Jimmy Cliff, the reggae music pioneer whose role in the 1972 film The Harder They Come and its accompanying soundtrack was instrumental in introducing the genre to internal audiences, has died at the age of 81.

According to an Instagram post by Cliff’s wife, Latifa Chambers, the musician died due to complications from a seizure followed by pneumonia. “Jimmy, my darling, may you rest in peace,” Chambers wrote in the post. “To all his fans around the world,” she added, “please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career.”

Born James Chambers, but known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, the musician was affectionally known as the “Jamaican Bob Dylan.” The real Bob Dylan himself once called Cliff’s 1970 track “Vietnam” the best protest song he had ever heard. Cliff sco

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