Reggae albums released in 2010 undersold 2009 albums and experts want better marketing to resurrect the industry.

The sales were so bad that only three albums released in 2010 made the top 10 selling reggae albums list, according to Billboard data on the US market. The rest of the top 10 was led by albums released in 2009. Albums rarely chart beyond a year which meant that 2010 albums couldn’t even outsell the residual sales from 2009 albums, which were hurt by the global recession.

The three 2010 albums that made the list included: Distant Relatives by Damian Marley and Nas, which ranked No 1 — selling some 57,000 copies in the US for its first week; Hold You by Gyptian at No 8 and The Green by The Green Band at No 9.

Outside of the US, singles Hold You by Gyptian and To The Top by German deejay Gentleman and singjay Christopher Martin were the few ‘local’ dancehall singles for 2010 that charted heavily in the top-10 on iTunes Reggae charts amongst 22 countries.

Up to last week, Hold You continued to chart at No 1 in Canada, No 2 in Denmark and Belgium, No 3 in France, No 4 in Switzerland, No 7 in US and UK and No 9 in Netherlands. While To the Top remained at No 1 in Germany and Luxembourg and No 2 in Austria.

“Christopher Martin is charting because the song has the Gentleman machinery behind it,” reasoned deejay Protojé who is set to release his album The Seven Year Itch, this year.

Protojé explained that the song, released on Gentleman’s latest album, has greater marketing support than were it released on Martin’s debut album due to the overseas label support which offers larger budgets for established artistes than newer artistes such as Martin.

Incidentally Protojé also has a single featuring Gentleman set for release shortly. However, it will require Protojé’s (Donovan’Don Corleon’ Bennett led) management to market the single and not the deeper pockets of Gentleman’s management.

In 2010 most local hits did not translate into hit sellers. The litany of singles by popular local deejay Vybz Kartel were nowhere on the charts in 2010, neither were Beenie Man’s eight singles released in November. However Rum and Red Bull, Beenie’s earlier 2010 collab with Fambo received some iTune charting in December but it didn’t last. Additionally Bounty Killer and Cham, Jah Cure, Buju Banton were also absent from the charts despite local hits.

Claude Mills, the publicist for Kartel lamented the lack of major label support for local artistes and also the existence of a pirate culture which encourages free downloading.

“We are not supporting our own culture,” he said.

Protojé, in response, wants to avoid flooding the market with singles similar to most deejays. He said that the release of singles in quick succession kills the artiste’s chart-ability because the “volume the songs don’t get a chance to sink in” to overseas record buyers.

“For a song to chart it has to play for six or seven months for them to take it up,” explained the deejay who rarely rides ‘riddims’.

Jamaican dancehall is traditionally heavily sold in Japan, the world’s second largest music market. But 2010 contained no heavy charting Jamaican dancehall single in that market — not even Hold You. Artiste Dean ‘Depaiso’ Jackson, also a resident of Japan for four years, explained that there are not many dancehall albums readily available for purchase and the Japanese really want the singles.

“At the large music stores I saw recently posters of Chino which was good and artistes such as Serani and Voicemail also have a small presence here. But there needs to be a more marketing and label push in Japan. Otherwise it won’t sell,” said the Asian-based Jamaican deejay and disc jock.

The issue of quality has also surfaced with some stating that dancehall riddims are increasingly hip-hop in architecture which alienates overseas consumers.

“The beat is not as fat and sexy as it used to be. We have made the music lighter,” explained Mills about some producers.

Kuda Kwase engineer and producer who has worked with Twin of Twins disagrees stating that hip-hop beats makes dancehall more marketable.

“No it can’t be (bad). Hip hop is not the problem. Because it is global … people can find it easier to mix at clubs. And producers like Major Lazer has a strong House influence and takes dancehall to the next level,” he said.

The legacy of the slump in 2010 sales is that the mid-millennium dancehall albums (including those by Sean Paul, Shaggy and Damian Marley) continue to earn greater royalties than present albums.