The Sociology of the Jamaican Dancehall: Transcending Conflict, Embracing Webs of Significance Orville Beckford, UWI Mona

This paper aims to increase awareness of the functional aspect and contribution of the dancehall space to Jamaican society and culture, and uses the dancehall space to show the organic nature of Jamaicas inner cities with its webs of significance. It enquires into the significance of the dancehall space to Jamaican society and culture, recognizing the importance of dancehall music as a vehicle of expression for marginalized people and examining the sociology of Jamaicas inner cities. This is done through a qualitative analysis drawing on anthropological research of the inner cities and dancehall space. The paper concludes that the social dynamics of the dancehall space can only be properly understood if it is examined in connection to the large Jamaican society. The Jamaican dancehall is an interesting space that has attracted the attention of many scholars. This emerging music form embodies the pulse of Jamaica's marginalized and inner city people. Dancehall is an off-shoot from reggae, Jamaica's indigenous musical form. Consequently, it manifests the various cultural, historical and structural dynamics of Jamaican society. Dancehall is a cultural space and much more. The space is also economic, political, gendered, and fast becoming institutionalized. eggae music is !no"n as the social commentary of the oppressed. The lyrical content of the music documents the daily struggles of the marginalized and the seemingly oppression of them by the dominant class #!no"n as $abylon%. This is not the only social discourse that reggae music portrays. The constant fight for ascendancy and control of the bedroom space become !ey areas of discourse as the dancehall artist see!s to please the &reudian public. The music is a reflection of life as the dancehall participants !no"s it. The sociology of the space that they inhabit on a daily basis and construct their reality becomes the !eys, echoes, dub-plates, chants, rhythms and lyrics of their music.

The sociology of the dancehall e'tends beyond the dancehalls, music studios, record shops, street corners and any"here the music is played. The analysis e'tends to the inner cities that provide the ferment for this musical form called dancehall. (ere, in the inner cities) the vibes are built, the harsh realities provide the genesis for the creative *uices. +ach sentence in a song represents an aphorism of inner city life, "hich is easily recognized by the core participants. The many different themes played out in the music, are a reflection of the lived reality of most of the dancehall artists. The harsh realities of inner city life are not the only influence that is manifested in the dancehall music. This point "as already addressed by other scholars. Carolyn Cooper opined that, The oral tradition in Jamaica is conceived as a broad repertoire of themes and cultural practices, as "ell as a more narro" ta'onomy of verbal techniques. The thematic repertoire includes diverse cultural beliefs-practices such as religion . obeah, myal, ettu, revival, !umina, spirit possession, entertainment-socialization practices . children games, story telling rituals, tea-meetings and social dance, for e'ample. #/% The environment of Jamaica0s inner city shares in the country0s rich cultural heritage. +ach of the abovementioned themes and cultural practices can be found in the inner city as "ell as else"here in the Jamaican society. They provide the basis for some of the cultural e'pressions that emerge in the dancehall space. They form part of the hermeneutics needed to understand the dancehall space. They also become part of that superstructure of beliefs that emanate from the structural economic base of the society, as pointed out by 1arl 2ar'. The analysis of the inner city does not lend itself to *ust one sociological perspective. 3arsonian sociology that deals "ith The Structure of Social Action #4567% provides a frame"or! "ithin "hich "e can analyse the action of the inner city d"ellers "ith a vie" to creating a better understanding of the dancehall space. This theoretical model is in !eeping "ith the functionalist vie" of society as an organic system "ith distinct but interrelated parts #(aralambos and (olborn%. The theory see!s to sho" that

individuals as actors facing a "ide range of choices among "hich he-she must choose. $ut these choices must be made "ithin an environment "hich contains various social institutions "ith norms, values, physical and social factors that limit these choices. #Craig 455/%. +ach of these social institutions "ill have "ebs of significance that influences the individual in various "ays, culturally, spiritually, or physically. The individual is influenced by the norms, values, and social behaviour of the environment "ithin "hich he-she lives. 3arsonian functionalism describe society as a filing system #Craib%, in "hich one file that is opened gives information at one level of social action that leads to another level or sub-system. +ach file cannot be e'amined "ithout ta!ing into account the organic lin!s to other files. 8pplying this 3arsonian theoretical frame"or! to the dancehall space and its lin! to the inner city, provides an interesting insight into "hat gives the music such po"er, fecundity, e'pression and reach. 9 "ill illustrate ma!ing reference to 2$ #metal balloon% "hose life 9 have been follo"ing for the last t"o #/% years. 2$ hangs around studios daily, hoping to be spotted by a producer or an established artist. 8ny of these could convince the studio engineer to give him a fe" minutes on the microphone to sho" off his lyrical s!ill. This "ould be his passport to the social elevation not only in the dancehall but also in his community. The cultural creation of the lyrics that 2$ is hoping to hear on compact disc, represents his socialization on the streets of :eavie" ;arden. <hat are these lyrics and "hat do they represent= <hy does 2$ "ant to a chance to reveal these lyrics to the "orld= <hat "ill it mean to him socially "hen these lyrics are e'posed locally and internationally= <ill it free him from some of the social shac!les that encumber people "ith his colour and social class= (o" important is colour, race, class, status, honour, and money to individuals from the same social setting= <ill 2$ soon to be recorded lyrics, reflect the norms, values, roles e'pectation and the social system of his environment= >ur attempt to understand the action of one individual has carried us into a deep

abyss of meanings, actions, social behaviour. +ach must be unloc!ed if "e are to understand the unit call the dancehall space. 2$ "as born #45?7% in :eavie" ;ardens to a single mother "ho "as struggling financially to school the four siblings that "ere born before 2$. The "ages made from selling on the street as a petty bourgeois, "ere far from adequate to provide a daily meal, lunch money, school boo!s and any other incidentals. (is mother "as forced to ma!e a choice bet"een stopping one of his siblings current attending school and allo"ing 2$ to start !indergarten. :he reasoned that he could start at a later age. #(e never did%. 2$, li!e so many others in the inner city, are a victim of economic choices that parents #mainly mothers% have been forced to ma!e. The net result is a sea of illiterate individuals "ho must find a "ay to survive to adult age and then find an occupation that requires very little academic s!ills. The rich oral tradition of our indigenous language provides the ability to spea! it forcefully and eloquently "ithout the apriori !no"ledge of a formal education. This has resulted in a rich sociolinguistics of the inner city, "hich has come to characterize the music of the dancehall. This becomes the route out of poverty for some and a "ay of hope for others such as 2$. The lac! of formal educational opportunities for inner city people has been echoed by many dancehall- reggae artists. :tephen @Junior ;ong0 2arley in his mega hit, @<elcome to Jamroc!0 lamented that, Come on lets face it-8 ghetto education basic- and most of the youth them "aste it- 8nd "hen dem "aste it, that0s "hen them te! the guns replace it-then dem do stand a chance at all. The song "ent on to describe ho" the lac! of education results in a number of inner city youths "al!ing around "ith automatic guns that they are not afraid to use. 8ccording to Talcott 3arsons #;aspard- ichards et al /AAB, Craib 455/%% a social system must satisfy four needs or requirements if it is survive. These 3arsons called functional prerequisites. The first is called adaptation. The social system must adapt

to its environment if it is to survive. This applies to all living systems. 2$0s mother had harnessed her survival s!ills on the rough and sometimes abstruse streets of 1ingston. 2any social factors "ere stac!ed against her. :ociologically, she headed a matrifocal family that could also be described as a visiting union. 8ccording to 8nderson #/AAC%, fifty one percent #B4D% of the poorest quintile are female headed house holds, as revealed by the /AAE :urvey of Fiving Conditions in Jamaica. 2$0s mother "as part of a gro"ing number of female headed households that represents thirty eight percent #6?D% of the entire population in 45?/. There are numerous sociological implications for the 2$0s family as "ell as for other similar family types in the ghetto. The father being either absent or marginal, meant that the socialization process of the child #especially a male% "ill more conform to that of other males in the area. The streets "ill be their schooling, "ith the resident @don0 their @significant other0 of influence in their life. The dancehall "ould provide the classroom setting and the disc *oc!ey, the headmaster and form teacher. (e "ould also double as the preacher, "hen needed. The children from such homes "ould learn, very early, to develop certain survival s!ills. Fiving on the street requires it. Guic! thin!ing then becomes a "ay of life and not *ust a clichH. The ghetto youth must be able to thin! fast on his feet. :urviving the constant internecine violence requires it. The constant interrogation by the police requires it. #>ften youths from the inner city are detained for questioning about some crime committed inside or outside of the area. This happens "ith such regularity that the youths are able to hone their oral s!ills to avoid further interrogation, beatings or detention at her ma*esty0s pleasure. This oral s!ill becomes the means of escaping the poverty via the dancehall. The ability to chant on a microphone for hours, "ith catchy and rhyming phrases, "hile stic!ing to the tonal beat is done effortlessly by individuals "ith no formal training in music, language, or public spea!ing. The functionalist obert 1 2erton pointed out that any part of society may be functional dysfunctional or non functional. (e also alluded that the dysfunctionality can e'ist "ithin systems, depending on their relationship to other systems #;aspard-

ichards et al /AAB% Dysfunctionality, in other "ords, is some "hat conte'tual, as "ell as tied to perception. :ome of the social institutions that e'ist in Jamaican society are governed by societal norms and values. They serve the functions of ensuring organic solidarity and value consensus. These same social institutions are seen as being some "hat dysfunctional in the inner city, due to their non conformity to the norms and values and role e'pectations of the "ider society. <ithin the conte't of the ghetto as a total institution, these institutions are not perceived as being dysfunctional. The nature of the inner city environment meant that, "hat 2erton described as a manifest functions "ill be different. The rough life of inner city people serves the function of providing the Jamaican and international society "ith the genre of music called reggae-dancehall. These same inner cities become the latent function of a capitalist economy that ignores the effects income inequality. They become the latent function of inappropriate development policies by government. 9n a sense, these inner cities are our latent functions. They remain our latent functions in the e'tent to "hich "e fail to hold governments accountable for ignoring one section of the population, and for providing them "ith so little entitlements and capabilities. The lac! of entitlements and capabilities "ithin the inner city influences the perceived vulgar orality that characterizes the dancehall lyrics. >n a visit to the one of the inner city areas "ith my sub*ect 2$, he decided to sho" me the under belly ghetto life. (e called it the @hard core0 ghetto life. 2any of the high-rise buildings seen in the area have no running "ater or bathrooms facilities. 8 @stand pipe0 in the area provides the only source of potable "ater for the population of the district. 2en, "omen, boys and girls are forced to choose this public area for their place to have a bath. This is denuding to the female "ho must perform the private function of "ashing herself, in full vie" of the public. This becomes a "ay of life for the people "ho live in such total institutions called inner cities. :haul and &urbee admitted that the equation of "ords and culture is intuitive. I.Certain aspects of social environment #!inship and other modes of social environment% and physical environment have obvious relations to certain sets #domains% of related vocabulary.

#/A% The language of the dancehall portrays the physical condition of the inner city. This coupled "ith the lac! of educational opportunities, influences an orality that is perceived as crudely e'pressive as "ell as se'ually e'plicit. Cooper #46C% e'plained this quite culturally elegant, 8s Jamaican becomes appropriated by the official culture, and as the use of Jamaican in the scribal literary tradition becomes acceptable and conventional, then the rude impulse of the language, formerly manifested in bac!"ard fol! culture, can be seen to no" reassert itself in contemporary forms as verbal maroonage such as the lyrics of the DJs. #46C% The @toasting0 or tal!ing over the rhythm began "ith the reggae genre as the sound system became popular and represented a place of en*oyment for the marginalized. This became an identity for dancehall music. The music too! some of the resistance, anti-colonialist music from reggae. (o"ever, as the population of the inner cities increased, dancehall became more of a cultural institution representing a space of e'pression and defiance for the marginalized of the inner cities. They have come to realize that political polarization meant long periods "ithout resources for everyday survival. The political polarization of the inner city, further manifest the on-going conflict that characterizes the nature of everyday life in the ghetto. This conflict can be understood sociological using a 2ar'ist-conflict analysis frame"or!. 8ccording to 2ar', conflict is inherent in every facet of everyday life due the differences in classes that characterizes capitalist societies. The history of our Caribbean civilization is replete "ith conflict bet"een the different groups that occupy the Caribbean space. The early conflict bet"een the neo-9ndians and the +uropeans settlers resulted in the decimation of most of the early inhabitants of the Caribbean. The introduction of 8frican slaves sa" the institutionalization of a cruel, dehumanizing conflict relations ship called slavery. $eginning "ith the capture in 8frica, the transportation in a cruel and dehumanizing "ay along the middle passage, to the sale and maronage of the 8fricans in the 8mericas, the treatment of the 8fricans "ere forms of conflict and a manifestation of one group0s cruelty to"ards

another. The basis for the cruel and conflicting relationship in the history of Caribbean people, involves issues "hich can be described as economic, racial pre*udice, polygenism, hatred and many more. +ric <illiams in his boo! Capitalism and :lavery sought to e'plain that the basis for 8frican slavery in the Caribbean "as more economy than racial pre*udice. The people of the inner city embody the history of the region. Their history is never "ithout conflict and cruelty. To continue our 2ar'ist analysis, the inner city represents a group of people "ho are far removed from o"nership of the means of production. There are high levels of both unemployment and under employment. The creation of norms and values "ithin these enclaves are directly lin!ed to the economic structural base of the community. The level of depravity becomes one of the many recurring themes in the music emanating from the dancehall. The social structures that are created "ithin this social setting validate economic o"nership of any !ind. 8scribing 2ar'0s classification as proletariat to these individuals "ould imply that they o"n nothing e'cept their labour. Their bodies become an economic asset in some case to replace their labour since the social structure of the society resulted in them having very little labour of recognizable value to sell for a "age. +ven for those "ho obtain some level of s!ill and education, the area of domicile becomes a liability, forcing them to see! some other form of geographic identity. The dancehall serves another function amidst this conflicting environment. The DJ "ho is a product of these rough and tough neighbourhoods is generally revered as he "ould be seen to not only identifying "ith the lyrical content of his music, but is also assured of entrenched follo"ing of fans. The lyrical content of the dancehall songs portrays the high levels of conflict that attends to social life in these areas. They also point to the high levels of internecine violence that e'ist "ithin the social fabric of these communities. The dancehall artists themselves become embroiled in daily conflict "ith each other that are played out in their lyrics. The constant threats being flung bet"een the top t"o dancehall DJs, $eenie 2an and $ounty 1iller and their aggregation sometimes e'plodes into

open "arfare. 8s long as the economic conditions remain at the level of income inequality and result in the lac! of economic resources and high levels of poverty in the inner city, some of these social influence of conflict and violence "ill remain part of the dancehall culture. Culture influences from the margin, so dancehall music have influenced the Jamaican as "ell as the international landscape from the margin. The music is international and the dancehall space is no" attracting more individuals form other sectors of Jamaican society. The space is fast becoming a cosmopolitan mi' of constituent races. 9t has also maintained its economic space as it provides employment and a source of income for a "ide cross section of the Jamaican population. The core participants of the dancehall o"n the space and use it to sho" their defiance against mainstream norms and values of the society. They e'ercise freedom of dress, conscience and speech "ithin this space. They do not need any reference point for dress or speech. They are their o"n reference points. This is their space. This is "here they feel liberated and in control. This is "here they ta!e centre stage "ithout having to fight the dominant social order. Dancehall is about them and their struggles, se'uality, politics and genders "arfare. These are all defined and played out in the dancehall both "ithin the space and in the lyrical content of the music. The lyrical content of the music continues to reflect e'tensions of its early genesis. Dancehall music is still influenced by the conscious lyrics of astafarians such as Capleton and :izzla to name a fe". eggae0s resistance-defiance music that placed Jamaica0s music on the international scene, continues to influence dancehall music and adds to it "ide appeal beyond the shores of Jamaica. The astafarian ideology of male dominance "ithin and outside the bedroom is still reflected in the @toasting0 as "ell as in the general discourse of the dancehall participants. The idea of a core male participant admitting defeat "ithin the hallo"ed space of the bedroom is equivalent to being sacrilegious. The core participants are also not e'pected to admit

to engaging in oral se' as this is tabooed by fundamentalist astafarians and its condemnation constantly forms part of the discourse of the disc *oc!ey #DJ%. The DJ is responsible for espousing the virtues of the dancehall as "ell as the behaviour e'pected of the participants. The lyrics of the dancehall have become the vessel of education for some of its core participant. The marginalized people of Jamaica0s inner-city have many challenges that affect their acquisition of a proper education. :ome of the challenges are economic) the lac! of employment opportunities for male and female from these areas result in lac! of entitlement and capabilities. They are not able to afford decent houses and are also not able to fund a consistent, proper education for their children, in an effort to brea! the poverty cycle. 8s a result, there are high levels of illiteracy "ithin these areas. The dancehall performs some of the functions of the ma*or agents of socialization including the educational system. The musical accompaniment, "ith its 8fro-centric rhythms, coupled "ith the use of the vernacular #Jamaica0s creole language% ma!es the transformation of education through the sound systems much easier than via conventional schooling. The space influences the behaviour of its core participants "hile simultaneously being influenced by them. The dancehall continues to be the source of information about life in the inner-city. 8 study of the lyrical content of the music reveals some of the social dynamics of the socially closed system of Jamaica0s ghetto. 9nformation from "ithin these areas is generally on a need-to-!no" basis. The giving of sensitive information to outsiders could result in serious sanctions, even death for the informer. (ence the dancehall continues to serve the function of providing "ell needed information about the social environment of the inner-city to participants as "ell as scholars involved in social development The lyrics, both in content and form, reveal the harsh realities of "hat constitute life for these marginalized people. >ne such song that readily comes to mind is @;hetto :tory0, done by the artist that goes by the pseudonym $aby Cham. The song, although sounding allegorical, really dra"s on real life happenings in different

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situations and is narrated by the singer to sho" "hat life is li!e in the ghetto. This song not only sho"s the importance of the gun as a "eapon of po"er and dominance but also its use for economic survival. The song also depicts the lin! bet"een sections of the Jamaican diaspora living in Jorth 8merica and the prevalence of guns in the inner-city. The struggles by the mother, #depicted in the song%, to provide for her children "ithin the environment of the violence infested inner-city is the reality of many mothers "ho find themselves living "ithin Jamaica0s inner-cities. There is the noticeable absence of a father in the narrative of the song. This also points to another sociological feature of such environment) matriarchal single parenting. 9nvariably, some, or all the children in these family settings, end up choosing crime as a profession and are not generally around to celebrate their thirtieth birthday. Dancehall continues to reveal the real Jamaican ghetto story. 8ccording to (arry 8llen #spea!ing about 8merica0s response to the gro"ing musical genre of hip hop% quoted in Cooper #4556%, K<hatever ones find in the community, they "ill find it in the records. This has a lot to do "ith "hy it is so attractive to some people and repulsive to others.L :imilar sentiments can be echoed regarding Jamaica0s dancehall music. Dancehall spaces are occupied by both male and female bodies fighting for dominance of the sacred spot in the video-light. The female body "as once the centre of attention in the dancehall. The marginalized male "ould stand and admire the occupation of the space by these "ell decorated and scantily dressed female bodies. Their fashion, although leaving very little to the imagination, sho"ed much creativity, innovativeness, ingenuity and freedom. The fashion coupled "ith the &reudian behavior of the average male present in the dancehall, made the female the queen of dancehall "ithout any contestation from !ings "ho are "ould be throne see!ers. :ocial factors fuelled by male marginalization are changing the gendered reality of the dancehall space. The male are no" finding an area in "hich they can claim recognition and identity as "ell as ta!ing a further step to"ards "inning the battle of the se'es. The mode of dress of the male participants places them in the @shared glare0 from on-loo!ers. The re-infusion of dance into dancehall provided

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another grand opportunity for the marginalized male to sho" his ability, creativity and dominance. The rise of the @$ogle #;erald $ogle% and John (ype era0 provided the catalyst for many young men to achieve some recognition and income through contemporary dancehall dances. The gravitation to dance as a profession by the young males in the inner-city represents a !ind of parado' "orth studying. 9n the early years of the development of dancehall music, males in such profession "ould attract strong sanctions and "ould be continually berated in the dancehall. The economic viability of this emerging profession is enough to create a ne" class of petty bourgeois from the marginalized class. This gives the male a sense of importance and pride in self as he is no" able to gain attention for socially accepted behaviour that constitute0 "or!0. The dancehall is no" the scene of various dance clashes as various groups no" strive for dominance in creativity, fle'ibility and ingenuity, not only in dance but also in dress and deportment. This emerging dance culture adds to the rich cultural menagerie and e'citement of the dancehall. :ome of the dance groups no" begin to have females as regular members, but ma*ority are still male dominated. The centrality of the dance to dancehall has resulted in the gender shift in the focus from the female to that of the male dancers. <omen still continue to out shine men in fashion especially in the area of creativity, boldness and defiance. The dancehall is a part of the rich cultural heritage of the Caribbean. 9ts popularity is fuelled) not only by its infectious lyrics and colourful aesthetics, but also the need to learn about its core participant and the socio-cultural dynamics that influences their behaviour. 3roper understanding of this cultural space is necessary for social development programmes involving the inner-city as "ell as for programmes aimed at overall economic development. +conomic development must involve cultural development. This work is ongoing and more sociological analysis is needed to inform policy

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