Reggae legend and actor Jimmy Cliff has died aged 81.
The star is best known for songs such as Many Rivers to Cross and You Can get It If You Really Want – and for recording an officially sanctioned cover version of Hakuna Matata, from Disney’s The Lion King.
Many of his songs were covered by musical royalty including Cher, UB40, Annie Lennox and Madness; he also became well known for his covers of Cat Stevens’ Wild World and I Can See Clearly Now by Johnny Nash – the latter recorded for the 1993 comedy film Cool Runnings.
Cliff, who won Grammy awards for albums Cliff Hanger and Rebirth, also built a career as an actor. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
His wife Latifa Chambers confirmed his passing on social media.
She wrote: ‘It’s with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia.
‘I am thankful for his family, friends, fellow artists and coworkers who have shared his journey with him.
‘To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career … Jimmy, my darling, may you rest in peace. I will follow your wishes.’
Born James Chambers in July 1944 in the Somerton district of St James, Jamaica, Cliff began writing songs in school and adopted his stage name at the age of 14 when he relocated to Kingston with his father.
He was born in the midst of a hurricane – and Hurricane Hattie, among his first songs released while still a teenager, was an instant hit, elevating him to fame.
He went on to record over 30 albums and performed across the world, playing shows in Paris, Brazil and at New York’s 1964 World’s Fair; more recently, he performed at music festivals and at the 2015 Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix.
In 1965, he was invited to the UK to work with Island Records producer Chris Blackwell, who launched Bob Marley and the Wailers, and moved to London.
Throughout his career, he advocated for humanitarian causes in his songwriting with songs such as Wonderful World, Beautiful People – which namechecked then US President Richard Nixon and British Prime Minister Harold Wilson.
Protest song Vietnam, which came in 1970 at the peak of the war, was described by Bob Dylan as the best he had ever heard.
Cliff later moved into acting, starring as Ivan in 1972’s The Harder They Come, since hailed as one of the most important films to come out of the Caribbean.
It is still credited as the movie that introduced reggae to a global audience – and showed a grittier side to the island previously unseen in the media.
The film was recently adapted into a musical at London’s Theatre Royal Stratford East that received rave reviews.
Despite later suffering health problems including ailing eyesight, Cliff continued to perform live. In 2022, he performed alongside Shaggy at Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon, paying tribute to the Graceland star.
He received the Order of Merit from Jamaica, the country’s highest honour, in 2003.
‘When I’ve achieved all my ambitions, then I guess that I will have done it and I can just say “great”,’ he said in a 2019 interview.
‘But I’m still hungry. I want it. I’ve still got the burning fire that burns brightly inside of me – like I just said to you. I still have many rivers to cross.’
He is survived by his wife and two children, Lilty and Aken.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
