In Jamaica, Dancehall is not\u00a0just a dance, or another genre of music, but a way of life. The genre’s\u00a0popularity has grown in the US, UK and Canada including all other destinations for Caribbean expats.<\/p>\n

But how did dancehall make it’s way in the fabric of the Japanese culture? While outsiders may find Japanese’s\u00a0fascination bizarre, the dancehall scene in Yokohama, Japan’s second largest city, Tokyo, and\u00a0Osaka is as energetic and vibrant as in Jamaica. Watch the video below then read on.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FjzCg-tPkXQ<\/p>\n

In Japan, dancehall reggae is serious sub-culture. The country boasts more than 300 sound systems \u2013 more than the number is Jamaica itself \u2013 and the enthusiasts\u00a0are hyper-committed to performing dancehall the way it\u2019s done in Jamaica, down to the slightest detail.<\/p>\n

Speaking with Hip Deep<\/a>, Marvin Sterling, a Jamaican and Professor of Anthropology at Indiana University<\/a>, delves into the Japanese Dancehall Reggae scene. Jimmy Cliff\u2019s seminal movie \u201cThe Harder They Come<\/strong>\u201d was, for many Japanese, the first point of contact with reggae culture, Sterling\u00a0explains in his book ‘Babylon East: Performing Dancehall, Roots Reggae, and Rastafari in Japan<\/a><\/em>‘. As the title of his book suggests, Sterling’s research centers on the popularity of a range of Jamaican cultural forms in Japan, mainly roots reggae, dancehall reggae, and Rastafari. Bob Marley\u2019s visit in 1979 came with much publicity and fanfare, and interest grew until its peak in the early 90\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Fox Channel Highlights The Influence Of Reggae And Dancehall<\/a><\/h4>\n

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