Watusi (band)
Encyclopedia
Watusi is a popular Reggae
/Worldbeat
band formed in Dallas, TX in 1982 by Jimi Towry and a Rwanda
n native, Ruta Gengwa. Pioneers of the "Worldbeat" mix of Reggae
, soca
, Afrikan, Latin, funk
and jazz
styles, they have spread their music all over the world.
Original artists on the World Beatnik Records label, Watusi has won many awards for Reggae and Worldbeat and have gained international airplay in 106 countries, performed from Hawaii to Jamaica, Costa Rica and Mexico, and earned the respect of the international reggae and worldbeat communities, fans and artists. Mentored by the late, great Peter Tosh, one of Jamaica's original Wailers with Bob Marley, Jimi, a native of Oklahoma, met Peter Tosh in 1976 and went to live in Jamaica in 1981, getting the roots of the music and "kulcha" from the source. Watusi has performed with all of the top reggae artists and continues to spread their music and "One Love" message to the masses worldwide.
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
/Worldbeat
Worldbeat
Worldbeat is a music genre that primarily refers to a blending of Western pop music with traditional/folk or world music influences...
band formed in Dallas, TX in 1982 by Jimi Towry and a Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
n native, Ruta Gengwa. Pioneers of the "Worldbeat" mix of Reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
, soca
Soca music
Soca is a style of music from Trinidad and Tobago. Soca is a musical development of traditional Trinidadian calypso, through loans from the 1960s onwards from predominantly black popular music....
, Afrikan, Latin, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
styles, they have spread their music all over the world.
Original artists on the World Beatnik Records label, Watusi has won many awards for Reggae and Worldbeat and have gained international airplay in 106 countries, performed from Hawaii to Jamaica, Costa Rica and Mexico, and earned the respect of the international reggae and worldbeat communities, fans and artists. Mentored by the late, great Peter Tosh, one of Jamaica's original Wailers with Bob Marley, Jimi, a native of Oklahoma, met Peter Tosh in 1976 and went to live in Jamaica in 1981, getting the roots of the music and "kulcha" from the source. Watusi has performed with all of the top reggae artists and continues to spread their music and "One Love" message to the masses worldwide.