Jah Shaka

This is a page about the reggae artist Jah Shaka. For other uses of the name see: Jah Shaka disambiguation.

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Jah Shaka has been operating a London-based roots reggae soundsystem since the early 1970s. His name is an amalgamation of the rastafarian term for God and that of a zulu warrior.

Related Topics:
Roots reggae - Soundsystem - Rastafarian - Zulu

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He is perhaps best known for sticking to his rastafarian beliefs in the 1980s whilst other soundsystems followed the Jamaican trend towards playing ?slack? dancehall music. His refusal to compromise inspired a host of new UK reggae artists such as The Disciples, Iration Steppas, Jah Warrior, Conscious Sounds, The Rootsman and Abashanti-I. Non-reggae artists such as Basement Jaxx have also cited Jah Shaka as an influence during interviews.

Related Topics:
Dancehall - Basement Jaxx

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On his own record label he has released music from Jamaican artists such as Max Romeo, Johnny Clarke, Bim Sherman and Prince Alla as well as UK groups such as Aswad and Dread & Fred. He has released a number of dub albums, often under the Commandments of Dub banner.

Related Topics:
Max Romeo - Johnny Clarke - Bim Sherman - Prince Alla - Aswad - Dub

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In 1980 Shaka played himself in the film Babylon (directed by Franco Rosso), operating his soundsystem in a soundclash at the climax of the story.

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In 2000 he suffered numerous injuries during a house fire.

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The Jah Shaka soundsystem continues to appear regularly in London, with occasional tours of the USA, Europe and Japan.

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