In 1947 Kingston, a Chinese-Jamaican merchant named Tom Wong built Jamaica's first sound system and changed the world. He invented the lawn dance, the sound system clash, and gave Count Machuki the microphone that birthed the MC tradition. Everything downstream — reggae, dancehall, hip-hop — traces to his yard on Orange Street. This is the story of Tom The Great Sebastian: the man who started it all, and disappeared before anyone thought to remember him. Part of the Reggae and Dancehall Foundational Pioneers series on The History of the Caribbean.
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From the salt-scented streets of Greenwich Town to the electric glow of Kingston’s stages, this episode follows the rise of John Holt, a pivotal...
This deep-dive into the history of Caribbean music explores the hidden war between the state and the artists who defined a region. From the...
