From Burna Boy to Yemi Alade: 10 Afrobeats Stars with Dancehall Ties

This longform guide explores how Afrobeats artists — from Burna Boy to Yemi Alade — collaborate with or borrow from Jamaican Dancehall. Each section highlights key songs and partnerships, linking Africa and the Caribbean across the Black Atlantic.

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Introduction

The global rise of Afrobeats is inseparable from its ties to other diasporic genres, especially Dancehall. Born in Kingston, Jamaica in the late 1970s, Dancehall reshaped global rhythm with riddim-based minimalism, patois-coded lyrics, and singjay performance (Barrow & Dalton, 2004; Manuel & Marshall, 2006).

As Afrobeats spread worldwide in the 2010s–2020s, it frequently intertwined with Dancehall — sometimes through direct collaborations with Jamaican artists, other times through rhythmic and linguistic borrowings. This article highlights 10 leading Afrobeats stars and their Dancehall connections, serving as a navigational pillar with links to detailed case studies.

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1. Top 5 Burna Boy Songs and Collaborations with Dancehall Artists

Burna Boy embodies Afrofusion, weaving reggae and Dancehall into Nigerian frameworks. His collaborations with Popcaan (“Toni-Ann Singh”), Beenie Man (“Realest”), and Sean Paul (“Boom Boom Remix”) cement his Dancehall ties. Even solo tracks like Ye and Gbona use riddim-style beats, confirming his position as a bridge artist.

[Read full Burna Boy × Dancehall analysis →]

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2. 7 Wizkid Songs with Dancehall Influence You Should Know

Wizkid blends Caribbean inflections across his catalog. Songs like Wine to the Top (with Vybz Kartel), Naughty Ride (with Major Lazer), and Ghetto Love showcase riddim borrowings, patois phrases, and Dancehall grooves. Wizkid’s subtle use of Caribbean phrasing expands Afrobeats’ reach in diasporic hubs like London.

[Read full Wizkid × Dancehall analysis →]

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3. Top Davido Tracks That Cross Over with Dancehall

Davido is best known for Risky (with Popcaan), one of Afrobeats’ clearest Afro–Dancehall crossovers. But other tracks like Assurance, Like Dat, and Fall also integrate riddim logic and romantic themes associated with Jamaican Dancehall. Davido’s approach demonstrates Afrobeats’ global flexibility.

[Read full Davido × Dancehall analysis →]

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4. 5 Rema Songs That Carry Dancehall Style and Vibes

Rema’s Afrorave identity thrives on hybridity. Tracks like Soundgasm, Lady, Wine (with Yseult), and Holiday reveal Dancehall grooves, patois-coded lyrics, and singjay cadences. Rema represents a younger generation of Afrobeats stars who treat Caribbean borrowings as core, not decorative.

[Read full Rema × Dancehall analysis →]

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5. Ayra Starr’s Key Dancehall-Inspired Songs: From “Santa” to “Hot Body”

Ayra Starr leans intentionally into Caribbean influence. Her collaboration on Santa with Jamaican producer Rvssian and her 2025 single Hot Body (marketed as “dancehall-infused”) prove Dancehall’s role in her sound. Critics also noted Dancehall textures across her album The Year I Turned 21.

[Read full Ayra Starr × Dancehall analysis →]

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6. Top 5 Tiwa Savage Collaborations with Dancehall Stars

Tiwa Savage’s work with Busy Signal (Keys to the Kingdom) and Popcaan (Stamina Remix) demonstrates her role in Afro-Caribbean collaborations. These tracks matter symbolically, showing female agency across two male-dominated genres.

[Read full Tiwa Savage × Dancehall analysis →]

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7. Tems Songs with Dancehall Vibes: A Breakdown of 4 Standout Tracks

Tems doesn’t feature Jamaican artists directly, but songs like Replay, Free Mind, Try Me, and her feature on Essence (with Wizkid) carry Dancehall undertones in their riddim structures and phrasing. Tems exemplifies subtle diasporic resonance.

[Read full Tems × Dancehall analysis →]

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8. Fireboy DML’s Top Dancehall-Influenced Songs for the Club

Fireboy infuses club energy into Afrobeats with Dancehall borrowings. Tracks like Peru (Remix), Lifestyle, Scatter, and Afar use riddim minimalism, patois-coded phrasing, and singjay cadences, aligning his music with Jamaican club logics.

[Read full Fireboy × Dancehall analysis →]

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9. 4 CKay Tracks That Show His Dancehall Crossover Side

CKay’s emo-Afrobeats also carries Caribbean resonance. Emiliana (with its “gyal” lyric), Love Nwantiti (Remix), By Your Side, and Kiss Me Like You Miss Me reveal Dancehall-coded beats and phrasing. CKay demonstrates how intimacy meets riddim minimalism.

[Read full CKay × Dancehall analysis →]

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10. Yemi Alade’s Dancehall Collaborations: Spice, Kranium, and Beyond

Yemi Alade partners directly with Dancehall artists. Her Bubble It collaboration with Spice and My Man with Kranium highlight female-led Afro–Dancehall solidarity. These songs expand Afrobeats’ reach while affirming diasporic sisterhood.

[Read full Yemi Alade × Dancehall analysis →]

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Conclusion

Afrobeats × Dancehall collaborations represent more than genre fusion. They embody diasporic reconnection, cultural solidarity, and global strategy. Burna Boy and Davido pursue direct partnerships, while Rema and Tems adopt stylistic borrowings. Tiwa Savage and Yemi Alade highlight female leadership in Afro-Caribbean dialogues.

Together, these ten artists demonstrate that Afrobeats is not just Africa’s sound — it is part of the Black Atlantic circulation of music, forever in conversation with Kingston’s Dancehall.