Sean Paul Weighs In On The Best Dancehall/Rap Collab Of All Time

Dancehall hitmaker Sean Paul recently shared his top pick for the best dancehall/ rap collaboration of all time.

The Temperature deejay was a guest on Complex’s web show Brackets where he ranked the genre’s biggest crossover hits from the early 90’s through to 2020. Titles ranged from party-starters like Foxy Brown and Baby Cham’s Tables Will Turn, to new favorites like Popcaan, Drake and PartyNextDoor’s Twist & Turn.

On the weekly series, experts/special invitees pick the winners of a themed bracket—in this case, Best Dancehall/Rap Song —until a field of 16 is narrowed down to the Elite 8, then Final 4, and a penultimate Championship round to decide the winner.

Paul has had a prolific crossover career, working with the likes of Sia, Dua Lipa and several others, however, it’s his hip-hop/rap hits that propelled him to new heights. When asked his thoughts on why rap/dancehall was such a special combination, the veteran cited Jamaica’s rich heritage and its influence on musicians.

“From the beginnings of rap with Kool Herc and just the connections, the amount of artists that are hip hop artists and are very dope that do have connections to Jamaica — Biggie, Busta Rhymes Special Ed, Shinehead the whole connection is just day one for me,” Sean Paul said.

Sean Paul spoke highly of the many recognizable collabs in the lineup, including Romantic Call (Patra feat. Yoyo), Oh Yeah (Foxy Brown ft. Spragga Benz), It’s Okay (One Blood) (Game ft. Junior Reid) and Shabba Ranks Remix (A$AP Ferg ft. Shabba Ranks, Busta Rhymes and Migos).

Ultimately, however, it came down to two final two tracks including one of his own: Gimme The Light Remix feat. Busta Rhymes and Baby Cham’s Ghetto Story feat. Alicia Keys. Choosing his own track, Paul said, “sometimes you have to go back to where you born, and I was born internationally with Gimme The Light. My tune dat. Gimme The Light wins for me.”

Paul also favorably recalled his other notable team-ups such as Break It Off feat. Rihanna, Top Shotter (commonly known as Here Comes The Boom) with DMX and Mr. Vegas, and Baby Boy with Beyoncè, which were eliminated in previous rounds.

Press play above and try the Dancehall/Rap Bracket yourself over at Complex.