Ragga Riddim

In the ragga world, riddim — the bass 'n' drum arrangement that pulls you into a track and gives deejays the launch pad for their toasty vocal fireworks — is essentially a digital creation: a synth-generated pattern that has its roots in the groundbreaking Sleng Teng riddim (used on Luciano's "Dancehall Style") debuted by King Jammy in 1985. Now, there are more riddims than you can shake a stick at.

The ragga riddim bonanza continues in Next Steps.

Some riddims have the pulse, power, and immediacy of a semi-automatic weapon — Assassin backs his combination-punch delivery on "Idiot Thing That" with the Stepz riddim. Elan, on the other hand, sets out a different agenda by opting for the squelchin', flexible Buy Out riddim on his cover of "Red Red Wine" — it's simultaneously chilled and energized, adding a shot of electricity to a familiar track.

Now that you can tell your Baddis Ting from your Doctor's Darling, try our riddim Deep Cuts.

As riddims proliferate like rabbits, so do the seemingly limitless vocal permutations. Shaggy collaborator Rik Rox teams up with Screechy Dan on "Love Machine", featuring the impulsive Heathen riddim (used by Shaggy on "Church Heathen" in Basics). Turbulence and Spectacular opt for the classic Sleng Teng riddim on "High Grade" and expertly veer between smooth grooves and rapid-fire vocal ping-pong.

The rise of ragga riddim in the digital age has been a thing of wonder. From the moment the programming potential of the Casio CZ synth series was unlocked in the mid-'80s, a storm of infinite riddims was unleashed — and we've distilled an ocean of ragga sound into these Essentials. If you're new to the world of riddim, consider this a comprehensive extension of what you already knew from chart-conquering crossover artists like Shaggy; if you're already a connoisseur, then view this as a handy one-stop riddim station, with a full menu that runs the gamut from Cry Baby to Tabla and back.