Jimmy Cliff dies; reggae giant and star of landmark film The Harder They Come'

"His family posted a message Monday on his social media sites that he died from a seizure followed by pneumonia. Additional information was not immediately available. To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career, the announcement reads in part. He really appreciated each and every fan for their love."

"Cliff was a native Jamaican with a spirited tenor and a gift for catchphrases and topical lyrics who joined Kingston's emerging music scene in his teens and helped lead a movement in the 1960s that included such future stars as Bob Marley, Toots Hibbert and Peter Tosh. By the early 1970s, he had accepted director Perry Henzell's offer to star in a film about an aspiring reggae musician, Ivanhoe Ivan Martin, who turns to crime when his career stalls."

Jimmy Cliff died at 81 from a seizure followed by pneumonia, according to a family statement. He emerged from Kingston's music scene in his teens with a spirited tenor, topical lyrics and memorable catchphrases, helping lead a 1960s movement alongside Bob Marley, Toots Hibbert and Peter Tosh. Cliff accepted Perry Henzell's offer to star as Ivanhoe Ivan Martin in The Harder They Come, a film about an aspiring reggae musician who turns to crime when his career stalls. The Harder They Come was Jamaica's first major commercial film release and later became a cultural touchstone with a celebrated soundtrack.

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