Reggae emerged in Jamaica in the late 1960s, evolving from ska and rocksteady. Early pioneers like Toots & The Maytals (who coined the term “reggae”) and Desmond Dekker helped shape the sound, while the 1972 film The Harder They Come introduced reggae to international audiences.

In the 1970s, Bob Marley & The Wailers took reggae global, blending infectious rhythms with Rastafarian themes of resistance, faith, and unity. This era became known as “roots reggae.” Today, reggae remains a global cultural force, inspiring genres from hip-hop to reggaeton, while continuing to speak out against injustice and celebrate love and togetherness.

Late-1970s Kingston sound systems pivoted from roots reggae to a leaner, streetwise style led by toasters like Yellowman. The digital revolution arrived in 1985 with King Jammy’s “Sleng Teng”, sparking ragga and democratizing production. The 1990s took dancehall global with Shabba Ranks, Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, and Lady Saw. The 2000s delivered crossover dominance through Sean Paul and Elephant Man, alongside headline clashes like Gaza vs. Gully (Vybz Kartel vs. Mavado). In the 2010s–2020s, Popcaan, Spice, Alkaline, and Masicka pushed a trap-tinged wave, as dancehall’s slang, style, and moves shaped global pop culture.

Amapiano emerged in the early 2010s from the townships of Gauteng (Johannesburg and Pretoria), where young producers circulated tracks on WhatsApp before radio caught on. By 2018–2019 it had exploded across South Africa, rivaling gqom and dominating the charts. The sound became the voice of a post-apartheid generation, blending township pride, fashion, dance, and slang. By the early 2020s, amapiano had gone global, shaping Afrobeats and driving TikTok trends.

Afrobeats was born in late-1990s/early-2000s Lagos and Accra, rooted in homegrown African sounds like Ghanaian highlife/hiplife and Nigerian juju and fuji. These styles supplied the rhythmic backbone, call-and-response vocals, and guitar-led grooves that make Afrobeats unmistakably African.

As West African youth soaked up hip-hop, R&B, and Jamaican dancehall from MTV and radio, they began blending those elements into local music — rapping or singing in pidgin, adding punchy 808s, and giving traditional rhythms a club-ready sheen. This was less a deliberate “fusion experiment” and more an organic evolution of African pop meeting global influences, creating a fresh, confident sound that resonated across Africa and beyond.