World of Jamaican Music

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An illustrated map of the creators of Jamaican music and how they are connected.

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Protoje

Artist. Revival

Active
2010-present
Sunrise
June 14, 1981, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica
Also known as
The Diggy

Oje Ken Ollivierre, who records as Protoje, is the organizing figure of the Jamaican reggae revival: an artist with Billboard-charting albums and two Grammy nominations, and the founder of the label that has carried much of the generation around him.

He was born in St. Elizabeth. His mother is Lorna Bennett, the singer and lawyer whose 1972 "Breakfast in Bed" was commissioned by Harry J, arranged and recorded by Geoffrey Chung, and issued with a deejay version by Scotty on the flip; his father, Mike Ollivierre, was a calypso singer from St. Vincent. He went to boarding school and began pre-law studies before leaving for music: "My mother gave up music for school so I gave up school for music." He started writing at twelve and sharpened it at sound clashes, preparing counter-rhymes for the songs he could predict his rivals would sing, and released a first mixtape, Lyrical Overdose Volume 1, in 2005.

From 2010 he worked with his cousin, the producer Don Corleon, on the singles "Arguments," "Dread," "JA," and "Roll." The Seven Year Itch (2011) carried "Rasta Love," with Ky-Mani Marley. The 8 Year Affair (2013) produced "Kingston Be Wise" and "Who Dem a Program." Ancient Future (2015) reached the top of the Billboard reggae chart two weeks after release, pulled there by "Who Knows," his first record with Chronixx, and "Royalty Free" followed in 2016.

Winta James produced A Matter of Time (2018), which was nominated for the reggae Grammy and included a second Chronixx collaboration, "No Guarantee." In April 2020 he signed to RCA on terms that brought Lila Iké and Sevana, whom he had been managing, into the deal with him. In Search of Lost Time (2020) reached number six on the Billboard reggae chart with Popcaan, Koffee, Lila Iké, and Wiz Khalifa on it, and Gardy Stein wrote that the producer Supa Dups had "pushed Protoje to really sing" on it; Third Time's the Charm (2022) reached number eight and brought a second Grammy nomination. In Search of Zion (2023) is a stripped-back roots reworking of the 2020 record made with the production team Zion I Kings. The Art of Acceptance, a double album released in 2026 through In.Digg.Nation Collective and Ineffable, includes "At We Feet," his first record with Damian Marley.

The label matters as much as the records. In.Digg.Nation Collective began as a way of putting out his own music and became the route to an audience for Lila Iké, Sevana, and others, with management, promotion, and studio time attached. He has played Coachella, Glastonbury, and Lollapalooza, appeared on the Tonight Show and NPR's Tiny Desk, sang on the remix of Alicia Keys's "Underdog" with Chronixx in March 2020, and put "Switch It Up," with Koffee, on a Barack Obama summer playlist. He has since started a festival of his own, Lost in Time, held in Jamaica, with a foundation attached to it.

Last updated November 5, 2026

Connections

Notes

  1. On the two nominations, "About," Protoje, official site, accessed October 5, 2026, http://www.protoje.com/about. On the "reggae revival," "Biography: Protoje," Reggaeville, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.reggaeville.com/artist-details/protoje/about/.
  2. On his parents, "Meet the First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: Protoje on Evolving Reggae," Grammy.com, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.grammy.com/news/meet-first-time-grammy-nominee-protoje-evolving-reggae/. The Harry J single credits Geoffrey Chung as arranger and producer, with Ossie Harvey, and Sid Bucknor as engineer. "Lorna Bennett - Breakfast In Bed," Discogs, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.discogs.com/release/5041655. The British Island single carries "Skank in Bed," by Scotty and Bennett. "Lorna Bennett / Scotty & Lorna Bennett - Breakfast In Bed / Skank In Bed," Discogs, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.discogs.com/release/3241603. Bradley lists "Breakfast in Bed" among Scotty's hits for Harry J. Lloyd Bradley, This Is Reggae Music: The Story of Jamaica's Music (New York: Grove Press, 2001), 299. On St. Vincent, "Protoje," Wikipedia, accessed October 5, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protoje.
  3. On St. Elizabeth, "About," Protoje. Angus Taylor, "Interview: Protoje," United Reggae, February 10, 2011, https://unitedreggae.com/articles/n559/021011/interview-protoje.
  4. "Protoje," Wikipedia. Tara Mahadevan, "Jamaican Reggae Star Protoje: 'I Just Felt Like a Bird Out of a Cage,'" Village Voice, March 12, 2015, https://www.villagevoice.com/jamaican-reggae-star-protoje-i-just-felt-like-a-bird-out-of-a-cage/.
  5. "Protoje," Wikipedia, which dates "Arguments" to 2009 and names Don Corleon as his cousin.
  6. "Protoje," Wikipedia.
  7. "Protoje," Wikipedia.
  8. "Protoje," Wikipedia, which says "Ancient Future" was produced by Phillip "Winta" James and topped the Billboard reggae chart two weeks after release, and dates "Royalty Free (Side B)" to June 14, 2016.
  9. Protoje calls Winta James "my producer" in "Meet the First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: Protoje on Evolving Reggae," Grammy.com, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.grammy.com/news/meet-first-time-grammy-nominee-protoje-evolving-reggae/. On the nomination, "About," Protoje.
  10. "Biography: Protoje," Reggaeville, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.reggaeville.com/artist-details/protoje/about/, which says the RCA deal, made with Six Course Records and In.Digg.Nation Collective, included album deals for Lila Iké, Sevana and Jaz Elise. Wikipedia dates the announcement to April 13, 2020. "Protoje," Wikipedia.
  11. Gardy Stein, "Protoje - In Search of Lost Time," review, Reggaeville, August 28, 2020, https://www.reggaeville.com/artist-details/koffee/releases/mode/review/release/protoje-in-search-of-lost-time/, which finds his voice "at its most tender" on "Weed & Ting."
  12. On the chart peaks, "Protoje," Wikipedia. On the second nomination, "Protoje Announces New Album 'Art of Acceptance' With Damian Marley Duet & Tour Dates," Billboard, January 16, 2026, https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/protoje-new-album-2026-tour-dates-1236154933/.
  13. "Protoje, Zion I Kings - In Search Of Zion," Discogs, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.discogs.com/master/3518464. The official site describes it as a November 2023 reimagining of "In Search of Lost Time." "About," Protoje.
  14. "Protoje Announces New Album 'Art of Acceptance' With Damian Marley Duet & Tour Dates," Billboard, January 16, 2026, https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/protoje-new-album-2026-tour-dates-1236154933/.
  15. "About," Protoje. Protoje told the Recording Academy that running a label and managing artists was his goal for "the second decade of my career." "Meet the First-Time GRAMMY Nominee."
  16. "About," Protoje, which names Coachella, Glastonbury and Lollapalooza, the Tonight Show, the Tiny Desk and Obama's 2021 summer playlist. On the "Underdog" remix, released March 27, 2020, "Protoje," Wikipedia.
  17. "Lost In Time Weekend to Deliver Music, Mission," Jamaica Gleaner, February 28, 2026, https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/entertainment/20260228/lost-time-weekend-deliver-music-mission, on the Lost In Time Foundation and the 2026 staging at Hope Gardens.

World of Jamaican Music: the whole map