is the true home of black people, and envisions the eventual fall of “Babylon”, which is the corrupt and oppressive world of white people. Most Rastafarian symbols are either of Biblical nature or related to Ethiopia, e.g.: the Exodus story of Moses leading the Hebrews out of Egypt became a Rastafarian liberation symbol; the dreadlocks and beards relate to the law of the Nazarites that forbade cutting hair; etc. To reflect their beliefs and ways of life, Rastafarians changed some of the Jamaican-English language (Jamaican Creole), creating a dialect or language referred to as Rasta Talk, which can be observed in Reggae and Reggaetón. Changing the “colonial” English language was an emancipatory tool to confront the oppressive, decadent Babylon. Much research has focused on early Reggae and its relationship to Rastafarianism, but very little research has been published about contemporary music developments. This paper will highlight contemporary reggae and reggaetón all over the world, such as Janine “Jah9” Cunningham (born 1983), Jah Cure (born 1978), Takana Zion (born 1986), Etana (born 1983), Rootz Underground (formed in 2000), Baby Rasta & Gringo (formed in 1998), and Buju Banton (born 1973).