Beenie Man Talks Bounty Killer, Dancehall Clashes & New Album Eminence

For more than three decades, Beenie Man has lived up to one of Jamaican music’s most audacious titles: King of the Dancehall.

The Kingston-born icon emerged from Jamaica’s sound-system culture as a child and ultimately became one of Dancehall’s most recognizable global ambassadors. His résumé includes “Who Am I (Sim Simma),” “Girls Dem Sugar,” “Dude” and the Janet Jackson collaboration “Feel It Boy,” plus a 2001 Grammy victory for Art and Life. In 2024, Jamaica awarded him the Order of Distinction for his contribution to the development of Jamaican music and Dancehall.

Now Beenie Man is back with Eminence, a 16-track album that reconnects him with Mýa and brings Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg, T.I., Ashanti, Elephant Man, Etana and others into his universe.

But when Beenie sat down with AllHipHop, the album was only part of the conversation. He talked about what separates a genuine Dancehall clash from internet beef, why some modern producers are hurting riddim culture, and what really happened when police interrupted his legendary Verzuz with Bounty Killer.

Lastly, he explains why he’s still prepared to defend his crown after all these years.

AllHipHop: You’ve always been able to bridge gaps without people saying, “He moved over, he went pop.” How do you do that?

Beenie Man: It’s not popular. It’s getting somewhere where other people in other genres know you. If you stick to one genre, then you’re just going to be that one person. You have to move to other genres, but still stick to the Dancehall original.

I’m still a Dancehall artist, regardless if me sing with Mýa, sing with Janet Jackson. I’m still Beenie Man. When you come to a Beenie Man show, you still hear Dancehall music. It’s not like I’m going to do a Hip-Hop show.

AllHipHop: Is that what you were trying to accomplish with Eminence?

Beenie Man: We talk about being international and being a Dancehall artist at the same time, because I’m a Jamaican that becomes global. I’m not a global artist who tried to be a Jamaican.

I am a Jamaican that was in Jamaica, then came to America, then go to Europe, go to England, go to Africa, all over the world, and make myself who I am.

There’s no changes in me.

AllHipHop: How do you keep up with today’s Dancehall?

Beenie Man: We listen to Dancehall music every day because you have to listen to the young artists. You have to know where them inspiration come from. You have to know where them deh with the music, because if you don’t know that, then you’re not going to last in the business.

The greatest thing in music is to adjust and adapt.

Evolution is a must.

AllHipHop: There are plenty of clashes happening now. When you see artists going at each other, does it remind you of the clashes you came up in?

Beenie Man: No clash not going on right now.

Every man a sing music. A man sing a song about that man, and a man sing a next song about that man. Everybody listen to it on YouTube or everybody watch it on social media. That is not clash. That is not what me know.

Me come from sound-system days.

Clash is face-to-face. Me and you clash, we sing some song together. When me and Bounty Killer clash, we clash because we actually meet onstage.

AllHipHop: So you prefer that format over record-for-record?

Beenie Man: If an artist clash next artist, him supposed to clash him face-to-face.

The songs them bad, no disrespect to the artists. The songs them bad. But I feel like if an artist clash next artist, him supposed to clash him face-to-face.

AllHipHop: You and Bounty changed Verzuz because you were actually together.

Beenie Man: This is a clash!

Me and you go lyrics-to-lyrics and we show each other, show the world what’s going on. That’s a clash.

It’s not me in New York and you in California.

AllHipHop: Then the police showed up. What actually happened?

Beenie Man: There’s people there, man. Trust me. There’s people there. You have food people there, people there with drinks, management, producers and other people running the studio.

Police pass and see cars park up and thing, and them wonder what’s going on. So when them actually came in, we actually break.

Them come to me and say, “Yo, what going on?”

It’s live!

We have over 750,000 people online, and then you come ask me what is going on?

Do you want to be that guy? Seriously?

AllHipHop: That moment became legendary.

Beenie Man: And that is what a clash is. You entertain people and people be entertained. Them can talk about it at all times.

In my life and my music, when you work hard in the studio, you work harder onstage.

When you’re onstage and you perform, you have to move and you have to perform to the music. That’s the big difference between our clash and these clashes.

AllHipHop: You also came from an era where one riddim could have multiple classic songs. Has that changed?

Beenie Man: You have all of these riddims where you have 10, 15 artists and you have 10 hit songs on one beat.

Now you have one beat with 50 songs and it don’t make no sense. It’s only one song on the beat.

The new music can make, no problem with that, but you need to get back to what Dancehall is, where a producer actually produces.

When you have 40 songs on one [riddim], and 30 songs say nothing and 10 songs say everything, then everybody try play the 40 songs.

AllHipHop: Do politics between artists and producers play a role?

Beenie Man: You have different producers with different mindset. Sometimes the producer them have some artists who not too like you. So you’re not going to get the riddim because the producer don’t want to lose them artist.

Sometimes I feel like some people threatened by competition.

Me and you cannot have a competition because I’m here before you. You come here and see me. Me never come here and see you.

There’s a big difference.

AllHipHop: You and Bounty Killer have been through a lot yourselves. How did two legendary rivals eventually become friends?

Beenie Man: You know your enemy is your friend when we throw words upon each other, but we never knock fist.

And if somebody try to fight you, him try to defend you. Anytime somebody talk anything about you, him tell them, “Move from side with that.”

And I done the same thing.

So you know, alright, if you and this man link up fi talk, it easy. Them want talk to you and you want talk to them. This is how you know that you have a friend indeed.

Sometimes them do something really off, but it’s not for you to hang them up for that because that’s how they is from the first time. You know the person already. You can’t take it personal.

AllHipHop: After more than 30 years, Grammys and everything else, what goals are left?

Beenie Man: The goal now is just do it again.

You get Grammy, you win the next one. You get American Music Award, you win the next one.

Every award you win already, all you can do is just do it again.

The goal is not looking back and saying, “Okay, I have Grammy already. I have that already. I have this already.” So me stop? No.

It’s go further and forward and push.

It’s not about the awards and trophies and anything that you get. It’s about the music. And if you love this music, you’re not going to stop doing this music.

AllHipHop: Give me your top five Dancehall artists, dead or alive.

Beenie Man: Shabba Ranks. Super Cat. God rest him soul, Major Worries. General Echo. And my next Dancehall artist, to be honest, is Bounty Killer.

AllHipHop: After everything you’ve survived, do you still feel competition?

Beenie Man: When it come to competition, it’s not something me run from.

A king always fight for him throne. A king always fight for him crown. A king always defend him kingdom.

My kingdom is Dancehall.

I don’t know where you are about, or where you want to fight, but you can’t take my kingdom from me.

I am always here, and I will always be who I am.

Blessings.