Reggae Dancehall Pioneers: King Edwards | The Third Giant of the Original Sound System Trinity episode artwork

EPISODE · May 12, 2026 · 22 MIN

Reggae Dancehall Pioneers: King Edwards | The Third Giant of the Original Sound System Trinity

from History of the Caribbeans | Exploring Resilience and Culture · host history experts | Joe & Kevin

Before the recording studios. Before the international labels. Before the world knew what Jamaica was capable of — three men were running speaker systems in Kingston's open yards, competing for the loyalty of a working-class community that needed music the way it needed air. Tom The Great Sebastian. Duke Reid. And King Edwards — the foundational figure the written record has been slowest to reclaim. This episode tells the story of the man who helped build the world's first DJ culture, who disappeared from the documentation before the cameras arrived, and whose mystery — a record he played at every dance but never let finish — has never been solved. Part of the History of the Caribbean series. New episodes weekly.

Before the recording studios. Before the international labels. Before the world knew what Jamaica was capable of — three men were running speaker systems in Kingston's open yards, competing for the loyalty of a working-class community that needed music the way it needed air. Tom The Great Sebastian. Duke Reid. And King Edwards — the foundational figure the written record has been slowest to reclaim. This episode tells the story of the man who helped build the world's first DJ culture, who disappeared from the documentation before the cameras arrived, and whose mystery — a record he played at every dance but never let finish — has never been solved. Part of the History of the Caribbean series. New episodes weekly.

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Reggae Dancehall Pioneers: King Edwards | The Third Giant of the Original Sound System Trinity

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This episode was published on May 12, 2026.

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Before the recording studios. Before the international labels. Before the world knew what Jamaica was capable of — three men were running speaker systems in Kingston's open yards, competing for the loyalty of a working-class community that needed...

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