ABSTRACT

This book explores the genealogy of Jamaican dancehall while questioning whether dancehall has a spiritual underscoring, foregrounding dance, and cultural expression.

This study identifies the performance and performative (behavioural actions) that may be considered as representing spiritual ritual practices within the reggae/dancehall dance phenomenon. It does so by juxtaposing reggae/dancehall against Jamaican African/neo-African spiritual practices such as Jonkonnu masquerade, Revivalism and Kumina, alongside Christianity and post-modern holistic spiritual approaches.

This book will be of great interest to students and scholars in performance studies, popular culture, music, theology, cultural studies, Jamaican/Caribbean culture, and dance specialists.

chapter |19 pages

Introduction

Sanctification

chapter 1|25 pages

Warm up

Dancehall literature

chapter 2|28 pages

Old time story

The convergence of African, neo-African and popular dance in Jamaica

chapter 3|25 pages

Come back again

Towards a definition of spirituality

chapter 4|19 pages

The massive arrive

The gathering and meshing together of knowledge

chapter 5|16 pages

Party time – early vibe

Thick descriptions/analysis of dance in the dancehall space

chapter 6|31 pages

Party hot – man dem section

The corporeal dancing body creating ‘dancehall spirituality’

chapter 7|22 pages

Party hot up – female section

Dancehall spirituality rooted and routed through African/neo-African practices and worldviews

chapter 8|27 pages

Coupling section

Male and female relationships

chapter 9|24 pages

Signing off/revelation

Findings and meanings

chapter |10 pages

Conclusion

Dispersal – recommendations