Reggae is a genre of music that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. It is known for its emphasis on bass in the background beat. Reggae was seen as a type of music used to express feelings about the social, political and economic difficulties that Jamaica was experiencing in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was performed by musicians from the black ghettos who used quiet rhythms to create their own style of music. Reggae has become an important part of the lifestyle of many Caribbean islanders; expressing a sense of pride for their Caribbean culture. Reggae was developed from ska and rocky steady. Ska consisted of Caribbean and mento elements, calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. It is characterized by a walking bass line accentuated by optimistic rhythms. Rocky used musical elements such as jazz, r&b, African and Latin drums and other genres. This is noticeable by offbeats counted at a slow tempo. A Reggae rhythm is distinguished above all by a slow tempo, a bass rhythm in the background with a fast rhythm on top. If you count 1 2 3 4 per beat, the accent of the instrument is played on the offbeats; giving it a relaxed sound. Reggae music consists of a relatively narrow variety of instruments due to its distinctive sound. The bass drum, drum symbols and guitars are the most common instruments used to play reggae songs. Bongos are used to play broken patterns using African-style rhythms. An important factor in understanding reggae music is knowledge of Jamaican history. In 1962, Jamaica gained independence from the British. Around this time, reggae music began to gain prominence in the music industry. The most important form of reggae...... middle of paper...... lands. Music is an important aspect of many cultures in and outside the Caribbean. It instills different moods in people and comes in different styles. It has been used to express oppression and joy. It doesn't matter how people make or hear Reggae music; it will be a distinct sound to attract their feelings towards the culture. Works CitedBays, Barry, P. Renee Foster and Stephen King. Reggae, Rastafari and the rhetoric of social control. University Press of Mississippi. The United States of America. 2002. Chang, Kevin O'Brian and Wayne Chen. Reggae routes. Temple University Press. Philadelphia.1998Jahn, Brian and Tom Weber. The island of reggae. Da Capo Press, Inc. New York. 1998Latin Pulse Music, Inc. np 2006-2011. Internet. April 2, 2012. Sarno, Alberto, Sarno, Marcello. Reggaeton in Cuba. 2007. Sprachcaffe Sprachreisen.Web. March 10 2012.