Burning Spear

Winston Rodney was born on March 1, 1945, in Saint Ann's Bay, Saint Ann Parish — the same parish that produced Marcus Garvey and, later, Bob Marley. Rodney has said a chance encounter with Bob Marley was pivotal to launching his career; he took the stage name Burning Spear from Jomo Kenyatta, the Kenyan independence leader.

Rodney began recording in the late 1960s at Coxsone Dodd's Studio One. His sound — deep, chant-like vocals over dense, horn-driven roots rhythms — established him as a voice of Rastafarian and Garveyite thought within the music.

His 1975 album "Marcus Garvey," produced by Jack Ruby, is widely regarded as one of the essential roots reggae albums ever made. Spear went on to earn 12 Grammy nominations for Best Reggae Album and won twice — for "Calling Rastafari" (2000) and "Jah Is Real" (2009).

Burning Spear is remembered as roots reggae's clearest bridge between Rastafarian spirituality and Pan-African political consciousness. He largely stepped back from touring around 2016 before returning to limited live performances in 2022 and releasing "No Destroyer" in 2023; as of 2026, now in his 80s, he remains one of reggae's few living founding-generation icons.