The history of Canadian reggae has long been a mystery for many students of the music. The Jamaica Music Atlas, a multi-faceted platform compiled by Johnathon Kelly, sheds new light on reggae in Maple Leaf land.
Launched in early August (jamaicamusicatlas.com), the free medium presents a comprehensive look at reggae in 12 countries. The others are Jamaica, the music’s birthplace; the United States, United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Panama, Japan, Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria.
Kelly told reggaenorth.ca that his archives contain 304 published records on reggae in Canada. They cover various aspects such as artists, producers and record labels.
“Every one of them carries a citation to its source. It covers the sound systems first: 180 of them, including the full roll-call from Ron Nelson’s own directory of Canadian sets, the champion sound King Turbo, Montreal’s Little Thunder, and the selectors named alongside them,” he explained. “Around that sits the people and places — Jackie Mittoo and Leroy Sibbles after they came north; Jerry Brown’s Summer Records basement in Malton; the BamBoo on Queen West; Little Jamaica and Reggae Lane; the broadcasters, from Ron Nelson to Master T to Carrie Mullings.”
The Jamaica Music Atlas’ Canada segment also looks at Canadian rappers and musicians of Jamaican heritage. They include Michie Mee, The Dream Warriors, Kardinal Offishall, Choclair, Boi-1da, PARTYNEXTDOOR and Director X.
An Information Technology expert, Kelly used AI to meticulously gather data for his project which he regularly updates. It currently has 3,648 records, 280 locations and 131 stories.
All the countries covered on the Jamaica Music Atlas have similar features. For example, visitors to the United Kingdom learn about the impact of the Windrush Generation on the development of reggae in that country; as well as trailblazers like singer Millie Small and communities like Brixton and Harlesden which were a hub for record stores and sound systems.