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Reggae is amusic genre that originated inJamaica in the late 1960s. Australia has several bands andsound systems that play reggae music in a style faithful to its expression in Jamaica. Australia has a relatively small Jamaican community, but reggae penetrated local consciousness via the popularity of reggae among the non-Jamaican population of England in the 1960s and 1970s. Manyindigenous musicians have embraced reggae, both for its musical qualities and its ethos of resistance. Examples include Mantaka,No Fixed Address, Zennith andColoured Stone.

The first Reggae sound system in Australia was Soulmaker, established in 1972 by J.J. Roberts, a Jamaican fromSaint Catherine Parish.Bob Marley & The Wailers toured Australia in 1979, playingBrisbane,Adelaide,Perth,Melbourne and Sydney. Reggae had success on the radio charts in New Zealand in the early 1980s whenToots and the Maytals, the first artist to use the term "reggae" in song, went to number one with their song "Beautiful Woman".^[1][2] One of the first Australian reggae bands was Untabu. The original members of the band came from Trinidad & Tobago, Bruce Mc Clean - guitar and Errol H Renaud - steel pan, lead singer Ras Roni from Barbados, percussionist Jorge Morales from Puerto Rico and Fijians Rupeni Davui - bass, James Purmodh - drums and Joel Knight - keys. They had releases on Larrikin Records and were resident in a number of clubs in the Darlinghurst and Manly area of Sydney. They also toured the East coast regularly. They performed original music and reggae covers. The Aboriginal band No Fixed Address from Adelaide also had reggae songs in their repertoire. In 1981, the Australian bandMen at work topped the Australian charts with the reggae-rock songDown Under. The same song topped the New Zealand charts in February 1982. The song topped the Canadian charts in October 1982 and, in the United States, the song debuted on theBillboard Hot 100.

In 1984, Australian label Corroboree Records had its first release withDangerous Times.^[3] This 7" single was recorded atChannel One Studios with theRoots Radics, voiced and mixed at King Tubby's with Bugs as engineer, and voiced by Dudley Green andGeneral Justice. It Contains the song "Dangerous Dub" on the B side, which was mixed byKing Tubby. It was released in Jamaica, the UK and Australia.In 1985 Larry Maluma arrived in Australia from Zambia with master tapes recorded in Zambia. He remixed a couple of tracks, Black or White and Chimutima Chako at AAV studios in Melbourne for a 45 single vinyl which was released in 1986 under his own newly formed independent (Safari Music) label. In 1987, two years after his arrival fromZambiaLarry Maluma released his first albumConfusion on his ownSafari Music label. The video clip "Black and White" from the same album was aired onCountdown Revolution andRock Arena onABC. Larry Maluma went on to release his 14th album,Ndakondwa (I'm Happy), in 2014.

The first notabledub release in Australia wasTen Dubs That Shook The World by Sheriff Lindo and the Hammer, issued on the artist's own label, Endless Recordings, in 1988. The LP was reissued on theCreative Vibes label with five extra tracks in 1998, and again by EM Records of Japan in 2006, on CD (catalogue number EM1049CD) and LP (EM1049LP), limited to 500 copies. The CD version contains five extra tracks.

Melbourne-based bandThe Red Eyes released their first live CD in 2003Live at the Evelyn, following it with two CD EPs, two full-length albums (Rudeworld in 2006 andRed Army in 2010) and the 2011 singleCircles before disbanding.^[4] Their catalog contains reggae, dub and occasional drum 'n' bass tracks. The band's lead singer El Witeri is Maori, and their work has been remixed by New Zealand dub producer,Deep Fried Dub.

In September 2006,Astronomy Class releasedExit Strategy on the record labelElefant Traks. The record fused reggae andhip hop music. In February 2007,Melbourne-based producerMista Savona releasedMelbourne Meets Kingston on Elefant Traks. It is a 21-track collaboration with Jamaican singers anddeejays such asAnthony B,Determine andBig Youth. In September 2008, the Sydney-based band King Tide released their debut albumTo our Dearly Deported on the UK label Urban Sedated. The single "No Dog War" was used worldwide by theSony corporation for theirWag the Dog campaign. The commercial shot in Brazil featured members from the cast of the feature filmCity of God. In December 2009, Australian artistMatty Woods releasedThe Ras Gong Guerrilla EP, a 10-track recording that tackles Australian and international political issues such asIndigenoussovereignty,climate change and human rights.^[5]

Waves of migration to Australia in the late 20th and early 21st centuries have brought musicians from Africa and Asia to Australia, where they have continued to write, record and perform reggae music, sometimes in combination with other more directly African forms of music. In South Australia,Ras Minano is one example, and the dancehall artist Sokel is another. In Melbourne, Ras Jahknow and the Irie Band (which has Sri Lankan roots) are two more examples.

Desert Reggae is a developing contemporary style possibly originating inCentral Australia and featuring lyrics often sung in Australian Aboriginal languages. As of 2015, many indigenous Australian artists from the Northern Territory represented by the Aboriginal owned and operated music label CAAMA Music identify as reggae or ska artists (often in combination with rock). Artists includeTjintu Desert Band (previously known as Sunshine Reggae) andTjupi Band. Some also identify as Desert Reggae artists, with examples includingLajamanu Teenage Band, Rising Wind,^[6] Irrunytju Band and Eastern Arrernte Band.^[7] Annual music event Bush Bands Bash in Alice Springs features many Desert Reggae bands.^[8]

Reggaeton, a music genre that blends reggae, hip hop, and traditionalLatin American music, is also popular in Australia. The genre first came to prominence whenPuerto Rican reggaeton artistDaddy Yankee released his most notable single, "Gasolina," to Australian radio in 2006. Already a hit worldwide, it reached a peak of No. 12 on theARIA Singles Chart and was certifiedPlatinum,^[9] making it one of the few Spanish-language songs to reach that position on the Australian charts.

A range of reggae festivals and festivals highlighting reggae music are held around Australia. Queensland hosts more than any other state, with Reggaetown and Kuranda Roots held near Cairns in far north Queensland, and Good Love (formerly One Love) held at the Gold Coast. Good Love Festival^[10] is one of New Zealand's largest and most iconic music events, and made its Australian debut^[11] in 2020 headlined byShaggy andSean Paul. In 2022, the festival changed its name to Good Love.^[12]

In 2016, the firstJamaican Music & Food Festival was held in Melbourne, Victoria featuring reggae and other music of Jamaican origin. Sponsored by PBS and with live performances by Australian artists, bands and DJs, the festival has also featured many international artists including Jamaican reggae singerBushman, British vocalistGeneral Levy and soul singerRichie Stephens. In 2019 the festival also took place in Sydney, NSW and featuredMad Professor as its headline performer.^[13]

Byron BayReggaefest^[14] started at The Brewery^[15] (28°38′42″S153°36′17″E / 28.64507°S 153.604697°E /-28.64507; 153.604697; previously known as The Buddha Bar) on 4 December 2010 planned a 2-day festival atMissingham Park, Ballina NSW^[16] on 17 & 18 September 2011.

South Beach annual Reggae PartyFremantle Western Australia started in 1998.

Raggamuffin Music Festival was an annual reggae music festival that toured Australia and New Zealand. The festival postponed in 2017 and has not returned since.

Dub in the Park was an annual festival of dub, roots and world music first held inAdelaide, South Australia in 2016.^[17] The festival was discontinued in 2019.

Notable Australian reggae radio programs of the past includeSplashdown andThe Pounding System. Australia's longest running reggae radio show isJamdown Vershun which has been broadcasting on 92.1 FM in Perth with selector General Justice since July 1979.^[18] The Jamaican singer,producer, andbroadcasterMikey Dread produced and presented a reggae radio special for2JJJ in the mid to late 1980s.

In Melbourne, the PBS 106.7FM program "Babylon Burning" (formerly known as "Chant Down Babylon")^[19] has been presented by Jesse I since the late 1990s.

Foreigndub ran a weekly radio show in Sydney on 94.5FM – FBI radio every Sunday from 5–7 pm called 'Foreigndub Airways'. They broadcast the show 2010-2019, now moved to 3-5pm Sunday slot on 2SER and stream worldwide.

Every Saturday afternoon,4ZZZ presentsThe Yard, a Reggae show from 4-6pm with selecta Basmati (Rhythm Collision Sound)

Every Wednesday Morning 12 am −2amFresh 92.7 a community station based in Adelaide has a reggae dancehall show calledDancehall & Ting which has aired since July 2012 and is hosted by DJ Ragz.

In 2013 An online radio station,Australia Reggae Radio (ARR) began broadcasting from Melbourne. ARR plays 24-hour Reggae and Dancehall music, 7 days a week.^[20] Run by a former Jamaican music executive and current selector and MC, Zare Demus, ARR features a broad range of reggae and dancehall shows from both Australian and international DJs including, but not limited to, Robert Ragz –Dancehall and Ting from Adelaide, Australia; Basmati –The Yard from Brisbane, Australia; Zare Demus –The Zare Demus Show from Melbourne, Australia; Mumma Trees –Jamdown Vershun from Perth, Australia; DJ Septik –Slow Bounce from Brussels, Belgium and Young Lion –Young Lion Show from the UK.

In 2017^[21] The first-ever chart dedicated to reggae and dancehall music established in Australia by radio presenterDJ Ragz,^[22] music producerDJ Wade^[23] andDancehall Reggae Australia.^[24]

• Blue King Brown
• Kattimoni
• Nicky Bomba
• Dizzy Dee
• King Tide
• Mista Savona
• Errol H Renaud
• Ras Roni
• Pat Powell
• DJ Astro Black
• Ras Jahknow

• Music of Australia

• OzReggae.com – Australia's #1 Source For All Reggae Runnings
• Australia Reggae Radio
• Dancehall Reggae Australia – Music News and Events from AustraliaArchived 4 March 2020 at theWayback Machine
• Australian Top 25 Dancehall Reggae Chart by DJ Ragz

• Australian styles of music
• Reggae by country

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