Today (August 22) marks the ‘King of Dancehall’, Beenie Man’s 49th birthday.

Now known as one of Jamaica’s dancehall icons, Beenie Man has been releasing hit after hit since the 1980s.

In recognition of the outstanding contribution the artiste has made to Jamaica, specifically dancehall culture, Our Today has compiled a list of some of the notable songs from the artiste’s decades-long career.

King of the Dancehall

At the time of the song’s release (2004), Beenie Man was arguably the most worthy of the title ‘King of Dancehall’

Written by Tony Kelly, Maurice Gregory and Beenie Man himself, ‘King of the Dancehall’ became a title many other dancehall artistes would covet.

Vybz Kartel even released an album with the same name years later, challenging Beenie’s title.

Girls Dem Sugar

Girls Dem Sugar is a reggae fusion song featuring singer-songwriter Mya.

The song was written by Beenie Man, Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams and featured on his 2000 studio album Art and Life.

Fun fact, this song was inspired by his 1997 hit Who Am I (Sim Simma).

Blackboard

The teacher ready to mark up your ‘Blackboard’

Beenie Man is pleased to teach men how to please the women in their lives with his 1996 hit.

The song was produced by Aiden Jones and features Leroy ‘The Hornsman’ with his incredible trumpet solos

Who Am I (Sim Simma)

Written in 1996, Who Am I came about as a freestyle to the rhythm of Sean Paul’s song, Infiltrate.

The song’s controversial lyric, “How can I make love to a fellow?” stirred up much conversation in the ’90s, which contributed greatly to the artiste’s success.

Who Am I reached #6 on the US BillBoard Hot Rap Singles Chart and #15 On the Hot R&B Singles Chart.

Blessings Pon Blessings

Blessings Pon Blessings is a biblically inspired track which preaches messages about Jesus Christ.

The song features several references to scripture and contains words of hope, love, joy, salvation and gratitude.

Beenie Man released the project with the intention of reminding believers that the time is near.