Dancehall pop princess Shenseea has released the first single, Run Run, from her upcoming debut album. Produced by the Grammy-winning Stephen ‘Di Genius’ McGregor, Shenseea can be heard on the song emulating the 90s Dancehall sound and flow perfected by Shabba Ranks.
Released today with visuals directed by Christian Breslauer (Roddy Rich, Doja Cat, Lil Baby), Run Run bears a close resemblance to Steelie and Cleevie’s digital innovative drum patterns that formed the foundation of some of Jamaica’s biggest hits such as Pirates Anthem (1989) by Cocoa Tea and Shabba Ranks on the Pirate Riddim and the Penthouse play over for Saddest Day (1993) by Wayne Wonder.
Other songs that marked the late 80s, early 1990s style dancehall drum and hi-hat pattern came from Gussie Clark’s Rumors riddim. Clark’s 1988 riddim also features some of the biggest hits from the era, among them Nuff Respect by Lady G, Deh Pon Me Mind by Shabba & JC Lodge, and Telephone Love by JC Lodge.
Telephone Love was the first reggae-dancehall track to cross over in the USA’s R&B/HipHop market, topping the urban charts in all the major cities including New York and earned JC Lodge a recording deal with Tommy Boy Records.
Although they had less technology the music made during the era still has a great effect on international audiences today, according to DJ Envy during a recent Breakfast Club Interview with Shaggy and Spice. Shaggy asked him whether, as an international DJ, he has to play 90s dancehall to get the crowd going, to which his answer was a resounding “YES”.
By that analysis, Shenseea, who just signed a new management deal with hopes of taking Jamaica’s culture to the world, will be testing the theory with her choice to seek inspiration from the era for her current music.
“All the funk music at the time was using these sounds too. Older producers used to play around with the sound, it’s a little older than me and by the time I reached it was full digital,” Dancehall producer Jeremy Harding told World Music Views.
He said the late 80s, early 90s music era in Jamaica was earmarked by the use of the drum machines, which are pre-programmed machines that already had the sounds in them.
Cleevie, in a 1990s interview, said in reference to the drum machine used back then to create the sound. “A simple computer drum machine, it comes with the basic acoustic drum set parts, a bass drum, a sneer, hi-hat cymbals, and rim shot but the sounds can be changed easily by the insertion of a sound chip that can create any sort of sound”. Steelie further explained how to make dancehall music, “We are creating dance music and I think ‘dance music’ the simpler it is, it comes across better”.
Shenseea’s Run Run comes after Freddie McGregor, father of the song’s producer “Di Genius”, said in a Jamaica Observer Op-Ed on Sunday, that artists should look to dancehall’s extensive catalog for inspiration. “We are definitely not creating any more. Or is it that the current output just doesn’t match up to where we are coming from? So this is what I’m thinking. If we are not doing better today than we were back then, clearly we are not growing,” he said.
Questioning the direction of the new sounds that are adapting to the trap era style American music he further said, “Right now we are following the trend in the United States of America with this thing called trap music, and what is really happening is that we are trapping ourselves with something that is not Jamaican. Are we lost?”
However, producer Jeremy Harding said he doesn’t fully agree with the older McGregor’s statement. “I don’t know that we have to look to the 90s, I am not certain that lightning strikes twice but what is for certain is that the current sound that kids in Jamaica love don’t gain traction outside of Jamaica”.
He added, “We may need to look forward to something else and call it a day on what’s going on.”
He likened the music to any other Jamaican product by saying, “Our music is an export product and if we can’t export it, it’s gonna be difficult to monetize it. We don’t have a self-sustaining music economy, like any other Jamaican product like coffee and tourism, rum, marijuana its all export products. We enjoy it here but the money comes from it being exported”.
Penthouse producer Donovan Germain said, “The dancehall stop there so (1990s). There is a also consistency of quality up to that time. There is no more quality control for the music: dancehall stopped when Dave Kelly stop doing it. When you go party Dave Kelly they still play, Dave Kelly’s songs mash up the place same way.”
Shenseea’s Run Run is now available on all streaming platforms.
