Rastafari, Roots, Reggae 

A Political Soundtrack

 
Music was the most effective purveyor of the Rastafari message that celebrated the Emperor, Ethiopia and Africa, equal rights and justice for the sufferer and the oppressed.  In many ways, the roots-reggae message proved prophetic. Take, for instance, Steel Pulse's seminal recording Handsworth Revolution, released in 1978, a stinging commentary on the toxic combination of poverty and racism experienced in one of Birmingham's key centres of Caribbean residence.   

​Handsworth shall stand, firm - like Jah rock
- fighting back
We once beggars are now choosers
No intention to be losers
Striving forward with ambition
And if it takes ammunition
We rebel in Handsworth revolution

In 1981 - 3 years later - uprisings broke out in Handsworth, Brixton (London), Toxteth (Liverpool) and Moss Side (Manchester).  

During the 1980s, roots-reggae became a musical genre closely aligned to anti-establishment protests and anti-fascist movements such as Rock Against Racism.  Through such movements roots-reggae entered into the mainstream of Britain's youth culture. In this way, it can be claimed that Rastafari thinking and iconography informed some of the major currents of social change in contemporary Britain.

Contemporary roots-reggae artists continue to vibrate Britain's political soundscape

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​Askale Selassie - Warrior Empress

​Lioness Fonts - Calling mi Home

Fyah Mawi - I'm not Fighting

​Rasites - Chant dem Down