Greetings!
Western movies played a pivotal role in Dancehall
music in the early days. With influences such as
Clint Eastwood's 'Fist Full of Dollars,' James Stewarts
'Bandelero,' and 'How The West Was Won' starring
John Ford, it's not surprising that some of the early
veterans in Dancehall performed chunes with these
movie titles, or named themselves after characters
in the movies.
With this in mind, gun culture was also a focus in
music as it was a reflection of power and status.
When Dancehall speaks of a 'top shotta,' they speak
of bad man / gangsta. Sometimes a chune might
refer to 'murdering' a person, not because they will
actually kill the individual, but merely to say 'I will
exercise my power if you test me.' For example,
Ninjaman's infamous "murdah dem, murdah dem,
in a competition we gwaan murdah dem!" Another
example would be "I'm in the mood to kill a sound...."
The artist is not saying he's literally going to kill.
Today's throwback riddim is one that was most popular
in 1998 (I can't believe it's that old!), and was produced
by Dave Kelly, one of the most respected producers
in modern Dancehall. The riddim is also a reflection
of Dancehall culture at that time.
This 1998 hit riddim, had performances by T.O.K.,
Bounty Killer, Spragga Benz, Baby Cham and
more. Cham's performance was one of the most popular,
and caused many to sing the punchline, including people
who don't swear (hint)! Some would argue that the
lyrics in the chunes to this riddim are violent, but
others would say they are a reflection of the culture
at the time. Both are right. What do you say?!
Broadcasting at 320kbps, and keeping in mind all
that was mentioned above, catch the mystery riddim
here:
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