Our Best of the Best Spotify playlist will make you an instant dancehall queen

It’s Memorial Day Weekend and for dancehall, reggae and soca fans that means time for one of the biggest Caribbean music carnivals, the Best of the Best Music Fest.

Celebrating its 11th year, the Sunday festival at Miami’s Bayfront Park has developed a reputation for bringing dancehall and reggae legends to the stage, from Buju Banton to “Queen of Slackness,” Lady Saw, to Shabba Ranks. Among this year’s line up:  Barrington Levy (“Too Experienced”), Mad Cobra (“Flex”) and Mavado (“So Special), who in 2011 signed onto DJ Khaled’s We The Best Music Group label.

This year, music fans are being offered something more than just the concert on Sunday. The Best of the Best weekend kicks off Friday night with a party at Cafe Iguana in Pembroke Pines. On Saturday, there is “I Love the 90s” party at 380 District and on Monday, the “All White Boatride.” (For a listing of events go to www.bestofthebestconcert.com)

1. “Too Experienced” – Barrington Levy

1. This veteran reggae artist revitalized dancehall, giving it a distinct, edgy sound. Though one can’t go wrong with hits like, “Here I come,” which once helped earned Levy the Best Vocalist award at Britain’s Reggae Awards, “Too Experienced,” still has fans jamming decades after it exploded onto the dancehall scene. The song’s slow melody, coupled with Levy’s distinctive voice, makes it a timeless classic.

2. “So Special” – Mavado

2. If you’re familiar with Grand Theft Auto 4: Liberty City than you’ve heard Mavado’s track, “Real McKoy With a Full Clip.” This reggae artist who is now signed to DJ Khaled’s We The Best Music Group label has many hits including his crossover song “I’m on the Rock” with Jay-Z. But it is his commercial hit, “So Special,” that remains popular with clubgoers because it’s sure to get the party jumping.

3. “Bruk Off Yuh Back” – Konshens

3. New on the scene, Konshens has been dubbed the new face of dancehall. He had one of the most popular dancehall hits globally with his 2016 release about getting down with the girls, “Bruk Off Yuh Back.” Already hot, the song became even hotter after its remix featuring Breezy, R&B singer Chris Brown.

4. “Fi Di Jockey” – Aidonia

4. Ladies, you think you can dance? Well, put on Aidonia’s “Fi Di Jockey,” and show your best booty shaking moves in this raunchy reggae dancehall tune. It remains one of the most popular dance tracks in the clubs.

5. “Cheater’s Prayer” – Christopher Martin

5. That voice. Martin is one of those singers, and his sweet voice still invites the ladies to sing along whenever “Chearter’s Prayer” comes on.

6. “Shabba Madda Pot” – Dexta Daps

6. “Shabba Madda Pot” is the song that Dexta Daps hit the reggae/dancehall scene with and remains his biggest hit.

7. “So Mi Like It” –  Spice

7. If there is an artist who has always shown love for dancehall star Vybz Kartel, it is Spice. So fans of course were taken aback when she once pulled a Kanye West on Twitter and went after her former mentor (currently serving life in a Jamaican prison for murder) after her song “So Mi Like It” lost out to Kartel’s “Miami Vice” for song of the year. Still, the song is hot, and so, too, are her collaborations with Kartel, “Romping Shop” and “Conjugal Visit” that helped build her following.

8. “A Little Wine” – Patrice Roberts 

8. Followers of soca music may know Roberts’ from her days with soca bad boy and monarch, Machel Montano. But it would be “A Little Wine,” Roberts’ biggest hit, that would give her recognition as she carved out her solo career. The song also gave her some international presence.

9. “Flex” – Mad Cobra

9. Need we say more about, “Flex, time to have sex?” This song from the era when almost anything dancehall made you dance, remains an old-time classic that still has fans “flexing” in the clubs.

10. “Gain the World” – Jahmiel

10. Even as dancehall loses momentum, there are still some newcomers on the scene and carving out their niche. Jahmiel is one of them with his tune, “Gain the world.”

This story was originally published May 25, 2017 at 9:05 PM.