Remembering the inventor of Reggae
What you need to know:
- Relatedly, July 1st has been designated as International Reggae Day since 1994. Thanks to Winnie Mandela (1936-2018)’s speech in Kingston in 1992 and the worldwide efforts of Andrea Davis, a Reggie genre protector. Reggae Day was the sole name used from 1992 to 1994.
In Jamaica, February is the month of Reggae. It coincides with Black History Month in North America. In Jamaica, it is commemorated to highlight and recognize Reggae music’s role in developing Jamaica’s social, cultural, and economic systems.
The month of Reggae was chosen based on Nesta Robert Marley (Bob Marley)’s birth month - February 6, 1945. Bob Marley (1945-1981) and living legend Jimmy Cliff are some of the early Reggae icons to bring this international musical genre to prominence globally.
Nonetheless, Frederick Nathaniel Hibbert - alias Toots Hibbert - has largely remained a household name in the Caribbean. Reggae, according to Toots, is a word he invented. He coined this unique word, and in 2018, UNESCO granted ‘protected status’ to Reggae music as an “intangible cultural heritage” due to its impact and what it represented internationally.
Relatedly, July 1st has been designated as International Reggae Day since 1994. Thanks to Winnie Mandela (1936-2018)’s speech in Kingston in 1992 and the worldwide efforts of Andrea Davis, a Reggie genre protector. Reggae Day was the sole name used from 1992 to 1994.
In essence, the 1967 song “Do the Reggay” by Toots transformed the term reggay from a style of dance popular in Jamaica into Reggae, a global music brand. In a nutshell, reggae is the synthesis of Jamaican music at the time, primarily ska & rocksteady. The fact that the word ‘Reggae’ originated from slang for someone “ who is a bit scruffy or not well kept “ is emphasized.
In fact, this original connotation recalls the early identity of Reggae artists as supporters of the Rastafari movement, a form of black awareness against the Babylon system, as seen by, for example, their messy dreadlocks.
Toots was a multi-instrumentalist who played the hammond organ, guitar, and vocals. Unlike many early musicians in Jamaica, he did not attend the Alpha boys school. Instead, he started his career by singing in the church.
Toots could create any type of rhythm as music using genres like ska, reggae, roots reggae, R&B, rocksteady, and soul. Sadly, Toots, who was born on December 8th, 1942, passed away on September 11th, 2020, from Covid-19. The Maytals, a group that Toots founded as the main vocalist in the early 1960s, is what he left behind. The Maytals also collaborated in Studio One with Clement Seymour Dodd (1932-2004), aka Coxsone, the pioneer of Jamaican music.
Toots was awarded The Order of Jamaica (OJ), the fifth highest honor in Jamaica, for his significant contribution to reggae music. The OJ Award winner is referred to as “The Honorable.” Honorable Toots was laid to rest in National Heroes Park along with other Jamaican heroes. He is interred next to Dennis Emmanuel Brown (1957–1999), the Crown Prince of Reggae.
Various renditions of Toots’ song ‘54-46 That’s my number’, produced in 1968, is still my favorite. The 1966 release of his riddim ‘Bam Bam’ later helped Toots become known throughout the world.
The Bam Bam riddim, for instance, has been dubbed into dancehall and related Jamaican music sound systems by a number of artists, such as Sista Nancy (1982), Chaka Demus and Pliers (1992), Shaggy featuring Toots (2005), Uganda’s Bobi Wine (2008), Stylo G featuring Sister Nancy (2013), and most recently, The Maytals featuring Leba Hibbert (2021). It would be a great honor if Clayton Hibbert and Liba Hibbert, two of the Toots’ offspring, carried on their father’s tradition. It will be significant and a representation of the great legendary ‘s persona in the music that transformed Jamaica into a black-conscious nation proud of its African heritage.
Dr Caesar Jjingo teaches the Kiswahili terminology development course at Makerere University and is passionate about Reggae.