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Yellowman

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Winston Foster (b. 1956), the first dancehall deejay to become an international star. An albino orphan who turned the prejudice he faced into a stage persona of outrageous self-confidence, he dominated the early-1980s dancehall era completely — dozens of albums, the first major-label deal for a deejay (CBS, 1981), and a delivery whose melodies hip hop has borrowed ever since. He remained a working performer through decades of ill health.

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Zungguzungguguzungguzeng - Yellowman

SPOTIFY · rights discovery only · performs

Official spotify upload; embedded as a discovery-only reference pending editorial review.

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Yellowman - Zungguzungguguzungguzeng 12'' [Greensleeves Records 1983]

YOUTUBE · rights discovery only · performs

Public youtube upload; embedded as a discovery-only reference pending editorial review.

View transcript · 106 lines

Automatic captions — a machine draft pending editorial review.

  1. 0:00[Music]
  2. 0:05[Music] have
  3. 0:07have
  4. 0:07have a minute and you
  5. 0:11a minute and you
  6. 0:11a minute and you minute set
  7. 0:14minute set
  8. 0:14minute set it
  9. 0:16it
  10. 0:16it z z
  11. 0:18z z
  12. 0:18z z z z say if you have AER you must have
  13. 0:22z z say if you have AER you must have
  14. 0:22z z say if you have AER you must have aen and if you have a start you must
  15. 0:25aen and if you have a start you must
  16. 0:25aen and if you have a start you must have a end say 5 + 5 it equal to 10 and
  17. 0:29have a end say 5 + 5 it equal to 10 and
  18. 0:29have a end say 5 + 5 it equal to 10 and if you have go you put them in a and if
  19. 0:32if you have go you put them in a and if
  20. 0:32if you have go you put them in a and if you have a rooster you must have a end
  21. 0:38[Music]
  22. 0:40[Music] Z
  23. 0:42Z
  24. 0:42Z [Music]
  25. 0:53[Music]
  26. 0:53[Music] happiness boy you know call boy you know
  27. 0:59happiness boy you know call boy you know
  28. 0:59happiness boy you know call boy you know take
  29. 1:03Z watch
  30. 1:05Z watch it catch it
  31. 1:08it catch it
  32. 1:08it catch it [Music]
  33. 1:13[Music]
  34. 1:13[Music] z19 make you feel so
  35. 1:15z19 make you feel so
  36. 1:15z19 make you feel so [Music]
  37. 1:23finec crime car z z z z z z z zing
  38. 1:35he you you must have say if you have a
  39. 1:40he you you must have say if you have a pass me the butow man I'm too much
  40. 1:45pass me the butow man I'm too much
  41. 1:45pass me the butow man I'm too much girlfriend me girl you ID boy
  42. 1:49girlfriend me girl you ID boy
  43. 1:49girlfriend me girl you ID boy have say all of yellow children all of
  44. 1:54have say all of yellow children all of
  45. 1:54have say all of yellow children all of them children King
  46. 2:00them children King
  47. 2:00them children King ask me oh me enough girlfriend too
  48. 2:02ask me oh me enough girlfriend too
  49. 2:03ask me oh me enough girlfriend too arguments I have enough arguments Lord
  50. 2:05arguments I have enough arguments Lord
  51. 2:05arguments I have enough arguments Lord arguments I have enough argument enter
  52. 2:08arguments I have enough argument enter
  53. 2:08arguments I have enough argument enter in the House of Prime Minister his wife
  54. 2:12in the House of Prime Minister his wife
  55. 2:13in the House of Prime Minister his wife keep silent a true yellow man
  56. 2:16keep silent a true yellow man
  57. 2:16keep silent a true yellow man intelligent put me in the cour say
  58. 2:19intelligent put me in the cour say
  59. 2:19intelligent put me in the cour say inocent arent arent SRA should be
  60. 2:25inocent arent arent SRA should be
  61. 2:25inocent arent arent SRA should be girlfriend he lady and should be me
  62. 2:28girlfriend he lady and should be me
  63. 2:28girlfriend he lady and should be me girlfriend maker Z
  64. 2:30girlfriend maker Z
  65. 2:30girlfriend maker Z [Music]
  66. 2:32[Music]
  67. 2:32[Music] you
  68. 2:34you
  69. 2:34you know you
  70. 2:36know you
  71. 2:36know you know
  72. 2:37know
  73. 2:37know [Music]
  74. 2:41boy
  75. 2:43boy [Music]
  76. 2:45[Music]
  77. 2:45[Music] call watch
  78. 2:46call watch
  79. 2:46call watch [Music]
  80. 2:47[Music]
  81. 2:47[Music] it Z leg violence
  82. 2:51it Z leg violence
  83. 2:52it Z leg violence smoke violence go Sil but Yow man come
  84. 2:56smoke violence go Sil but Yow man come
  85. 2:56smoke violence go Sil but Yow man come tell them again you live a king you me a
  86. 3:01tell them again you live a king you me a
  87. 3:01tell them again you live a king you me a say if you have a rooster you must have
  88. 3:03say if you have a rooster you must have
  89. 3:03say if you have a rooster you must have a and if you have a you must have a but
  90. 3:07a and if you have a you must have a but
  91. 3:07a and if you have a you must have a but watchap them
  92. 3:11again watch
  93. 3:15it
  94. 3:23Happ
  95. 3:26Happ Z watch it Z
  96. 3:28Z watch it Z
  97. 3:28Z watch it Z [Music]
  98. 3:34hey like theing
  99. 3:37hey like theing [Music]
  100. 4:06[Music]
  101. 4:06[Music] girlfriend again Lord
  102. 4:28[Music]
  103. 5:00he
  104. 5:04[Music]
  105. 5:30n
  106. 6:00[Music]
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In stories

Story · Well supportedSlackness and culture: dancehall's long argument with itself

How the fight over 'slack' versus 'conscious' lyrics became dancehall's defining debate.

Debate & reception

How people argued about the music — praise, criticism and public debate. See all debate & reception →

commentary

Slackness vs. culture: dancehall's founding moral argument

In the early-to-mid 1980s, as Yellowman's explicit DJing dominated the sound systems and General Echo's raw style set an earlier template, Rasta-aligned elders and cultural nationalists argued that dancehall had traded roots reggae's redemptive, Garveyite mission for vulgarity. Defenders countered that 'slackness' drew on a long working-class bawdy tradition and honest sexual candour, functioning as a release valve for ghetto life, and that the 'slackness vs culture' binary was itself a moralistic imposition. Across the era the two poles — slack DJs and 'culture'/conscious lyricism — coexisted and traded dominance rather than one simply defeating the other.

Stance: slackness as working-class candour vs. slackness as betrayal of reggae's conscious mission

debate

Slackness: working-class candour or betrayal of the message?

Two documented positions on 1980s slackness, stated neutrally: defenders framed explicit lyrics as working-class candour and free expression, while critics saw a betrayal of reggae's conscious mission. No verdict is offered. Sources: Carolyn Cooper, Noises in the Blood; Beth Lesser, Dancehall; Jamaica Gleaner archive.

Stance: working-class candour & free expression vs betrayal of reggae's conscious mission