Reggae music has an assertive social message. As Jamaica’s cultural hybridity grows, reggae becomes its musical form heir, embodying Rastafari spiritual resistance nucleus and back-to-Africa identity.
At its heart, hip hop’s hallmark characteristic is its rhythm – one that emphasizes off-beat beats to create its signature syncopated groove that sets it apart from other genres.
Instrumentals
Reggae music relies heavily on its instruments for its distinctive sound. These include drums, bass guitar, keyboards and horns – instruments which create its distinctive rhythmic quality as well as contributing to its upbeat and joyful nature. Drums provide strong beats while bass provides deep tones. Other percussion instruments such as bongos and shakers also contribute significantly to reggae music’s unique sound.
Reggae electric guitar parts can often be distinguished from its use in other genres by virtue of its distinct chord structure and repetitious, powerful parts usually featuring repeating riffs with frequent octave jumps; when played together, these instruments create an intoxicating, hypnotic rhythm characteristic of reggae music.
Reggae music was pioneered in Jamaica during the 1960s and has become an international phenomenon. Combining jazz, blues, and offbeat rhythms with instruments like drums, bass guitar, and piano. Reggae artists such as Bob Marley, Desmond Dekker, and Sizzla helped popularize this genre; their songs reflect struggles, hopes, and philosophies of Jamaican culture.
Reggae music without words relies heavily on bass and drums as its foundation, while keyboard and horns add melody and skanking chords on offbeat is what gives reggae music its distinctive pulse and drive.
Harmonicas are an integral part of reggae music, recognized around the world. Their distinctive sound allows fans to identify specific songs. Their emotive tone allows musicians to convey feelings without words being spoken aloud.
Horns and brass instruments are frequently featured in reggae music, adding depth and texture to its signature sound. Common examples include trumpet, trombone and saxophone horns which may be heard occasionally for longer solos during songs.
Technology has brought an explosion of innovation to reggae music. Synthesizers have revolutionized this genre by enabling musicians to experiment with a wide array of sounds and textures; some artists even invented an entirely new genre called reggae rock that blends reggae with rock music.
Riddims
Reggae music uses riddims – backing tracks with all chords included that allow a singer to add melody later – as its foundation. Producers create these riddims and sell them on to vocalists who record their songs over them, freeing up artists to focus on writing lyrics and singing instead of recording arrangements that may or may not appeal to their listeners.
Riddims are usually played in 4/4 time and feature an offbeat accent called an accent that creates an offbeat rhythm, known as syncopated rhythm. Additionally, repeated offbeat quavers known as ostinato add to reggae music’s unique sound. Pianos, keyboards and organs play an essential part in reggae music by adding depth and often acting as bass accompaniment; organs often serve as piano bass accompaniment while guitar is frequently played using bar chords that feature multiple fingers pressing down across its fingerboard – these chords can even be repeated repeatedly over longer duration – known as skanking.
Reggae music’s horn section is another key element. These instruments, commonly composed of saxophones, trombones and trumpets, often play at the beginning of songs as instrumental breaks start up or as solos before moving into chorus and background vocals roles later in a song.
Most reggae songs use the verse-chorus structure similar to rock music. This allows singers to express their emotions more openly through singing. Reggae lyrics typically focus on equality, rastafarian culture and political issues; and often use lyrics as a platform to voice feelings or beliefs with urgency – giving these songs their distinctive feel.
Reggae music typically combines drums, bass guitars, guitars and percussion into its soundscape. Drums provide rhythm and tempo for songs using cross-stick technique whereby drumsticks strike both head and rim simultaneously to hit drum head simultaneously; also popular are shakers cowbells claves among hand percussion instruments that add variety – often times including shakers for hand percussion purposes! Reggae also typically involves call and response elements which typically involves the snare drum interacting with bass drum for call and response elements which add another layer to this music genre – the bass drum provides call and response elements!
Dubs
Anyone who bought a reggae single in the ’70s, turned over, and heard its instrumental version will understand the significance of dub to reggae music. Dub is typically more minimalist than its vocal mix counterpart, featuring less drums and bass and more electronic manipulation; and remains hugely influential today, especially within dance music circles.
Dubs evolved out of Jamaican dance party sound system culture. DJ’s were constantly looking for fresh material to play and instrumental dubs became especially popular. Dubs serve as an excellent example of how remixing can take an existing work and completely change its meaning, often without losing its original intent.
Dub originated as an instrumental version of vocal tracks released on 7″ vinyl singles (Jamaica’s recording industry was predominantly 12i at this time), typically placed on the B-side as per industry practice in Jamaica at this time. Songs would then seamlessly transition between vocal and instrumental elements before concluding with an end fade out – such as this dub from Roots Radics called Rub a Dub.
However, this stripped down mix soon evolved into something different, creating its own subgenre of reggae music: dub. Pioneering producers and engineers such as Lee Scratch Perry, Osbourne Ruddock (known by his nickname King Tubby) and Hopeton Overton Brown (better known by his nickname Scientist) all embraced dub and created some of its first instrumental recordings known today as dub.
The style that emerges is an ever-evolving musical collage that takes pieces from existing arrangements and rearranges them in surprising combinations. The music can be highly atmospheric, creating musical landscapes of outer space. Echo and reverb effects add depth, while melodica instruments add an air of nostalgia from the 1960s.
Dub music remains a strong influence on modern reggae and dance music, particularly styles like ragga, hip-hop and dancehall, which have experienced substantial crossover in recent years. Many contemporary artists and producers within these styles credit Jamaican dub music as having had an effect on their own creative developments.
Vocals
Reggae music has long been an instrumental style, yet many vocal artists have contributed significantly to its development. Beginning with Jamaican performers Byron Lee and Ernest Ranglin who incorporated jazz elements into their reggae performances; Augustus Pablo’s melodica later becoming its trademark instrument; later during the 1970s sound system singers known as toasters began rapping heavily rhymed alliterative lyrics over instrumental reggae tracks to form dub. Dub remains popular today – most single releases contain an instrumental version as their b-side.
Reggae artists traditionally sang in Jamaican Patois or Jamaican English and may employ vocal harmony parts as a counterpoint to the main melody line. Sometimes singers may also employ tremolo singing techniques where pitch fluctuates between higher and lower pitches – an integral element of reggae’s music that emphasizes rhythmic beat over melody or harmony.
Reggae music typically uses lyrics that criticize social injustice and promote spiritualism to comment on social injustice; yet many songs also discuss lighter topics. Many popular artists associated with reggae music are noted for their poetic and inspiring lyrics; Bob Marley stands out as an especially well-known example, spreading his music as a message of peace, unity, and resistance across his many performances and shows.
Reggae music often draws influence from current political events; however, this genre also draws upon traditional African culture and religion to create its unique sound. Many beats, rhythms, and instruments used in reggae come directly from West Africa.
Reggae music has also been combined with rock sounds to form reggae rock, an experimental genre often characterized by heavy guitars and bass lines. Reggae rock serves as an excellent example of how diverse cultures can come together through music to produce something entirely new and original.
Modern reggae bands commonly incorporate horns and brass instruments, as well as acoustic drums, into their music to add an organic, more natural quality that sets it apart from electronic dance music styles that commonly employ synthesizers. Furthermore, some musicians also employ other forms of acoustic instruments, such as the rhumba box or bamboo saxophone, for an authentic sound with its own identity.