Famous Black Reggae Singers

Jamaican reggae singer Orville Richard Burrell, better known as Shaggy, has delivered international hits such as It Wasn't Me and In The Summertime. The two-time Grammy-winning artist was also bestowed with the Jamaican Order of Distinction. He was part of the U.S. Marine Corps during Operation Desert Storm.

Stephen Marley is a Jamaican-American musician best known for his collaborations with his brothers Damian and Ziggy Marley. Stephen, the son of Bob Marley, is a multiple-time Grammy Award winner and a successful musician, both in the Jamaican and American music industry.

Bunny Wailer was a Jamaican percussionist and singer-songwriter. An original member of a famous band named The Wailers alongside Peter Tosh and Bob Marley, Wailer is regarded as one of the foremost exponents of reggae music. Over the course of his illustrious career, Bunny Wailer received several prestigious awards including three Grammy Awards.

Grace Latoya Hamilton, better known by her stage name Spice, is a dancehall singer, songwriter, and recording artist. She is one of the world's most popular female dancehall artists and is dubbed the Queen of Dancehall. Also known for her philanthropic efforts, Spice established the Grace Hamilton Women Empowerment Foundation in 2018, in an attempt to uplift young women.

Yellowman is a Jamaican dancehall and reggae deejay who achieved immense popularity in his country in the 1980s. Despite losing a large portion of his lower jaw due to a cancerous tumor, Yellowman has successfully released many studio albums and live albums. He continues to inspire many across Jamaica.

Cedella Booker was a Jamaican singer best remembered as the mother of Bob Marley. Booker is credited with conceiving and creating an annual music event, which came to be known as the 9 Mile Music Festival. While Marley helped popularize the festival, Cedella Booker helped spread the legend of Marley far and wide by authoring two books on her son.

Jamaican reggae musician Gregory Isaacs, also known as the Cool Ruler and Lonely Lover, soared to fame with the track Night Nurse. He excelled in both romantic ballads and socially relevant songs. He sold marijuana in his early days and had a lifelong drug problem. He was also once imprisoned for possessing firearms.

Arguably the most popular Jamaican reggae singer of his time, Dennis Brown popularized what is now known as lovers rock. The Grammy-nominated singer started singing at age 9 and later soared to fame with tracks such as Africa. He had a lifelong struggle with drugs and of a lung collapse.

Toots Hibbert was a Jamaican singer-songwriter best remembered for his association with the musical group Toots and the Maytals where he was the lead vocalist. A pioneer of reggae music, Toots Hibbert helped establish the fundamentals of reggae over a course of his six decade-long career. His song Do the Reggay is credited as the origin of the name reggae.

Bounty Killer is a Jamaican dancehall and reggae deejay. One of the most popular and aggressive dancehall deejays of the '90s, Bounty Killer is also widely regarded as one of the greatest dancehall lyricists. He is also well-known for his feuds with popular contemporaries like Beenie Man.

Koffee is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, deejay, rapper, and guitarist. She is best known for her 2019 extended play Rapture, which earned her the prestigious Grammy Award, making her the only woman and youngest person to receive the award under the Best Reggae Album category.

Grammy-nominated Ghanaian musician Livingstone Etse Satekla is better known by his pseudonym Stonebwoy. A master of reggae and dance hall music in Africa, he began his career with hits such as Climax and Ghetto Love. He also became the first Ghanaian artist to find a place on a Billboard chart.

Barrington Levy is a Jamaican dancehall and reggae artist. He is best known for his 2015 album Acousticalevy, which earned him a Grammy Award nomination under the Best Reggae Album category in 2016. Over the course of his illustrious career, Barrington Levy has also collaborated with other popular artistes like Bounty Killer and Snoop Dogg.

Alton Ellis was a Jamaican singer and songwriter best remembered as one of the innovators of a Jamaican music genre called rocksteady. Nicknamed the Godfather of Rocksteady, Alton Ellis was made an inductee of the International Reggae and World Music Awards Hall of Fame in 2006 for his contribution to Jamaican music.

Max Romeo is a Jamaican reggae recording artist whose songs have been featured on several music charts in the United Kingdom and in his home country. In 1968, Max Romeo released his single Wet Dream, which gave rise to a new style of reggae.

Ken Boothe is a Jamaican singer best known for his distinctive timbre and vibrato. He is widely regarded as one of Jamaica's finest vocalists. Ken Boothe has also achieved international recognition, thanks to a series of crossover hits. In 2003, the Jamaican government honored his immense contribution to Jamaican music with the prestigious Order of Distinction.

Busy Signal is a Jamaican musician, songwriter, producer, and deejay. He has released several successful albums, such as Reggae Music Again and Parts of the Puzzle. Also an entrepreneur, Busy Signal announced his own clothing line in 2011. He made headlines the following year when he was arrested and extradited to the US where he faced cocaine-related charges.

Bigga Haitian is a Haitian singer and musician who achieved popularity in the 1990s. He is best known for successfully breaking into the Jamaican reggae scene and paving the way for several young and aspiring Haitian artists. Some of the most talented Haitian artists like Mecca aka Grimo and Wyclef Jean credit Bigga Haitian as a major influence.

Junior Delgado was a reggae singer best remembered for his roots style, a subgenre of reggae. He achieved popularity in the 1970s and 1980s with the release of hit albums like Dance a Dub and Taste of the Young Heart. He was also imprisoned for 18 months in the 1980s for a drug-related offence. Junior Delgado died at age 46.