Five Times Beenie Man Changed Dancehall And Put The Culture On The Global Stage
Today, August 21 is the 48th birthday of Dancehall King Beenie Man. The icon has been at the forefront of popular music for the past 25 years with several Billboard hits, a Grammy and MOBO Awards.
Born Anthony Moses Davis, he has been DJ of the year several times and he is known for setting many trends in the business. His work largely defined the sound of 1990s and early 2000’s dancehall with hits like Who Am I/Sim Simma, World Dance, Rum and RedBull, Nuff Gyal, and more than 200 other local and international hits.
Beenie continues to be one of the most sought-after headline acts in Dancehall and Reggae music globally, and remains one of the best entertainers to ever grace the stage. To celebrate this musical giant and his legacy, here are 5 times Beenie Man changed dancehall, set new trends, and put the culture on the global stage.
1. The Maestro
In 1996 Beenie Man release an album titled Maestro (VP, Greensleeves). The album experimented with different sounds. The title song Maestro finds him singing “Mi nuh want nuh Idle Jubie come and hackle my body I saaayyy” in a dancehall opera fusion style. The album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard reggae charts. He said, at a party by Island Records in 1996 in Miami “Where Dancehall is concerned you have to give people things they never hear about…you have to be a leader; you can’t be a follower”.
2. Beenie in Sacramento
No one could compete with Beenie Man’s onstage live show. Whenever he is on stage, he is always the most dominant performer wether alone or in a clash tune for tune competition. He could be likened to an athlete who shows up for the small and big meets. One of Beenie Man’s best performances that placed dancehall and reggae music on another level was his live tour in Sacramento, USA with his full band.
On this show, Beenie Man performed countless dancehall hits wearing a full suit. This was unprecedented for the dancehall culture and it has never been duplicated in that market. He performed his hits as well as premiered new songs like “Bad Man Badda Than The Rest” and others. Every artist who wishes to perfect their craft as a performer should watch this as an example to follow. His vocal control, physical antics and crowd interactions are comparable only to James Brown.
3. Tropical Storm
While promoting his 15th solo album Tropical Storm he took his DJ skills to Rap City Tha Basement with Big Tigger in one of the best freestyle ever on the show. As the riddim switched from Neptunes Grindin’ to Sly And Robbie’s “Murder She Wrote” Beenie Man didn’t miss a beat delivering lyrical slayage like America has never seen before. Tropical Storm album is a mix of dancehall and reggae fusion, with hit singles such as “Feel It Boy” featuring R&B singer Janet Jackson and “Bossman” featuring Lady Saw And Sean Paul.
It was executive produced by Dave Kelly and featured work from some of the biggest producers such as Neptunes, Tony Kelly, Irv Gotti and Sly Dunbar. It went to number 18 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, number 7 on the Hip Hop/R&B albums chart, and number 1 on the Billboard Reggae albums chart. The Guardian in reviewing the album said, “Touching on women, gang life and the responsibility of being the guy all the girls want, he has concocted an inclusive, can’t-fail brew”.
4. Sim Simma
“Who Am I (Sim Simma)”, is the second track on his album Many Moods of Moses released in 1997. The track produced by Jeremy Harding introduced Beenie Man to the world as a reggae superstar. Parts of this song was used for his “Girls Dem Sugar” hit featuring Mýa which was released three years later in 2000. It is one of the most sampled and recognizable dancehall songs. Everyone from Nicky Minaj to Joyner Lucas have borrowed Beenie Man’s “Who am I/Sim Simma” lyrics for their hit songs.
Zagga zow! @KingBeenieMan and @MyaPlanet9 pulled through with Girls Dem Sugar. #PassTheMicOnBET #BETAwards #CulturesBiggestNight pic.twitter.com/3nvr7mM8gM
— BET Music (@BETMusic) June 28, 2021
5. Verzuz with Bounty Killer
During the pandemic live shows came to a standstill and Swizz Beats and Timbaland decided to trade jabs and showcase their catalogue on Instagram. The idea grew into an online performance show called Verzuz. Beenie Man and his long-time rival Bounty Killer did the show and their performance rocked the world and showcased to new audiences what many Jamaicans knew all along; that Beenie Man is one of the best performers in the world. The defining moment of the performance was when Bounty Killer’s DJ put on a riddim and Beenie Man spontaneously went ahead and did a freestyle performance in the middle of Bounty Killer’s set.
Bounty who would not be outdone then entered and the two went back and forth in a magical dancehall performance. The bar was set and every performance on Verzuz since then happened in one location. Verzuz has since been bought by Triller and Beenie and Bounty Killer are the only Jamaican entertainers to have shares in the billion-dollar company.
Beenie Man is a legend that has placed dancehall music and Jamaica on the map similar to our world class athletes.