Sizzla

• Genre: Dancehall

About

He's a controversial figure, a prolific creator who has at times released four albums in the space of a year, and he's the toast of cultural dancehall. Sizzla Kalonji was born Miguel Collins to a devout Rastafarian family in 1976. He entered the music scene in the mid-'90s, joining acts like Buju Banton and Capleton, artists who shared a similar interest in reconnecting dancehall music with roots reggae's spiritual and cultural concerns. After cutting a series of singles, he achieved breakout success in 1997 with Praise Ye Jah, his second full-length. A relentless release schedule followed, but despite his frequent releases, Kalonji rarely sacrifices quality, instead vacillating stylistically, coming out hard one year and romantic the next. Kalonji's output has been twinned with controversy, as some of his hard-line Rastafarian beliefs around homosexuality and other social issues have offended sensibilities over the years.

- Sarah Bardeen