Editing Dancehall (section)

===Cultural elements===
Dancehall combines elements of materialism and stories of hardships of Jamaica.<ref>Kingsley Stewart "So Wha, Mi Nuh Fi Live To?: Interpreting Violence in Jamaica Through Dancehall Culture", Ideaz Vol. 1, No. 1, 2002: pp. 17–28</ref> This is seen in the use of gun talk by artists like [[Buju Banton]] and [[Capleton]], or the sporting of [[bling-bling]] by "Gangsta Ras" artists like [[Mavado (singer)|Mavado]] and Munga.<ref>Donna P. Hope "I Came to Take My Place: Contemporary Discourses of Rastafari in Jamaican Dancehall" in Revista Brasileira Do Caribe, Volume 9, No. 18, January–June 2009, pp. 401–423</ref> The term ''Gangsta Ras'', which combines thuggish imagery with Rastafari is according to Rasta critics, an example of how in dancehall, "the misuse of Rastafari culture has diluted and marginalised the central tenets and creed of the Rastafari philosophy and way of life".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jamaicaobserver.com/lifestyle/html/20070729T200000-0500_125731_OBS_RASTAS_BLAST_MUNGA_S__GANGSTA_RAS__IMAGE_.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070513102312/http://jamaicaobserver.com/lifestyle/html/20070729T200000-0500_125731_OBS_RASTAS_BLAST_MUNGA_S__GANGSTA_RAS__IMAGE_.asp|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 May 2007|title=Rastas blast Munga's 'Gangsta Ras' image |website=jamaicaobserver.com|date=13 May 2007|access-date=8 July 2018}}</ref>

Kingsley Stewart points out that artists sometimes feel an "imperative to transcend the normal", exemplified by artists like [[Elephant Man (musician)|Elephant Man]] and [[Bounty Killer]] doing things to stand out, such as putting on a synthetic cartoonish voice or donning pink highlights while constantly re-asserting hypermasculine attributes. Donna P. Hope argues that this trend is related to the rise of market [[capitalism]] as a dominant feature of life in Jamaica, coupled with the role of new media and a liberalized media landscape, where images become of increasing importance in the lives of ordinary Jamaicans who strive for celebrity and superstar status on the stages of dancehall and Jamaican popular culture.<ref>Donna P. Hope. Man Vibes: Masculinities in the Jamaican Dancehall. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers, 2010</ref>

Another point of dissension of dancehall from reggae, and from its non-western roots in Jamaica, is on the focus on materialism. Dancehall has also become popular in regions such as Ghana and Panama. Prominent males in the dancehall scene are expected to dress in very expensive casual wear, indicative of European urban styling and high fashion that suggest wealth and status.<ref>Donna P. Hope "The British Link Up Crew – Consumption Masquerading as Masculinity in the Dancehall" in Interventions: International Journal of Postcolonial Studies Special Issue on Jamaican Popular Culture, 6.1: April, 2004, pp. 101–117.</ref> Since the late 1990s, males in the dancehall culture have rivalled their female counterparts to look fashioned and styled.<ref>Donna P. Hope Man Vibes: Masculinities in the Jamaican Dancehall. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers, 2010</ref> The female dancehall divas are all scantily clad, or dressed in spandex outfits that accentuate more than cover the shape of the body. In the documentary ''It's All About Dancing'', prominent dancehall artist [[Beenie Man]] argues that one could be the best DJ or the smoothest dancer, but if one wears clothing that reflects the economic realities of the majority of the partygoers, one will be ignored, and later Beenie Man returned to perform as Ras Moses.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20090111/ent/ent10.html|title="Beenie Man to perform as 'Ras Moses' at Rebel Salute"|access-date=2020-11-12|archive-date=2009-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090423022615/http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20090111/ent/ent10.html|url-status=live}}</ref>