Reggae music was founded in the 1960s, developing from ‘rocksteady’ styles and the already popular mento, ska, and R&B genres of the time.  The 1968 track, Long Shot (Bus’ Me Bet), by The Pioneers is credited as the first recording of a reggae track.  The sound proved so popular that it was influencing the biggest genres and groups of the time, The Beatles’...

The hip-hop subculture that spawned hip-hop music was born in New York City in the early 1970s.  Young African Americans living in the city would attend block parties where DJs gained popularity by isolating the percussion elements of popular songs.  This technique was already popular in Jamaica, and was largely credited to Clive Campbell, aka DJ Kool Herc, who is universally regarded...

Like most music genres, dance can trace its roots far back to the beginning of the 20th century. However, it is only in recent years that dance has truly emerged to become one of the most popular musical styles in the world.

1970s & The Birth of Dance

Dance music as we know it today came to the fore in the 1970s thanks to legendary group Kraftwerk, who are widely...

Like hip-hop, salsa music emerged from New York City during the mid-to-late 1970s. However, the genre was actually popular for 30 years prior to that, just without the term salsa being applied to it. The Cuban community in the city, particularly Afro-Cubans, were mainly responsible for its popularity, with mambo bands playing regularly at venues across the city in the 1940s and 1950s.