Reggae and Christian Rock

In class on Wednesday, we discussed the similarities and differences between Christian Rock and Roots Reggae (Reggae specifically associated with the Rastafari movement). The class seemed to agree that Reggae was more integral to Rastafari than Christian Rock was to Christianity. At the time I was skeptical, but did not have enough information to disprove this theory. Well, I have done a bit of research, and have concluded that Roots Reggae and Christian Rock do serve the same purpose for Rastafari and Christianity, respectively.

Here are three ways of looking at our misconceptions:

1. First, I believe that this misconception of Roots Reggae comes from our lack of understanding of other cultures' music. We know first hand that there is more to Rock than Christian Rock (most of you have probably just exclaimed, "duh!"). However, when we only know surface bits of a culture, we automatically assume a very serious connection between all the bits, likely stemming from the serious nature of studying. While we should not discount anything we learn while studying, we should not automatically assume that all Rastas are serious about reggae just because we have suddenly become so.

2. Another misconception that comes with our lack of knowledge is the assumption that Reggae music was conceived of as religious music, and had thus had religious roots. I'm not sure if anyone specifically stated this in class, but it is a logical next step, assuming the class's logic. We assume this because of this all-encompassing grouping of Roots Reggae and Rastafari. We have decided that Roots Reggae is integral to Rastafari, thus we might assume that it could only have been conceived of as Rastafari music.

3. I also feel that we translate the popularity of the music (or our own level of liking the music) into a measurement of the affect or importance the music has to the group it is associated with. We young Americans generally like reggae music. Because it was built upon hip-hop, R&B, and soul, you could say it is a cousin of modern American popular music. When we learn that much of it is spiritual music, we automatically assume that all Rastas love it also (both because it is "their" spiritual music, and because we happen to like it). But, just because Bush supports the Iraq war does not mean the war will automatically support him. This is a case of unrequited love.

I do not mean to say by this that those who play and listen to Roots Reggae are not serious in their meaning, feelings, and beliefs. I mean to say that Roots Reggae, while important to some, is not integral to the entire religion—and thus is not taken seriously by all Rastas. In fact, "some orthodox Rastas disdain reggae as a form of commercial music and a 'sell-out to Babylon.'" While many of the creators of Reggae were Rastas, it was, and is not an entirely spiritual music. The ancestors of Reggae music are also not entirely religious—original Reggae was inspired by ska, which was in turn inspired by popular American music and African rhythms. "But Roots Reggae is entirely spiritual", you say. Yes, but it is not the main spiritual music for Rastas, and it is not spiritual to all Rastas. The main spiritual music, the kind used in worship ceremonies is called nyabinghi, and "is the most integral form of Rastafarian music." It has its roots in East Africa between 1850 and 1950. Use of nyabinghi in the Rastafari movement includes rhythmic chanting of many Christian texts, including Psalms and hymns.

Thus, it seems that Roots Reggae actually serves quite a similar purpose to Christian Rock. They are both emotionally spiritual, and inspire many people around their respective religions, but they are harmonically and rhythmically secular. * Also, they are not spiritual to all in their respective religions. There is a traditional form of spiritual music for each religion—nyabinghi for the Rastafarian movement, and traditional hymns or Latin chants for Christianity.




*The base of both Roots Reggae and Christian Rock are secular, but some artists may choose to integrate spiritual music (hymns or nyaginghi). This does not mean that the music itself (not the text and emotional content) can be classified as completely spiritual.