Looks like reggae is making a lot of money for everyone except for the Jamaican government. According to a new article in The Jamaica Observor, the vast majority of artists and producers are avoiding paying taxes on their earnings:

"Entertainment in Jamaica is a multi-billion dollar industry, with the closest estimate of its value put at an annual $21 billion (US$350), according to a new Stanford University study. But tax authorities in Jamaica say there is heavy tax avoidance by entertainers and producers; they estimate that the industry compliance rate is below 15 per cent."

The problem is, at one level, endemic to Jamaican society where the average rate of tax compliance is a little under 60% but even the 40% who don't pay is still far greater than most of the entertainers trying to skate under the radar.

Notably, the article says that the practice of artists performing under assumed names (you mean Bounty Killer isn't his real name? Shocking.) makes tracking difficult ... though that seems like a fairly weak reason on the government's part. More sensible is this theory:

"Revenue agents theorise that the difficulty faced by their collectors connect directly with the culture of the entertainment industry in Jamaica, which has long operated as a 'cash-on-service-delivery' basis after the artiste performs."

By getting paid in cash and thus not leaving a paper trail for accountants, artists can underreport their income. However, people advocating on behalf of the musicians argue that they're being unfairly singled out. Desmond Young, president of the Jamaican Federation of Musicians argues, "promoters, producers and sound system owners are also guilty of tax evasion, which is often only pinned on entertainers.(Translation: everyone's skimming a little off the top).

(Source: Jamaica Observer)

USA Today published an impressively thorough profile of reggaeton yesterday, not only looking at the roots of this Spanish-language hybrid of dancehall and hip-hop but also discussing the implications of reggaeton's popularity and the emergent so-called "hurban" (Hispanic + Urban) demographic in many American cities:

"The music certainly appeals to the Latino/Hispanic population, and it appeals on the mainstream side because these artists are speaking to the same consumer who likes 50 Cent, Usher, Eminem and T.I.," says Atlantic co-chairman/COO Craig Kallman. "When you have an Usher or a 50 Cent reaching out to Tego Calderon to get him on their records, you know these artists are making an impact."

While it's too early to make long-term predictions, the rise of the Latino consumer demographic interested in Spanish-langauge urban music could have a profound shift down the road - while underground Mexican and Puerto Rican music styles and scenes have flourished for years, the mainstreaming of hip-hop's Latino sabor is more recent and as Kallman's quote above suggests, increasingly, it's not Latino artists trying to cross over into conventional R&B, hip-hop and dancehall but those styles crossing over to the Latino audience.

It's also an encouraging sign that American music consumers might finally start to break out of our English mono-lingualism (and no, knowing how to holler, "hey mami/papi" doesn't count).