There is not much reggae or dancehall music on radio stations in Roatán, but singer RoataneanKid had his fill of Jamaican culture growing up on that island off the coast of Honduras in Central America.

His maternal grandparents are Jamaicans who went to Roatán decades ago to work. He learned from early to respect the music of their homeland, sounds that can be detected on Bae, his latest song.

Produced by Navy The Best for Mundial Music Entertainment, Bae is a mix of dancehall and Afrobeat. It features Nigerian artiste Ric Hassani, a leading figure in the Afrobeat movement.

“It was an amazing experience working with Ric. He’s a very cool, talented and super humble guy; we’ve known each other for about two years now. I had the record, told Rick about it, he loved the idea, and as fate would have it he had a show coming up in Roatán — and the rest is history,” said RoataneanKid.

Roatán’s Latin and Afro population is similar to other countries in Central America. That diversity is reflected in sounds like salsa, punta and merengue, which dominate its music landscape.

In recent years, younger fans like Linzy Webster (RoataneanKid’s real name) got into hip hop, dancehall and reggaeton through the Internet. He began recording 10 years ago as a member of the group, Young Hustlerz.

Since going solo, RoataneanKid has acknowledged his dancehall influences by working with Jamaican artistes like Busy Signal (on the song Bruk Out) and recorded for producer Christopher Birch.

Bae is his first crack at Afrobeat, which is one of the hippest sounds in contemporary music. Teaming up with one of its most popular exponents can only help RoataneanKid.

“A song like Bae with Ric Hassani gives us strength in the Afrobeat market. I am still surprised of the way the song is moving in my country ’cause it’s a different genre for me, and to see my people show so much love, it means a lot,” he said.

— Howard Campbell