Jamaican reggae singer Jimmy Cliff, a key architect of the island’s modern sound and one of the first to take it to global audiences, has died at 81, his wife said on Monday.
“It is with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia,” Latifa Chambers wrote on Instagram, thanking family, friends, artists and colleagues for their support throughout his life.
Cliff, born James Chambers, began recording as a teenager during the rise of Jamaica’s early ska scene in the 1960s. His crisp vocals and socially conscious lyrics quickly set him apart, and as the music slowed into rocksteady and later evolved into reggae, Cliff adapted seamlessly, becoming one of the few artists whose career spanned all three eras of the island’s shifting sound.
His international breakthrough came in 1972 with The Harder They Come, a film in which he starred and for which he contributed several songs. The soundtrack — mixing ska-inflected rhythms with emerging reggae grooves — introduced global audiences to a sound still largely unfamiliar outside Jamaica.
Tracks such as Many Rivers to Cross showcased Cliff’s blend of gospel-influenced melody, soul phrasing and reggae rhythm, while You Can Get It If You Really Want highlighted his shift toward more polished, cross-genre songwriting.
Across the 1970s and 1980s he experimented with pop, soul, funk and world-music elements, broadening reggae’s sonic palette and paving the way for later crossover acts. His collaborations with international producers and musicians helped position reggae not just as a regional style but as a flexible global genre. Cliff’s adaptability allowed him to remain relevant for decades, influencing artists from ska revivalists to contemporary world-music performers.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010 and continued recording and touring into his later years, maintaining a reputation as one of reggae’s most versatile and enduring figures.
