Byron Messia‘s “No Love” is the most successful dancehall album released this year, selling over 30,000 units, an amount greater than all the 2024 Grammy nominees for Best Reggae Albums combined. It is driven by the single “Talibans,” which got a remix by Burna Boy that debuted at No. 98 in the Billboard Hot 100. That was not enough to capture the attention of the Recording Academy voters. The album earned an average of 3,000 units per week in sales and streams, according to Luminate, and has peaked at No. 3 on US Billboard Reggae Albums chart spending a total of 21 weeks.
Other than Byron’s “No Love”, several other dancehall projects were submitted that didn’t make the Grammys Best Reggae Album top five selection, including Riffle Riddim, Valiant’s 4:14, Dancehall Gift by I-Octane, No Excuses by Charly Black, and Bad Juvi Mixtape by Pablo YG.
The Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album is not based on sales but none of this year’s nominated “Best Reggae Albums” made the weekly US Billboard chart.
The award will be bestowed upon a project deemed “the best,” during a preliminary award ceremony for a distinguished body of work, as determined by registered voters. The eligible works may encompass ska, reggae, or dancehall albums or EP.
When questioned about whether the voters choose nominees and winners based on the artists’ brand familiarity or the objective impact of their music in a given year, Harvey Mason Jr. CEO of the Recording Academy told WMV that the Grammys do need greater integration and diversity. He acknowledges that this is an aspect the Academy could enhance, particularly in the realm of the reggae category.
“We haven’t done a good enough job to go into genres and bringing people in, so to me I would like to see more reggae-dancehall music makers and creators being a part of our organization, that would have a direct impact and co-relate exactly to what nominations were made and who would ultimately win,” he explained.
Beenie Man‘s 17th studio album “Simma” is the only dancehall project nominated at the 2024 Grammy Awards. The album sold 500 units in its first week but made it as one of the five nominees in the Best Reggae Album category that did less than 2,000 units in sales. Sales are not considered when voters choose their favorites, and the legendary dancehall deejay’s last nomination was in 2001 for “Art and Life,” for which he won the award. He had previously been nominated for “The Doctor” in 2000 and “Many Moods Of Moses” in 1998.
The dancehall albums that have won “Best Reggae Album” at the Grammy Awards have been objectively the best offering that year and are the most successful in terms of sales in the US. They were all released on international major record labels.
This year, except for Buju Banton’s “Born For Greatness” which was released on Def Jam, the remaining four albums that were nominated are on independent record labels.
Shabba Ranks was the first dancehall artist to have won a Grammy. He did so two years in a row in 1992 with ‘Raw As Ever’ and again in 1993 with ‘X-Tra Naked.’ Both albums have sold 679,000 units and 522,000 units, respectively, according to data supplied to World Music Views by Luminate.
Leading the pack in terms of sales is Sean Paul’s ‘Dutty Rock,’ which won in 2004 and has sold 3,500,000 units in streams and sales, according to data supplied to WMV by Luminate. Shaggy’s ‘Boombastic,’ which won in 1996, has sold 1,200,000. Damian Marley’s ‘Welcome To Jamrock’ has sold 1.2 million units, according to Luminate. Damian Marley’s “Halfway Tree” won in 2002, and that album has sold 248,000. It is the 11th highest-selling Grammy-winning Best Reggae Album.
Dancehall’s brightest star, Popcaan, and his team neglected to submit his fifth studio album “Great Is He” for consideration. His management told WMV that his label (OVO) was responsible for the submission.
In 2020, the Unruly deejay blasted the academy for not voting for his FIXTAPE, saying, “Big up the nominees for this year’s Grammy. SALUTE!!!! @recordingacademy differently tho, unu corruption levels high nuh bboclt!! We unstoppable tho dancehall music. We nah stop until unu accept we. #UNRULYFOREVERSOLID mi unruly family them me love unu. #POLITRICKS.”
“It appears modern dancehall is not looking for an endorsement from the Grammys like its predecessors,” said Debbie Bissoon, media personality and Entertainment Report host.
“With a history of questionable recognitions, modern dancehall seem to be looking to the people to stream, purchase, and validate the genre that continues to regenerate on its own,” Bissoon continued.
A similar thing happened last year when Masicka‘s “438” was omitted from the Grammy nominations list. The album, released on December 3, 2021, became the most-streamed project by a male dancehall artist in the U.S. in 2022, according to data provided to World Music Views by Billboard sales tracker Luminate.
The independent project has so far exceeded 40,000 equivalent album units in streams and sales. “438” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart where it spent a total of 7 weeks, an achievement surpassed in the last year only by top streaming artist Shenseea, whose debut album “Alpha” was also not nominated in any category last year.
“Alpha” was the most successful album by a female dancehall artist released in 2022, clocking 60,000 units as of December 2022.
Sean Paul‘s “Scorcha,” released on May 27 last year, got a nomination at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards for Best Reggae Album but lost to Kabaka Pyramid’s “The Kalling.” “Scorcha” earned 22,500 equivalent album units in sales and streams by year-end, compared to “The Kalling,” which earned just over 4,000 units, according to Luminate.
Harvey Mason Jr. said in the interview conducted last year that there is a future where Dancehall could have its own category, “when it comes to categories it just depends on who submits. If the dancehall community wanted its own category and they felt so strongly about it- and the stakeholders in that category felt like ‘we want to have our own category’, and they submit it and they have the right language in the proposal, the right rationale as to why its important and they get the right signers and the right language and justification, you will have a new category.”
