Ten Dancehall And Reggae Artists Who Also Balance Motherhood
Quite a few of your dancehall and reggae favorites have somehow balanced illustrious careers with parenting. In honour of today’s Mother’s Day celebration, DancehallMag has compiled a list of women who make it all look easy.
1. Rita Marley
As the matriarchal figure in the Marley clan, Rita mothers six biological children. These include Ziggy, Cedella, Stephen, Sharon and Stephanie Marley, as well as Serita Stewart. Cedella went on to become the CEO of Tough Gong International, while Ziggy and Stephen have accomplished music careers. It is also public knowledge that she has nurtured Bob’s other children. In total, the Legend has 12 children.
2. Dancehall Queen Carlene
The former girlfriend of veteran dancehall entertainer Beenie Man, Carlene is the mother of a daughter who they share. The now 22-year-old, named Crystal Davis, went on to pursue business studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona. Carlene rose to national attention in 1992, when she was crowned Dancehall Queen and as a pioneer in risque Dancehall ensembles.
3. D’Angel
The self-proclaimed Lady of Dancehall shares a son named Marco Dean Davis with her ex-husband, Beenie Man. Marco Dean will be ringing in his sweet 16 this year, and by all indications, his celebrity parents do a great job at co-parenting. During a 2020 Instagram Live, D’Angel declared that motherhood gave her the extra push she needed for her career, and alluded to her son’s possible career in music. Marco Dean made a cameo appearance in the former couple’s 2010 single Time of My Life.
4. Spice
The Queen of Dancehall is mother to a son (Nicholas) and daughter (Nicholatoy) who is fathered by her ex Nicholas Lall. The two had a nasty falling out in the public eye, and now the entertainer is the primary and sole caregiver of the children who are both in prep school. Being a single mom certainly hasn’t slowed down her growth. In 2018 Spice joined the cast of VH1’s reality television series Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta. She remains one of the most popular dancehall artists, and even received a Grammy nomination for her debut album, 10, in the Best Reggae Album category at the 64th staging of the event.
5. Shenseea
The 25-year-old ShenYeng Princess is also a single mother to her six-year-old son, Rajeiro Lee. She however has a strong support system, which includes her co-manager Romeich Major who acts as Raj’s primary father figure. Shenseea first shared a video of Raj on Instagram back in 2018 when he was just two years old. At the time, the Blessed singer showed off his brilliant reading skills and in the caption wrote a promise that she’d always work hard to provide a life for him that she never had growing up. In recent years, the youngster has landed his own endorsement deals with Baby Bop Kids and Chubby.
6. Ishawna
This Dancehall singer has a 15-year-old named Oshawn Thomas with controversial selector Foota Hype. The Equal Rights singer has shied away from posting her child on social media throughout her career. In fact, it was just last year that fans got a glimpse of him while they were at a birthday celebration for her grandmother. Oshawn had previously lived with both parents up until the age of eight. Following the couple’s split in 2014, Oshawn moved to New Jersey to live with Ishawna’s family.
7. Pamputtae
The entertainer is a single mother to two sons, eight-year-old Jahzere and 21-year-old Kavon. Pamputtae has always been pretty vocal about the challenges of single motherhood and even launched a Single Mother Foundation, which is aimed at alleviating the struggles of other single mothers. In 2018, she released a track called Single Mother—and ode to all the women playing both parental figures to their children.
8. Ce’Cile
Bad Gyal Ce’Cile is a good mom to her daughter Christiyana “Nana” Martin. The almost 10-year-old was born out of a former union between the Hot Like We singer and Digicel Rising Star winner turned Dancehall/Reggae artist, Christopher Martin. From time to time, she posts cute moments of her daughter on her social media pages, including her gymnastics achievements.
9. Queen Ifrica
Ifrica is a mother to three to two sons and a daughter. Namely Imeru Tafari, Tanzania, and Malawi who are 28, 21 and 10, respectively. The eldest has launched a music career for himself, while Tanzania is pursuing Performing Arts at the university level. The Fyah Mumma has shared a longterm relationship with Tony Rebel and has made strides for herself throughout her relatively lengthy career.
10. Tami Chin-Mitchell (Tami Chynn)
Known to have one of the sweetest voice coming out of Jamaica, Chin-Mitchell and her husband, Wayne (popularly known as Wayne Marshall) are expecting their fourth child. After raising three boys—Jaxen (8), Atlas (5) and Oz (2)—the pair is finally expecting a baby girl who is expected to be born pretty soon. The two got married on Saturday, September 20, 2009, in a private ceremony at The Ruins, Mona Visitors’ Lodge.