Jamaican recording artist Beenie Man has been soaring high in the world of dancehall since he started his career back in 1979. He’s been heavily involved in music since the age of five. He was inspired to continue his music endeavor by his uncle Sydney Knowles, who played the drums for Jimmy Cliff. Hailed as the world’s King of Dancehall, he’s been also criticized for the anti-gay lyrics of his songs. He recently had a stellar performance at the 2017 Reggae Sumfest in Jamaica but during his Unstoppable Tour in Zimbabwe, the reggae dancehall artist was booed.
The not so pleasant concert
Beenie Man, 44, recently performed in Harare at the inaugural Spring Festival at Alexandra Sports Club for his African Unstoppable Tour but the crowd seemed not pleased with his performance. There were fans who were booing while others shouted expletives at him, which seems to be a sign that the King of Dancehall has had issues with his performance. Ras Tonde believes that the dancehall legend’s performance in Zimbabwe was a red flag that it must because of his age. He said that it wasn’t the best performance and can’t be considered a great entertainer when he performed alongside local deejay Winky D.
On the plus side, there were fans that took the side on Beenie Man and said that the King of Dancehall must be really tired of too much touring.
“He has been touring all summer so I just think that people are being too hard on him,” a fan told Dancehall Hiphop. “When all is said and done [the dancehall legend] is still one of the greatest dancehall artists in the world and we love him. I look forward to seeing him come back to Zimbabwe. [He is] always welcome here.” So, it looks like he is still doing well but as what fans said, he might just be tired and weary because of his successive performances in the recent months.
The dancehall legend
He received international recognition and earned the title King of Dancehall following his debut album “The Invincible Beenie Man: The Ten Year Old DJ Wonder.” He continued to make music and collaborations with well-known reggae artists such as Barrington Levy, Bounty Killer, Dennis Brown, Lady Saw, Mad Cobra, among others.
His 2009 single “Gimme Gimme” was such a hit it earned him another good reputation in the world of dancehall. In 2004, he was taken off from the MTV Video Music Awards following the protests of some gay-rights activists for provoking the murder of homosexuals through the lyrics in some of his songs.
Beenie Man or Anthony Moses Davis in real life was born in Kingston, Jamaica in August 1973. He became a deejay at a young age and married Michelle "D'Angel" Downer in August 2006. In 2007, the couple separated and was divorced in 2011.
