Test your “J-dar” by briefly considering two modern reggae artists. Nasio Fontaine, the son of a Carib Indian mother and a father of African descent, has long locks and a stirring, world-weary voice.

There's a track on "Living in the Positive" in which Dominica-born reggae singer-songwriter Nasio Fontaine doesn't sound all that concerned with racial injustice, African pride or the perils of living ...