Most people searching “tyrant meaning” in dancehall want to know about Masicka’s 2023 hit. The song is about ambition and climbing out of poverty, and it also pays tribute to the late dancer Gerald “Bogle” Levy.
When the video came out in May 2023, DancehallMag reported that the track bares the star’s ambitions and doubles as a salute to Dancehall entertainers Mr. Wacky and Colo Colo.
None of the sources reviewed for this article explain why the song is called “Tyrant,” so this explainer does not guess.
Release Details
Streaming platforms list the single’s release date as May 24, 2023, with a ℗ 2023 Def Jam Recordings credit.
Shazam’s metadata gives May 23, 2023 for the music video, and a World Music Views report from May 31, 2023 also says the video came out on May 23. The DancehallMag story about the video ran on May 24.
The song came out early in Masicka’s time with Def Jam. DancehallMag described it as Masicka’s second release since becoming a Def Jam Recordings artist.
According to World Music Views, his first single for the label was Pieces featuring newcomer Jahshii, released on February 10, 2023.
DancehallMag credited the beat to Moz Zaro Hamm and Masicka. It called the instrumental vibrant and at times ominous.
Audiomack lists the producers as Javaun Fearon, Moz Zaro Hamm, and Javaun Fearon is Masicka’s real name. Ruppi directed the video.
The Lyrics Explained
Published transcriptions differ in places. For example, one site writes the hook as “trafficking, rocketing” and another as “trafficking, racketing.”
The overall themes are still clear. In the first verse, Masicka says money has been calling him since he was a teenager. He wants his children to have luxury cars, and he says young people should not have to work for anyone else.
He mentions that people already call him a legend before he turns forty, and he passes on his grandmother’s advice to get money while you are young and strong.
The lyric site Songtell reads the song the same way. It says the track explores themes of ambition, success, and the pursuit of a better life.
Songtell also notes that in the first verse Masicka rejects the idea of working for someone else and instead aims for financial independence.
In the second verse, Masicka contrasts where he started with the life he has now. He says he came up from nothing, and he lists German-made guns and cars, slowly sipped bourbon, and a self-image as “the surgeon.”
Like many dancehall records, the song uses gun imagery and street bravado alongside the theme of beating poverty.
The most repeated phrase in the song is “Wacky Dip.” That is the name of a dance created by Bogle, a Jamaican dancer and choreographer who also went by Mr Wacky.
Wikipedia lists the Wacky Dip among the moves Bogle invented, along with the Willie Bounce, World Dance and Out and Bad. Bogle (22 August 1964, 20 January 2005) was killed in 2005.
A Gleaner retrospective from August 2024 says that after his death, the best-known tribute song was Wacky Dip by Voicemail.
Masicka takes that same phrase and uses it as the hook of “Tyrant.” The Gleaner’s 2024 piece said the song paid homage to Bogle’s legacy in the dancehall space.
In the music video, the dancer, Colo Colo doing Wacky Dip appears while Masicka repeats the phrase through the song.
DancehallMag added that the video draws on Bogle’s well-known catchphrase “Out and bad” and his dance moves, and that it featured flashes from an upbringing Masicka seems to ground himself with.
Reception and Chart Performance
The song took off quickly. A day after release, RJR News reported that the video had racked up almost 2 hundred thousand views on YouTube.
World Music Views reported on May 31, 2023 that “Tyrant” was the No. 1 song on Jamaica’s YouTube, Apple Music and Deezer daily charts dated May 31, 2023. The same report put the video at more than 1.3 million views worldwide.
Later view counts vary by source and by date:
- Def Jam’s December 2023 album announcement said the song had gathered 2.1 million Spotify in addition to over 11 million YouTube views on the music video.
- The Gleaner said in January 2024 that the video had amased 14 million views on YouTube.
- World Music Views ranked “Tyrant” at No. 9 on its list of the most-streamed songs on YouTube Jamaica for 2023, with 6.77 million views. That is a Jamaica-only count, so it is not directly comparable to the global totals.
The Gleaner named Masicka its 2023 DJ of the Year and called “Tyrant” the biggest hit for him for the year. The song placed second on the paper’s list of the top songs of 2023.
Masicka played Reggae Sumfest on July 21, 2023. The Gleaner reported that he brought on numerous dancers, including Boysie and Colo Colo, to help him perform the hit song, further paying homage to the legendary dancer.
Boysie is Lonsdale “Boysie” Guy, whom the Gleaner describes as the last surviving member of Bogle’s Black Roses crew.
Place on “Generation of Kings”
“Tyrant” became the lead track for Masicka’s second album. DancehallMag reported that Generation of Kings came out on December 1, 2023, through Def Jam, led by the singles Tyrant and LimeLight.
“Tyrant” is track 10 of the 17. World Music Views reported in 2026 that the album sold 3,500 equivalent album units in streams and sales in the US during its first week.
