Each month, we will speak to an athlete, celebrity, or non-Hip Hop entertainer about what Hip Hop means to them. This feature is intended to showcase how far-reaching the influence of Hip Hop culture has grown in the past 50 years and how much the culture means to so many.

This month, we spoke with 2x Grammy nominated, world-renowned Reggae artist Protoje. 

Protoje gained prominence in the “reggae revival” movement with his 2014 hit “Who Knows” featuring Chronixx. Protoje has collaborated with other artists like Jorja Smith, Alicia Keys, Pa Salieu, and Koffee, their track “Switch It Up” was included in Barack Obama’s 2021 Summer Playlist.

Photo credit: Ineffable Music Group

Protoje most recently released ‘Side A‘ of the soundtrack to his upcoming film directorial debut ‘The Jamaican Situation’, due out next Summer.

So Protoje, what does Hip Hop mean to you?

“My first interaction with Hip Hop was Slick Rick’s Children’s Story.” I didn’t even hear the actual song, but just the song being rapped by an older child who spent lots of his summers in America. Because in Jamaica at the time, you couldn’t hear Hip Hop on the radio. 

I was just so enamoured by the vocabulary and the swagger that when I finally heard the actual song, Hip Hop made a deep impact on me. For me, the 90s, the Wu-Tang, Nas, 2Pac, Biggie, the vibe that the music had, the lyrics, the timing, the cadences, the metaphors, the flows, the rhythm, everything about it just really spoke a lot to me and really gave me my start of being a songwriter. 

I always wanted to be a rapper when I grew up. And if you hear my style today, you can still hear all the influences. Bone-Thugs-N-Harmony completely changed my life as well. I was obsessed with the melodies and harmonies. When I finally came into my own as an artist, I used a lot of these same principles but just kept it indigenous to my Jamaican heritage and style.” 

Follow Protoje on Instagram and X.

Read more interviews on The Hip Hop Museum!