NEW YORK -Earlier this month, popular International sound system Mighty Crown took Europe by storm, electrifying monstrous crowds during several captivating performances in Germany and Italy.
During this latest stint, the world famous sound discovered that Europe’s love of Reggae music is diversifying in that, it’s no longer all about Roots and Culture on the bustling continent. In fact, many in Europe do indeed embrace Dancehall music. While Dancehall often gets a bad rap due to some of the genre’s criminal justice woes and not always friendly lyrics, the genre is prospering in Europe, a place historically connected to Roots & Culture and/or Foundation Reggae music.
With dates spread through out Germany and Italy, “The Far East Rulers” encountered a sea of fans, often craving Dancehall music.Fortunately, the sound skillfully read their audience, building off vibes and delivering just the right selections to the diverse crowds. Mighty Crown was prepared, yet taken aback by the periodic Dancehall frenzy. All the while, Mighty Crown delivered maximum entertainment during their string of performances. It’s becoming more clear that Europe’s changing taste in music is the reason behind a surge in bookings for Reggae Dancehall artists on the vast continent. In the past, some Reggae Dancehall artists only dreamed of touching down in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and other European countries. Their dreams are quickly becoming a reality.
Mighty Crown co-founder Masta Simon says, “Dancehall was getting a lot of play on this tour for sure. But, let’s remember that Europe is a big place and respect for a certain type of music can vary from country to country and sometimes city to city. For insance, the response in Munich to Dancehall music is way different than that in Manheim and Stuttgart.”
The popular selector adds, “In Stuttgart, the crowd went wild over music from Vybz Kartel and new artist Alkaline….but Rasta artists were getting good responses at some dances.”
During their recent tour, the world famous Mighty Crown says there were certain artists, songs and dubs that guaranteed maximum respect and forwards (huge crowd responses to a song) across the board. According to Masta Simon and co-pilot Ninja, they could rarely go wrong with selections from Vybz Kartel, Popcaan, Alkaline and Aidonia. The sound adds that their customized dub plates from Ninja Man, Stylo G, Gappy Ranks, Konshens, Busy Signal, Jr. Gong had a HUGE impact on their audiences. However, you can NEVER count out the tenacity and love of Roots and Culture and the singers, with Chronixx, Tarrus Riley, Christopher Martin, Romain Virgo, Sizzla and of course Buju leading the pack!
At the end of the day, Reggae is a powerful music art form with no boundaries. No matter the variation, Reggae music reigns through out the world. According to Mighty Crown, it’s just great to see that Reggae Dancehall is gaining momentum in Europe. By all means, Europe as a whole has played a major role in the upkeep and International success of Reggae music.
