History/Origin
Reggae was developed in the land of Jamaica in the 1960’s. Reggae was mostly a mixture of African folk music and popular American music. There has been no definite answer as to why the word “Reggae” was used. There have been many theories saying that the word “rege” means ragged clothing. Bob Marley defines the word as a Spanish word meaning a “king’s music”. Reggae is said to be a successor of already popular genres of that era, Rocksteady and Ska.

Artists who made it famous
Bob Marley & The Wailers; Chaka Demus; Beenie Man; Jimmy Cliff

Best known proponents today
Diana King, Shaggy, Sean Paul, Bounty Killer

High points/Memorable Moments
Reggae became the primary export of the country of Jamaica. The country became the center of attraction to the world due to the music and attracted tourists from all over the world. At one point of time, Reggae was considered to be one of the chief sources of income of the country of Jamaica and tourism came much later. In Today’s age, all around the world Reggae festivals are being held such as Reggae Sumfest in Jamaica, Reggae Geel in Belgium, Notting Hill Carnival in London and Midwest Reggae Festival in U.S.A. The Grammy Awards also give out “Best Reggae Album” each year.

Trivia

Rap is generally considered to be a follower of Reggae.

Reggae is also very popular in New Zealand.

Quotes:

“Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our mind.”

- Bob Marley

      “If you go out to Hollywood you'll find a lot of fantastic plastic people there in the business and a lot of people in life generally. They find it so hard to be themselves that they have to be plastic.”

- Jimmy Cliff

Famous Song
Bob Marley & The Wailers – Exodus (1977); Jimmy Cliff – Cliff Hanger (1985); Peter Tosh – No Nuclear War (1988); Inner Circle – Bad Boys (1994); Shaggy – Bombastic (1996); Ziggy Marley – Love is My Religion (2007)