Get the latest gossip
Billboard’s Greatest Pop Stars: In 2003, Dancehall Crashed Through America With Its Second Wave
This sidebar to Billboard's Greatest Pop Series looks at how dancehall's second wave made a huge and long-lasting impact on the year's pop music.
The first occurred in the early ‘90s, as Shabba Ranks, Beenie Man and Buju Banton escaped the confines of local genre spaces and launched into the American market. While a pair of chart-topping hits from ‘90s Jamaican hitmaker Shaggy — 2000’s “It Wasn’t Me” and the next year’s “Angel” — leaned more pop, they helped open the gates for dancehall to once again cross over. Paul’s rising prominence led to collaborations outside of dancehall that same year — Beyoncé’s chart-topping “Baby Boy,” Busta Rhymes’ “Make It Clap” remix and Blu Cantrell’s “Breathe” — further boosting his pop presence.
Or read this on Billboard