Due to this, some consider dancehall artists such as Mad Cobra, Shabba Ranks, Super Cat, Buju Banton and Tony Rebel as pioneers of reggae fusion.
Although there were a few recognized reggae fusion artists in the late 1980s to mid-1990s, including the aforementioned acts in addition to others such as Sublime, Maxi Priest, Shinehead, 311, First Light, the Police and Inner Circle, their style of fusing genres was subtly done.
[11][12] Artists such as Diana King, Patra, Buju Banton, Ini Kamoze, Snow and Shabba Ranks followed in their footsteps, however, creating a less subtle fusion by further blending heavier Jamaican dialect as well as more hardcore and sexual lyrics in their songs.
[13] This led to a lot of crossover success for these artists with songs such as "Informer" and "Here Comes the Hotstepper" reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100, as well as topping charts all around the world.
[9] Ironically, however, a major contributing factor to the subgenre garnering further international prominence was due to the lack of marketability of dancehall, especially in its rawest form, in the United States.
It had also come under heavy criticism from the international markets due to the homophobic lyrical content which sought to bash, condemn and instigate violence against the act as well as those who supported or participated in the lifestyle.
In the early 1990s, the evolution of reggae fusion reached another musical style in Europe with the worldwide number-one hits "All That She Wants", "The Sign", "Happy Nation" and "Don't Turn Around" by Ace of Base.
[27] While "On a Mission" was recognized as the official anniversary song and was applauded by some, it received its fair share of negative feedback due to many questioning its inauthentic Jamaican sound.
Natasja Saad, "Need U Bad" by Jazmine Sullivan, "Say Hey (I Love You)" by Michael Franti & Spearhead featuring Cherine Anderson and "Billionaire" by Travis McCoy, show that the subgenre has matured and is as popular as it has ever been, with more artists experimenting with it.
[7] Jamaican singer Tessanne Chin is one of the latest reggae fusion artists reaching international fame following her winning Season 5 of NBC's reality TV singing competition The Voice as part of Adam Levine's team.
[38][40][42] Fellow Canadian act Tory Lanez, whose parents are both from Caribbean islands, also had a major breakout in 2016 with "Luv", which sampled the late '90s dancehall classic "Everyone Falls in Love" by Tanto Metro and Devonte.
[43][44] This level of popularity has not been seen since Sean Paul followed in the path of Shaggy's crossover success and opened the flood gates for some of the Caribbean's brightest talents to find their way onto mainstream radio in the early 2000s.
[39] Other major pop artistes continued to venture into the dancehall-pop genre in 2017 with Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry, and Calvin Harris, having hits with "Shape of You", "Chained to the Rhythm" and "Feels" respectively.