Recently, there was a panel discussion on CVM-TV featuring esteemed guests from academia and the wider music industry. The discussion centred on the current state of dancehall and whether the genre has stagnated or entered a period of decline. Several perspectives were raised by the panellists, including claims that dancehall’s declining presence on international charts reflects a drop in musical quality, a lack of a cohesive industry infrastructure, and concerns around the professionalism of some artistes.

While these claims are not without some merit, I believe what dancehall is actually missing, at a collective level, public relations articulates when, where, and how the genre is currently thriving with room for continued growth.

Much of the benchmarking used by traditional media and academia relies heavily on Billboard chart placements and major festival billings, particularly when comparing dancehall artistes to reggaetón or Afrobeats acts. These metrics, while still remaining benchmarks for success, they are not the sole determinants in the present or moving forward.

From a mainstream pop culture perspective, however, meaning larger North American and European markets, there is a the regression chart placement-wise; however, as a sphere of creativity, dancehall is undergoing a sustained transition, perhaps even a rebirth. For this transition, consistent storytelling by the media and academia alike, that contextualizes this shift, is needed, outside of fragmented individual social media campaigns by artistes’ teams. As Professor Lawrence Grossberg, internationally recognised as one of the leading figures in cultural studies, has noted, those in culture need to tell better stories.

.

Dancehall, in its core spaces, is thriving socially and digitally. This is evident in the diverse range of contemporary and new artistes providing a suite of successful singles annually that have been the social driving force of our orange economy, both online and offline — from the dancehall to challenges on TikTok and Instagram reels.

Outside of Jamaica, the genre has maintained a consumption dominance on all English-speaking Caribbean streaming charts across Audiomack,
YouTube, Apple Music, and Spotify.

Even in global music hubs like New York City it is difficult to scan the top 25 charts without encountering a dancehall song. This signals not decline, but continued discoverability and cultural relevance.

However, these feats are only being posted as static social media posts, as opposed to narratives of success that will influence not only streaming consumption, but the storytelling that is necessary for the investment that’s needed to compete in the attention economy and financialisation of cultural commodification at levels not seen before.

For instance, I have observed entertainment programmes in which commentators claim that no current dancehall artistes are signed to international record labels currently — despite the fact that artistes such as Masicka, Skillibeng, Kraff, Valiant, Shenseea, and others are indeed affiliated with major international labels.

Similarly, current affairs programmes tend to highlight moments when artistes are reportedly dropped from labels, while neglecting to cover their continued international bookings, entry into new markets, or strong digital performance — unless the artiste’s peak belongs to an older generation of nostalgia.

It is also difficult to reconcile claims of decline when a contemporary dancehall track like Silent Addy and Disco Neil’s S hake It to the Max (Remix) ranks among the most streamed songs of the year globally; when the post-COVID era has also seen Skillibeng delivering Billboard-charting singles such as Crocodile Teeth or feature on Tyla’s Jump; or when tracks like Teejay’s Drift, Byron Messia’s Talibans, Malie Donn’s V6, or more recently Masick’s Whites, Valiant and Rvssian’s Passenger Princess, Ayetian’s Balance followed up by Wah Yo Deh Pan, in addition to Chronic Law’s
NY Girls, have performed exceptionally well both digitally and physically in live event spaces across the Black Atlantic.

As content creator Jaii Frais had eloquently said on an episode of his Let’s Be Honest podcast, “Shake It To The Max was the biggest song from the culture, and Masicka’s
Whites was the biggest within the culture.”

So, does the structure of success in dancehall look the same as it did in the past? No.

Is it also fair to say that the genre is not performing at the same apex it reached in the early 2000s? Yes.

What’s most important is that the innovation in sound continues, whether through genre-bending productions by DJ Mac and Crash Dummy, Rvssian, Di Genius, and ZIMI Entertainment; the rock star aesthetics of Kraff; wittiness of Jada Kingdom; or the unblemished social media-ready melodies from Armanii’s
Hulu or BBB (Snapchat).

In the interim, let the stories of dancehall’s contemporary achievements be told with the same clarity as the narratives of decline that currently dominate public discourse.

Dominic Bell is a brand and communications specialist who serves as corporate communications manager at Wray and Nephew and is involved in many entertainment events and executions.