News

Reggae pioneer Toots Hibbert has died, aged 77. 

The iconic musician, best known as frontman of reggae and ska band Toots & the Maytals, “passed away peacefully” in hospital in Kingston, Jamaica, according to an official statement from the band on Friday 12th September. 

The exact cause of death isn’t clear, although Hibbert had tested positive for coronavirus, and was then admitted to intensive care. 

It is with the heaviest of hearts to announce that Frederick Nathaniel “Toots” Hibbert passed away peacefully tonight, surrounded by his family at the University Hospital of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica… pic.twitter.com/zOb6yRpJ7n

— Toots & The Maytals (@tootsmaytals) September 12, 2020

 

Hibbert’s contribution to the popularisation of reggae and roots music cannot be understated — with many considering him to be one of the sound’s true godfathers, even coining the genre’s name in his 1968 single, ‘Do The Reggay’. In August, Toots & The Maytals released ‘Got To Be Tough’, their first full length album in more than a decade. Tributes have been pouring in from across the music world and beyond.  

To learn more about the impact of Caribbean soundsystem culture on UK and global dance music dive into our long read, Children of the Windrush Generation.