The musical equivalent of the Roman coliseum, dancehall can be a brutal arena, with artistes going at it in “fist to fist rub-a-dub.”

Mr. Vegas has his share of battle scars in a near 30-year career. His latest fight is against a music producer whom he claims broke the ‘Gallis Code’, which is the title of his latest song.

“The artiste D’ Angel inspired ‘Gallis Code’. I did not like the way in which a certain producer/artiste treated her after she stopped working with him. He went public and insinuated that he slept with her, then later said it was a lie,” said the veteran toaster. “As a result, I penned the song and recorded it on the WYFL riddim. The song has been doing very well; the AI music video is close to 1 million views.”

‘Gallis Code’ will be officially released on March 20. In it, Mr. Vegas name checks fellow deejay Khago, the perceived villain in the D’Angel drama.

Gallis is Jamaican slang for womaniser, a culture that is rampant, and accepted, in the dancehall.

The uptempo ‘Gallis Code’ is one of several tracks on the WYFL beat, produced by DJ Mac. Vybz Kartel, Mavado, Cham, Spice and Kabaka Pyramid also have songs on the much-hyped riddim.

Known for anthems such as ‘Heads High’, ‘I Am Blessed’ and ‘Do You Know Me’, Mr. Vegas points to the importance of reinvention in dancehall music.

“In my view, it is important to stay relevant. It gets an artiste more bookings and streams from digital platforms,” he noted.

‘Gallis Code’ will be released seven months after ‘Ghetto Reggae’, Mr. Vegas’ latest album which, “tells the story of the music that shaped my musical career.” That being the actual venue where dances are held in Jamaica.

That collecion contains a dancehall version of Eric Donaldson’s ‘Land of My Birth’, considered by many to be Jamaica’s national anthem. It won the Festival Song Contest in 1978.

In February, Mr. Vegas was presented with the Island SPACE Lifetime Achievement Award in the city of Sunrise, South Florida.

Singer/musician Leroy Sibbles and drummer Sly Dunbar (posthumously) were also honoured.

(Press photo contributed by Mr. Vegas)