In honor of Black Music Month 2021, Jamaican DJ and producer ZJ Sparks has created a special mix. Below, she shares her thoughts on Black music and how its rich legacy comes alive in her work. “The riddim and bass of Black music gives any song a vibrancy that allows listeners to lose themselves in the music, whether in thought or movement. Being a Jamaican, this is something I am especially proud of, as we have spawned many genres—mento, ska, rocksteady, dub, reggae, dancehall—and have influenced many other genres, such as EDM, hip-hop, and reggaetón, to name a few. The Dem Bow riddim influenced the creation of reggaetón, but you will also hear the Bam Bam/Santa Barbara riddim as a constant in the sound of reggaetón even to this day. Listen to Chaka Demus & Pliers’ 'Bam Bam' and 'Murder She Wrote,' and you can hear the influence of the beat in Daddy Yankee's 'Que Tire Pa Lante.'”