Sean Paul talks Timeless Tour, Gen Z and ‘youngevity loop’

Sean Paul’s current tour is timeless in name and nature. The dancehall artiste, whose recording career kicked off in 1994, has been making music for more than three decades. He scored his first local hit in 1996 with Baby Girl and Infiltrate, and broke into the global mainstream in 2002 with his Grammy-winning album, Dutty Rock.
Thirty years after his first hit song, one of the great things that he has noted on his Timeless Tour is a strong Gen Z presence. The platinum-selling artiste told The Gleaner that, to see younger fans singing along to tracks from Dutty Rock and The Trinity, songs that came out before many of them were born, is exactly what he always hoped for.
“When I write these songs, I imagine people jumping up and having a good time … just singing and dancing, and so it’s something that I was hoping for ... to have longevity in the business. When I sing my own songs over and over, people might think it’s boring but, at the same time, it keeps me in a loop ... a ‘youngevity loop’,” he said, coining a word that describes it perfectly.
“And so it’s not surprising to me, but it’s because of the ‘youngevity loop’. Dancehall music is very infectious, very danceable, and  that is what young people are about ... having fun and moving themselves and singing out loud and, and so dancehall music keep me in that loop.”
Sean Paul, along with his Badda Bandz and his Badda Gyalz dancers,  is on the third European leg of Timeless Tour, and his team states that, by the end of this summer, he would have performed at 40 shows worldwide. 
He kicked off the first leg in February in Lyon, France, and made stops through Germany, Switzerland, Luxemburg, and Netherlands. The second leg in May saw the dancehall superstar waving the flag high in places such as Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Germany and France. The Timeless Tour also had five shows across North America at Boise Music Festival; Sean Paul Live: Joliet, Illinois; Perreoland Music Fest in Lincoln, Nebraska; Summerfest 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, then at Cowboys Music Festival in Calgary, Canada. 
The third leg started on July 13 in southern France at Les Jardins Du Lydia, in Wabern; in Switzerland two days later at Gurtenfestival 2026. He was back in France for World Festival Ambert on July 16, and Rodez on the 18th. Belgian fans at Dour Festival 2026 had their chance to experience the 90-minute set on July 19 and Milan concertgoers at Kozel Carroponte will see him in action today. The tour moves to Neu-Ulm, Germany on Saturday, and Łódź, Poland on Sunday.
With such a cross-cultural package, Sean Paul told The Gleaner that it is important to know his audience, regardless of where in the world he is performing. 
“When I was a young artiste just touring the Caribbean, I landed in Trinidad and somebody said to me, ‘Yuh have to sing this song, boy Just Gimme Di Light.’ And mi seh. ‘Yuh know da song deh?’ and him seh ‘Yeah, it play every day on our radio station down here, boy’,” Sean Paul said, putting on his Trini accent. 
“So it’s like yuh kinda get a vibe of certain places. You can’t know what everybody want to hear all the time. But, when yuh keep abreast of yuh career, yuh kinda know which areas know this or that song, … what was introduced to them first, which is just a big song, which is a cult classic which everybody knows from you. And yuh suss out all the different areas and you just make decisions based on those things.”
He pointed out, however, that “there are some ‘stan’ up songs’ like Get Busy and Temperature that are needed in  every stage show. 
Reflecting on the circuit, he noted that Europe has a love for outdoor shows and big festivals. 
“Every year, I also see artistes who don’t have current songs, but Europe seems to accept the music. I’m proud to be touring that circuit for Jamaica, dancehall, and reggae music,” the Grammy Award-winning dancehall artiste said.
The Timeless Tour heads back to North America for concerts in Quebec, Canada, on August 15 at Aéroport De Saint-Jean-Sur-Richelieu and Pointe-Calumet Beachclub on August 16; and closes out at Toronto’s RBC Amphitheatre on August 28.
yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com