A proud son of Olympic Gardens, Robert “Bobby Digital” Dixon was a regular at dances in his hometown and the neighbouring community of Waterhouse during the 1970s and 1980s. As a producer, he was the perfect ‘talent scout’ for the dancehall explosion of the 1990s.

Digital died in May at age 59. Many of his productions ruled that period and helped make the sound palatable to the hip hop community in the United States.

An engineer by profession, Digital was producer Lloyd “King Jammy’s” James’s right-hand man for several years before branching out on his own in the late 1980’s. His songs with Shabba Ranks, which include Peenie Peenie, Wicked inna Bed and Live Blanket, were fit for a hardcore audience, but by the next decade, Digital proved he had the chops for mainstream radio with songs like It’s Growing by Garnet Silk, Kette Drum by Beenie Man and I’m in Love for Nadine Sutherland.

“He had this ear and an incredible ability to mix music and the human voice together that they not only had an aural connect but an emotional connect. That’s the genius of that man and that’s why he had so much hits and helped to shape reggae and dancehall music,” said Sutherland in a tribute to Bobby Digital.

One of Bobby Digital’s understated strengths was producing quality albums. Contemporary Jamaican producers are known for releasing compilations rather than designated projects, but he was an exception, as evidenced by Morgan Heritage’s Don’t Haffi Dread and Sizzla’s B lack Woman and Child and Da Real Thing.

Because the decade produced a number of crossover albums and songs, the 1990’s are considered the golden age of dancehall music. Bobby Digital, the pride of Olympic Gardens, was largely responsible for that.

— Howard Campbell