Jimmy Cliff, the smooth-voiced Jamaican singer and actor whose music and starring role in the film The Harder They Come helped bring reggae to a global audience, has died at the age of 81, per cnn.com.
His wife, Latifa Chambers, shared the news on Instagram on Monday, stating that the cause of death was a seizure followed by pneumonia.
“It’s with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia,” Chambers wrote. “To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career. He really appreciated each and every fan for their love.”
Cliff, born James Chambers in St. James Parish, western Jamaica, in 1944, quickly rose from poverty, singing in church and eventually moving to Kingston in 1961. He scored his first hit, “Hurricane Hattie,” at just 14, topping the Jamaican charts.
His career took him to London, where he began mixing his reggae sound with R&B. By 1970, he had secured three singles on the UK charts: “Wonderful World, Beautiful People,” “Vietnam” (which Bob Dylan famously hailed as the “best protest song ever written”) and a cover of Cat Stevens’ “Wild World”.
His international success was cemented with classic hits like “You Can Get It If You Really Want,” the titular track “The Harder They Come,” and his later hit cover of “I Can See Clearly Now” from the 1993 movie Cool Runnings.
In 1972, Cliff starred in the classic movie “The Harder They Come,” playing the lead role of Ivan Martin, a young man who moves to Kingston to chase a music career but falls into a life of crime. The film and its accompanying soundtrack, which featured several of Cliff’s original songs, were instrumental in popularising reggae in the United States and making Cliff an international star.
His stature as a music legend was formally recognised in 2010 when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He remains the only Jamaican artiste besides Bob Marley to achieve this honour.
Throughout his career, Cliff collaborated with a wide range of major artistes, including the Rolling Stones, Elvis Costello, Annie Lennox and Paul Simon.
Following his death, Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness paid tribute on X, remembering Cliff as a “true cultural giant whose music carried the heart of our nation to the world.”
•Featured image: Jimmy Cliff via Getty Images
