''Greensleeves Rhythm Album #27: Diwali'', also known as the ''Diwali Riddim'', is an album and popular

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Ro ...

riddim Riddim is the Jamaican Patois pronunciation of the English word "rhythm". In the context of reggae and dancehall, it refers to the instrumental accompaniment to a song and is synonymous with the rhythm section. Jamaican music genres that use the ...

that came to prominence in 2002. The riddim is credited to Jamaican producer Steven "Lenky" Marsden. This has appeared on several international hit songs by

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles " Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...

Bounty Killer Rodney Basil Price (born 12 June 1972), known as Bounty Killer, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. AllMusic describes him as "one of the most aggressive dancehall stars of the '90s, a street-tough rude boy with an unrepentant flai ...

, Elephant Man,

Lumidee Lumidee Cedeño (born October 13, 1984) is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. She quickly rose to fame in 2003 with the release of her song " Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)", which peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 ...

, Brick & Lace (although their single "Love Is Wicked" was not released until 2007), and

Wayne Wonder Von Wayne Charles (born 26 July 1972), better known by his stage name Wayne Wonder, is a Jamaican reggae artist. While his early recordings were dancehall and reggae, he later moved towards hip hop and rap. His most popular single is the 2003 ...

. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described the song as 'one of the most popular reggae rhythms of all time, spawning hits, sequels and -- inevitably -- rip-offs. If ever there was a beat that deserved its own ''Behind the Music,'' this is it.' Similarly, the album was heralded as 'the best reggae album' released in 2002. It is recognized as arguably the most prominent and popular riddim of 2002 based on the number of top-ten hit songs that charted in Jamaica or internationally that used the instrumental, such as "

Get Busy "Get Busy" is a dancehall song by Jamaican reggae toaster Sean Paul, from his album '' Dutty Rock''. The song was one of the many hits from the jumpy handclap riddim known as the Diwali Riddim, produced by then-newcomer Steven Marsden, and w ...

", " No Letting Go", "

Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh) "Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)" is a song by United States, American recording artist Lumidee, released as the debut single on May 12, 2003, from her debut studio album, ''Almost Famous (Lumidee album), Almost Famous'' (2003). The official r ...

", "Overcome", "Elephant Message", "Sufferer", "Party Time", and " Love Is Wicked". To this day, the riddim and the songs sampling it are still played on Jamaican radio stations every so often and is considered a classic. The beat is characterized by syncopated clapping, and it was given the name

Diwali Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It i ...

for its Indian dance-music influence. The riddim has been featured in American television commercials via Sean Paul's song "Get Busy".CKE Restaurants
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List of songs using Diwali Riddim

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control Riddims 2002 compilation albums Reggae compilation albums Greensleeves Records albums