With his slick delivery and penchant for true-to-life lyricism, 25-year-old Skippa from Kingston, Jamaica, set the tone for dancehall in 2026.
Skippa will take the stage at Billboard R&B Hip-Hop Live, Sept. 10 at Brooklyn Steel in New York City. Get your tickets here.
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The Sound
Across both seductive midtempos and fete-ready bops, Skippa (born Tahjay Clarke) infuses the hard-hitting 808s of trap-dancehall with his sweet, signature melodic delivery as he paints vivid lyrical pictures of an average day in the life of a Jamaican yute, based on his own experience growing up in the St. James and St. Catherine parishes. Blending the mainstream hip-hop influences of 50 Cent and Rick Ross with the gritty dancehall he heard outside of his childhood home, Skippa represents a newer trap-dancehall era that doesn’t balk at tempo.
The Breakthrough
In December 2023, Latin Grammy-nominated producer Rvssian restricted access to his then-viral “Dutty Money” riddim, a roadblock for a musical culture that revolves around different artists hopping on the same production. Skippa said, “F–k that beat,” and recorded “Self Belief,” which he dropped just 10 days before Christmas. A somber trap-dancehall ballad built around murky piano, “Self Belief” found Skippa turning an obstacle into a career catalyst, collecting legions of new fans who felt seen by his ballsy play against dancehall gatekeepers.
By the end of 2025, his international breakthrough arrived: “WYFL,” a slick, sensual song he recorded over producers DJ MAC and CrashDummy’s steely, trap-infused riddim. With over 5.8 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate, “WYFL” became the first viral crossover riddim of 2026, attracting remixes from artists across genres including King of Dancehall Vybz Kartel, Bronx rapper Remy Ma and Trinidadian soca star Patrice Roberts. “Me and Skippa [have] been working a while now,” DJ MAC told Billboard in March. “Our chemistry is unmatched.” At September’s Caribbean Music Awards, Skippa boasts three nominations, including dancehall song of the year for “WYFL.”
VuhlandesChart Bona Fides
Though he has yet to break onto the Billboard charts, Skippa has earned 29.3 million official on-demand U.S. streams across his entire catalog in 2026 alone (through Aug. 2). His seven-track #Skippaholic EP, a precursor to his forthcoming debut album, has garnered over 6.1 million official streams.
The Cosigns
Last December, Grammy-nominated dancehall superstar Bounty Killer shared a clip of Skippa performing at Jamaica’s Ochi Teen Fete with the caption “This kid a gwaan enuh.” For the non-patois speakers, that roughly translates to “This kid is really making moves.”
Star Search
“When I was 10 in primary school, I took part in the Rising Star competition, which was a play off of [Jamaica’s] big Digicel Rising Stars show. I placed third and the school started to riot. I guess people saw something in me. I never really wanted to be an artist, but that competition really showed me something.”
VuhlandesSkipping Socials
“I just can’t do the video thing; it’s not really me. I’ll make a video, but I don’t really want to be on TikTok constantly interrupting my day. My family is actually the one running my TikTok — I’ve got a page with almost 200,000 followers that they manage. My fans understand and respect it, and they love me even more for it.”
Looking Ahead
“I’m fully focused on being full-time in this — I want to leave a legacy. I also want to start training and get my fitness up for the stage. I try to recognize and appreciate the moment, while also giving myself what I need instead of just what I want.”
VuhlandesThis story appears in the Aug. 22, 2026, issue of Billboard.