CAPLETON (born Clifton George Bailey III, 13 April 1967), a Jamaican dancehall reggae artist who has used his music to address social issues and as an expression of Rastafarian spirituality. He is also called Capleton the Prophet, The Fireman, King Shango, and King David. Capleton hits include “Stay Far from Trouble,” “More Prophet,” “Who Dem,” “Ready When U Ready,” and “Look Good in Her Clothes.” The dancehall genre, also known as “ragamuffin,” is a branch of reggae that originated in Jamaica in the 1980s. It generally features a DJ or “sing-jay,” who sings and raps “slack” lyrics. The rhythms of dancehall are generally kept by drum machines at a beat faster than reggae. This rapid musical and lyrical style influenced American gangsta rap of the 1990s.
Capleton was born in the rural town of Islington in Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica. As a child, he was nicknamed after an esteemed attorney of Saint Mary because of his sharp wits. At eighteen, he moved to Kingston and immersed himself in dancehall reggae, refining his deejay skills while working odd jobs. He became popular locally and soon won an audition spot with African Star, the Toronto-based sound system and record label of Stuart Brown. In Canada, Capleton performed alongside Ninjaman and Flourgon and gained more notoriety. When he returned to Jamaica, he signed a recording deal with Philip “Fatis” Burrel. His first hit single, “Bumbo Red,” although not played much on the radio, was wildly successful in dancehalls; Capleton’s popularity and reputation exploded, and he became a regular headliner, releasing many more hit singles.
By the mid-1990s Capleton had discovered Rastafarianism. He released songs in tribute to Haile Selassie and began to explore the teachings and writings of Marcus Garvey. Through such influences, Capleton’s music and lyrics shifted to explicitly address social and Rasatafarian dimensions, and he declared his newfound spirituality in albums like Good So (1994). Around this time, his music also took on hiphop influences, which led to a record deal with the label Def Jam and the release of Capleton’s fifth studio album, Prophecy (1995), featuring a cameo by Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man. In 1997, he released I-Testament, a second Def Jam album, but would soon return to his reggae roots. In 2003, his album Still Blazin was Grammy nominated. Fire is often featured as a central theme in Capleton’s work and serves as a symbol of spiritual purity.