Keznamdi kicked off the month with his first career Grammy win, taking home best reggae album for Blood & Fyah at the Feb. 1 ceremony, and the Caribbean music community maintained that momentum.
Of course, DJ Mac and CrashDummy’s “WYFL” has been running di place since its release last November, but things truly kicked into high gear over the past few weeks, with an ever-extending cast of heavyweights delivering their take on the viral riddim. For his “Bad & BBC Rich” music video, Mavado returned for his first Cassava Piece-set short in over a decade, bringing him back to the “Gully Side.” From Vybz Kartel (“SYM”) and Buju Banton (“X Rated”) to Tielo Lanez (“Thickiana”) and NLE Choppa (“Watch Me Now!”), the “WYFL” riddim has quickly traversed generations and regions, even inspiring remixes from Ghanaian artists Shatta Wale (“Danger”) and Stonebwoy (“Silent Samurai”).
As that riddim lit up the scene, the business side of the Caribbean music industry convened in Kingston, Jamaica, for the fourth annual Island Music Conference (IMC). Co-founded by Shaggy, the four-day convention brought a host of informative panels, songwriters’ workshops, rising artist showcases and documentary screenings geared toward artists aiming to cultivate music careers with longevity.
As IMC closed out the Month, the final day of February (and the first of March) belonged to Protoje’s Lost in Time Festival. Primarily showcasing the biggest reggae stars of the 2020s (like Grammy nominees Lila Iké, Mortimer and Jesse Royal), this year’s Lost in Time also featured Chronixx in his first full live set since 2019 and Koffee’s return to major Jamaican festival stages after a four-year break.
Naturally, Billboard’s monthly Caribbean Fresh Picks column will not cover every last track, but our Spotify playlist — which is linked below — will expand on the 10 highlighted songs. So, without any further ado:
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Freshest Find: Vybz Kartel & Shenseea, “Panic”
The King of Dancehall has been incredibly active ever since his release from prison in the summer of 2024, but now, it’s album season. For the first official single from his forthcoming God & Time LP, Kartel tapped Shenseaa, a pop-dancehall star he last linked up with ten years ago for her breakout hit “Loodi.” “Gal, you outside and a inside/ When I saw you at the party and I had to say hi/ Skin bright, a me a your type/ Around sun a shine, you the hottest thing weh outside,” he opens the TJ-produced track, perfectly setting the scene for a dancehall meet-cute. And with Shenseea’s melodious croonings offering a sensual juxtaposition in her verse and hook, “Panic” seamlessly brings the sunny energy of ’00s dancehall into 2026.
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Zagga, “Right Man”
2026 just might be the year of the loverman — at least if Zagga has any say in it. The Ocho Rios reggae star dropped his 13-track Piece of Paradise album last month, and he placed one of the set’s instant standouts right in the middle. “When the right man loves you/ You’ll feel like an angel is around you/ You don’t have no wants and needs,” he coos in the chorus, employing a gentle, earnest tone that centers an unconditional, unwavering love.
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Tielo Lanez, “Strike”
Rising dancehall talent Tielo Lanez continues his hot streak with “Strike,” a scorching contribution to Thrill Seeker Entertainment’s “Speakeasy” riddim. “If him nah go spend nuh money/ Better tell him not to touch it/ You deserve a Beamer to your name and not the f—kery,” he spits near the end after spending the vast majority of the track delivering the kind of double-entendre-ridden, X-rated bars that comprise modern dancehall.
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Valiant & Daseca, “You Deserve Better”
With his soulful, new Daseca-produced single, Valiant cements himself as the natural heir to Dexta Daps’ R&D (rhythm & dancehall) crown. Pulling from Prince by way of The Weeknd, “You Deserve Better” finds Valiant pairing dark, brooding production with a slinky delivery laced with dirty-macking seduction. “Him nuh good fi you at all/ Years him have yu lock up and a bawl/ Come yah mek mi brace yu pon di wall,” he croons in the chorus before detailing his bedroom escapades in the second verse. Blending lyrical intimacy and cinematic production, “You Deserve Better” reminds us that Caribbean artists also have something to say when it comes to R&B.
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KA$E feat. Jesse Royal & Loud City, “By Any Mean$”
Just a week before both artists performed at Protoje’s Lost In Time Festival, KA$E and Jesse Royal teamed up for “By Any Mean$,” a fiery new collaboration with Seattle-based production outfit Loud City. Drawing inspiration from the phrase “by any means necessary,” the two reggae stars invoke the slogan, often attributed to Malcolm X in American contexts, to champion self-sufficiency and the intrinsic power of the people. “Say a prayer fi the ones inna di street/ By any means we a feed wi family/ Hunt it everyday cah dat a di policy Gangsta nuh wait pon parliament nor police,” Jesse croons in the chorus, with Ka$e later adding, “Everyday inna di streets you haffi cautious/ That’s why fimi blicky travel wid mi inna di saucer.”
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Christopher Martin, “Don’t Cry”
When Christopher Martin croons, “Don’t wanna see you cry/ You should see yourself through my eyes/ Baby, you nuh look so pretty when you cry/ So I wanna see you happy all the while,” it’s a reminder of reggae’s power to revolutionize personal politics — even in the context of romance. “Don’t Cry” is a sweet, tender “Love Echoes” riddim entry, but as much as it’s about Martin loving his woman dearly, it’s also about his hope that he can encourage a new level of self-love within her. Who doesn’t love a love song that works on multiple levels?
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Moyann & Shakespeare, “Share”
Dancehall riddims always come alive in a special way when women step into the booth and deliver X-rated bars on their own terms, and that’s exactly the case with Moyann’s new Shakespeare-produced “Share.” The Montego Bay-bred singer offers a nice juxtaposition between her honeyed tone and disarmingly cavalier lyrics, singing, “How yuh fi f—k me suh good/ Baby, tell me, suh mi nuh fi catch feelings” to open the track.
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Zion Marley, “Stay”
Ahead of his Austin Reggae Festival performance next month (April 17-19), Zion Marley, son of Rohan Marley and Ms. Lauryn Hill, has shared a raw, earthy new single titled “Stay.” Tempering the roots reggae template with light contemporary production flourishes, Zion reflects on his own life journey and places it in the context of humanity’s greater moral struggles. “All my life, I’ve seen strife/ Hopeless night, stolen rights/ Where is my place among this race?/ It’s not fair if the finish line is pure disgrace,” he passionately croons in the second verse over crisp production from Erik Caggiano and Omari Stines.
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Vybz Kartel & Yung Bredda, “Clock Dat”
After dominating last year alongside Full Blown with the sweet and sensual “The Greatest Bend Over,” Trinidadian soca star Yung Bredda has shifted into a spicier gear for his new Vybz Kartel collaboration, “Clock Dat.” “Rough sex fi ya, if yuh come vex/ Man a f—k you real heard, till you feel upset/ She loss breath from mi mek har buss sweat/ Yo, Addi, di gyal deh a ask we what’s next,” he spits in the second half of the opening chorus, providing a nice parallel to Kartel’s brash tone and doubling down on his penchants for cross-generational and cross-genre collaborations.
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Sp!da, “No Commonaz”
“But anyway, you been on my mind like every day/ I could barely even concentrate/ Maybe you’re the one that got away,” coos Sp!da, slowing down the tempo, for a seductive, introspective number that would fit right at home in any contemporary trap&B playlist. Produced by 1Kulcha, “No Commonaz,” finds the Kingston-hailing artist pledging her commitment to only sharing herself with men who are truly deserving of it. But she isn’t just interested in financial security or material things; she wants open, honest communication from the man she chooses — and it certainly won’t be a commoner.
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