Delroy Wilson
Jamaica’s first child star grew up inside the music itself. Delroy Wilson recorded ska at thirteen, sang rocksteady into being and gave “Better Must Come” a life far beyond the love song he wrote.
Delroy Wilson began recording for Coxsone Dodd in 1962 while still a schoolboy. His early ska records included musical “shots” aimed at Prince Buster, placing a teenage singer inside sound-system rivalry and producer competition. As his voice matured, “Dancing Mood,” “I’m Not a King” and other late-1960s records helped define rocksteady’s emotional center. Wilson continued through reggae and early dancehall, working with Bunny Lee, Joe Gibbs, Harry J, Channel One and others. “Better Must Come” became a major song and was adopted as a political campaign theme in 1972, despite Wilson’s insistence that he wrote it from personal frustration rather than party politics. He died in 1995 after a career that crossed every major early Jamaican popular-music shift.