It was undoubtedly a highly active year in music in Jamaica. When the gates of the entertainment industry finally opened, live shows had artistes back on the grind and in their bags.
Each year brings a crop of promising artistes and 2022 was no different. Here are some breakout artistes for the year who should definitely be watched in 2023.
Valiant
“Kotch eh hat a lie, rich a lie.” When it’s your time it’s your time. Valiant’s Dunce Cheque is undoubtedly one of his best songs which placed the artiste on the scene and has placed the deejay in circles with big names such as Tommy Lee who have collaborated with him on the song Guzu Bunx (Fada Rock).
Valiant has a unique sound full of melody and vibes that will keep trending in the highly competitive dancehall field. The dancehall artiste has been consistent with tunes like Scholar, St. Mary and Sciance, the artiste shows no signs of slowing down for 2023.
Kraff
On his musical journey for about a year and a half, Kraff is an artiste who is already marking his legacy within the dancehall fraternity. With past releases such as Dinero, Charge Up, Floating, and Pain, the artiste has crafted a distinct sound for himself with much more to come.
Bayka
This young musician from Spanish Town has quickly made a name for himself in dancehall. Bayka, whose given name is Ronaldo Billings, has enjoyed success for the past year on the dancehall scene with songs such as Mobster, Top Tier and 1Uptown, each having over a million views on YouTube.
The up-and-coming dancehall artiste song, She like it was revealed to be one of Coldplay’s favorite songs “at the moment.”
Malie Donn
The 20-year-old artiste, from Waterford in Portmore, St. Catherine, has made waves with hits such as Bank, Crook, Cash Code, Pressure in Life, and Survivor.
Malie Donn gave up a career in track and field to pursue music, which he had a passion for since he was a student at Waterford Primary School. Passionate about issues like poverty, the artiste sings about money, upliftment, and prosperity. Continuing on this trajectory, Malie Donn will be a force to be reckoned with in 2023.
Ninecea
Emerging dancehall artiste Ninecea is determined to get his breakthrough in Jamaica’s dancehall scene. Ninecea’s songs Nahmal and Brawlin both went viral on TikTok after a soundbite started circulating on the platform. But it has been the early summer hit Party Time that racked up the fusion artiste over 600,000 Spotify streams and close to one million YouTube views since its release in May 2022.
