As Jamaica prepares to commemorate the 60th anniversary of rocksteady music in 2026, the pivotal figure who fundamentally shaped the genre remains conspicuously absent from national recognition. Vere Johns, the visionary impresario who passed away in Kingston at age 72 in September 1966—coinciding with the recording era of the first rocksteady tracks—has yet to receive his rightful place in Jamaican cultural history.
A multifaceted professional who served as both a World War I veteran in the British military and an established journalist, Johns engineered the foundational platform for Jamaica’s musical revolution through his pioneering talent competitions. His legendary ‘Opportunity Hour’ and ‘Opportunity Knocks’ shows, originating in the 1950s at prestigious Kingston venues including the Ambassador, Carib, Majestic, and Palace theatres, became the definitive launching pad for generations of iconic artists.
The roster of talents discovered through Johns’ competitions reads as a veritable who’s who of Jamaican music: Alton Ellis, John Holt, Desmond Dekker, The Wailers, Bob Andy, Dobby Dobson, Joe Higgs, Jimmy Cliff, Jackie Edwards, Derrick Morgan, The Blues Busters, and Millie Small all launched their careers through these transformative showcases. While working as a journalist at The Daily Gleaner, Johns orchestrated events that carried social significance comparable to American institutions like ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’ and ‘American Bandstand’.
Despite this monumental legacy, Johns has never been awarded a national honor in Jamaica. Audley Rollen, who competed in Johns’ contests in 1958-1959, advocates for posthumous recognition: ‘I would like to see the Government of Jamaica and the entertainment industry give Vere Johns his long-overdue OD [Order of Distinction], or the highest merit anyone in entertainment could ever get.’ Rollen emphasizes Johns’ indirect influence on reggae history, noting that ‘the godfather of reggae Joe Higgs was discovered on Vere Johns’ Opportunity Hour, and it was Joe Higgs who tutored Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff.’
The Manchester-born innovator’s contributions have received limited acknowledgment, including a posthumous induction into the Jamaica Association of Vintage Artistes and Affiliates (JAVAA) Hall of Fame in 2008. Yet as anniversary celebrations approach, the music community confronts the paradoxical reality that the architect behind rocksteady’s greatest voices remains largely absent from the narrative he helped create.