State of the Jamaican Web, Oct 8-14, 2006

This week, I have been keeping track of some interesting things in Cyberspace related to the Jamaican culture. It is always difficult to begin with a simple summary of the “State of the Jamaican Web”, given the many places dedicated to the Jamaican culture. Since this is my first week of reporting on the web, I will focus on the Top 5 trends this week (not to be confused with the ever resourceful top5jamaica.com).

1. DUTTY WINE

Arguable, this is one of the biggest craze coming out of Jamaica in recent times. Spurred by the popularity of Tony Matterhorn’s catchy tune “Dutty Wine”, there are more than 5,000 video clips on the popular video website YouTube.com. There are clips ranging from expert dancers to the basic amateurs showcasing their interpretation of the “Dutty Wine” dance.

However, one of the most popular with over 500,000 views is "Anasatasia Dutty Wine" depicting a toddler no more than 6 years old performing to the “Dutty Wine” beat. I think the breakthrough for this “craze” is the white guy “Mike doin the Dutty Wine”. This is obviously not an attractive way of dancing “Dutty Wine” but this white boy illustrates the power of the Jamaican culture.

There is even a “duttywine.net” website that provides clips of “Dutty Wine” videos and a list of events. I checked on MySpace and there were numerous sites with reference to “Dutty Wine” or links to YouTube and other similar video websites. A number of Jamaican websites have also joined this “Dutty Wine” craze, dancehallreggae.com, yardflex.com just to name a few.

After a few months of releasing, Dutty Wine, Tony Matterhorn has indeed created a buzz for the Jamaican culture with the “Dutty Wine Craze”

PASSA PASSA

According to Wikipedia, Passa Passa is a dance originating in Kingston, Jamaica. It is reported to have begun on Ash Wednesday in 2003, with the name being coined by Carl Shelley. Referred to as a community dance, the term has quickly spread across the web in the past few months. “Passa Passa” has been around since 2005 and for the most part of that year was limited to Jamaica and a few places in the US.

However, in 2005, “Passa Passa” was creeping up in other Caribbean Islands and parts of the USA. I spoke to some of my contacts in the dancehall scene and they indicated that the increasing popularity of “Passa Passa” dance DVDs contributed largely to its popularity outside of Jamaica. If you want to find more on Passa Passa check out the following websites in no particular order;

1. Dancehallreggae.com
2. Youtube.com
3. Google Video
4. biggonline (for DVDs)
5. Yardflex.com

3. BUJU BANTON

Buju Banton as most people know is one of the most talented artists to come out of Jamaica over the past 10 years. His lyrics are powerful and reference the Jamaican culture in every shape and form. However his meteoric rise over the past few years has been affected by what some people call “gay bashing” and demonstration from the gay community.

Over the past week there have been several cancellations of Buju concerts as many “Gay organizations” pressure promoters with serious repercussions. From Billboard.com to the ultra liberal news media in California, has drawn a focus on Buju Banton and his music. Which ever way one look at this media attention, Buju Banton is still a household name and cyberspace is waiting for the release of his new album “Too Bad”.

Talent cannot be squashed and thanks to the web, the power of free speech and a strong willed Jamaican, Buju Banton will continue to flourish.

Here are some websites to find out more about Buju Banton

1. AllHipHOP.com
2. Billboard.com
3. Forbes.com
4. DailyIndia.com

4.. TRAFIGURA "SCANDAL"

To tell you the truth, I am not sure how this made the top 5 list given the lack of interest that many Jamaicans place on politics on the web. However, what many classified as the “Scandal of the year” signals the importance that the upcoming election in Jamaica will play in the next few months (as soon as Miss P “Fly the Gate”).

So we all know that Minister Colin Campbell resigned from the cabinet. But many of us have never heard of Trafigura. However as we all know Jamaicans are expert on everything and we had to give our point of view especially on (Talk Radio). Most of the chit chat were limited to Forums, mainly Jamaica Star Forum and a few others. However, I am not sure that this one will maintain enough steam into next week. Politics is too serious for cyberspace more so with people looking for fun and entertainment online.

This one therefore will remain on the local scene and definitely will not “bust a foreign”. For more on the Trafigura Incident check out the following websites

1. jamaicagleaner.com
2. jamaicaobserver.com (especially the cartoons
3. Jamaica Star Forums (for some heated discussions)

5..TANYA STEPHENS

Well Tanya Stephens has made a comeback (not sure she would want me to use those exact words). However, I was getting tired of seeing some many “Sean Paul” in google and yahoo, I welcome this with some excitement. Not a “whole heap” a buzz on the internet about Tanya but this is early days and I am sure her record company, VP Records, will promote this online.

On a serious note, promoters behind Tanya Stephens should do something about her website (http://www.tanyastephensmusic.com). This website needs serious makeover. This does not reflect the unique talent of Tanya Stephens. In the meantime I will be watching how many billboard.com articles Tanya Stephens manages to achieve, this one surely has the potential to "bust"

I feel contented that the “State of the Jamaican Web” remains strong and vibrant. There are many challenges. I think more website owners need to enhance the Jamaican brand on the web. But the potential reach of the Jamaican culture goes far beyond the shores of Jamaica and the future looks bright. In the meantime “walk good” until next week.

John Crowe