Reggae music is mourning the loss of one of its greatest pioneers following the death of Jamaican icon Jimmy Cliff. The globally acclaimed singer and actor passed away at the age of 81, his wife Latifa Chambers confirmed on Monday.
“It is with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia,” she wrote in a statement released on his official Instagram page. She thanked family, friends, fellow artists, and fans worldwide, noting that their support had been his strength throughout his long and influential career.
Cliff, a versatile multi-instrumentalist, spent more than four decades shaping reggae into an international force. His music, infused with elements of folk, soul, ska, and rock, addressed social and political themes such as poverty, injustice, and war. He is celebrated for timeless hits including You Can Get It If You Really Want and The Harder They Come, and is widely regarded as reggae’s most influential figure after Bob Marley, with whom he collaborated early in Marley’s career.
His breakthrough came with the 1972 film The Harder They Come, in which he starred. The movie, partly inspired by his own childhood experiences in poverty, propelled both Cliff and reggae music onto the world stage and remains a cornerstone of Jamaican cultural history.
Tributes have poured in from around the world, including from Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who described Cliff as “a true cultural giant whose music carried the heart of our nation to the world.”
“His music lifted people through hard times, inspired generations, and helped shape the global respect Jamaican culture enjoys today,” Holness said. “Walk good, Jimmy Cliff. Your legacy lives on in every corner of our island and in the hearts of the Jamaican people.”
