ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author gives a short introduction to reggae's history in Germany and discusses the conceptualizations of German reggae based on two examples before he attend to the question of cultural appropriation. Natty U from Dortmund, whose English lyrics are an approximation to Jamaican patois, became one of the most influential German reggae musicians during the late 1980s and 1990s. He was also the first German reggae musician to perform in Jamaica, and his album Fool For Your Love was played on Jamaican radio. Before discussing the reception of German reggae in Jamaican media alongside issues of cultural appropriation, the author need to delve further into the question of what German reggae is, or what it might be beyond the sum of its actors. For many German reggae musicians, Jamaica was the main point of reference; their own cultural production was always oriented to the current trends on the island.
