Reggae, the unique bouncing music with the sticky beat and the emphasis on percussion and bass, formed out of mento, rocksteady and ska. It has developed into many sub-genres and has left an indelible mark on popular music, even influencing the early development of hip hop. This list presents ten of, what the author believes to be, the greatest reggae singers of all time.

The singers’ international success, album sales and impact on the music itself have all been taken into account. Paring this list down to the ten greatest was difficult, so a number of great singers whose careers began more recently have been left off. It may be anachronistic to refer to ska and rocksteady as reggae, but it has become common to categorize these two genres under this heading.

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Robert Nesta Marley

Tuff Gong (1945-1981)

Toots Hibbert

The Skafather (1945)

Jimmy Cliff

Reggae’s Lost King (1948)

Peter Tosh

The Steppin’ Razor (1944-1987)

Gregory Isaacs

The Cool Ruler (1951)

Desmond Dekker

The King of Ska (1941-2006)

Dennis Brown

The Crown Prince of Reggae (1957-1999)

Michael Rose

Mr. Tu Tu Tweng (1957)

Burning Spear

Black Soul (1948)

Alton Ellis

The Godfather of Rocksteady (1938-2008)

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