Dub Poet Glennie meets the Dub Prince Avante - Presenting Ranking Dread Mash [December 2025)
Title: Presenting Ranking Dread Mash
Artist: Dub Poet Ras Glennie meets the Dub Prince Avante feat. Ranking Dread Mash (Takalani Mashau)
Genre: Old School Reggae
Label: Avante Glenn productions
Producer: Dub Poet Glennie Fhatuwani & Dub Prince Avante Avhantodi
Release Date: 15 December 2025
In December 2025, South African dub poet and reggae visionary Ras Glennie returned to the global stage with his long-awaited third full-length project, Presenting Ranking Dread Mash. Released on 15 December 2025 and now available in all online music platforms, the album emerged as a six track, 52 minute roots and dub journey on Apple Music and simultaneously appeared on Amazon Prime Music with extended mixes such as Glennie Number One Ext Mix, Wars in Jah Land Ext Mix, and Scientist Dread 12 Inch Mix, marking a powerful renaissance for the artist after years away from recording. Presenting Ranking Dread Mash album is primarily from the now released 14 tracks dub album titled: Dub Poet meets the Dub Prince Avante - Dub Poet meets the Dub Prince Avante - Dub Cuts Fi Adam(ah).
This moment was especially significant given Glennie’s earlier releases: his divine, spiritually charged debut, Psalm Chant (2001), and the reflective Showcase in Dub Wise (2020), remembered for dub-poetry performances like Terror Poem 12-inch Mix. Nearly two decades of silence stretched between 2001 and 2020, but it was the intervention of master musician Dub Prince Avante, born Ramakuwela Avhantodi, that brought Glennie back to the studio. Avante, who served as lead guitarist, rhythm guitarist, brass arranger, and principal sonic architect of the new album, became the driving force behind Glennie’s return and earned the affectionate title “my Scientist,” as his influence shaped the atmospheric depth and rugged dub textures that define the 2025 project.
As Glennie always chant: “No shortcut tune ’round yah, strictly big 12 inch mix, extended version, same lineage like Delroy Wilson Supermix, Mediations’ Unity, an’ Wailing Souls Very Well. Jah a di Guide!Him a God, Him cyaan be man!”
A compelling new voice also rose within this album: Takalani Mashau, the widely respected Mzansi DJ from Mashamba in Tshikwarani village, formerly known as Dread Mash and now introduced as Ranking Dread Mash. His deep, resonant toasting vocals— evocative of icons such as U Brown, Big Youth, Ranking Dread, I Roy, and U Roy— brought a classic DJ fierceness to the project. Tracks like Glennie Number One Ext Mix, which demonstrated his unmistakable lyrical punch and stage-worthy charisma. His contribution injected an old-school authenticity into Glennie’s evolving dub poetry landscape.
At the heart of Presenting Ranking Dread Mash lies a profound desire to honour two towering influences who shaped Glennie’s musical identity. The first is Hopetown “Scientist” Brown, the legendary Jamaican dub engineer whose groundbreaking innovations helped define dub’s cosmic sound. Glennie pays homage to him through two distinct versions of Scientist Dread, a tribute to the man whose sonic fingerprints echo through every delay, echo, and bassline in Glennie’s own work. The second tribute goes to Mr. Mbulaheni Tshikororo, the iconic reggae DJ of the former Radio Thohoyandou and later Phalaphala FM, whose championing of reggae shaped entire generations of listeners in Limpopo. The dedicated track Reggae Fi Mbulaheni honours his cultural contribution and enduring influence across the province.
More than an album, Presenting Ranking Dread Mash stands as a reawakening of Ras Glennie’s poetic fire, a testament to Dub Prince Avante’s visionary production, and the powerful unveiling of Ranking Dread Mash as a rising voice in contemporary reggae. It is also a heartfelt homage to the pioneers who laid the groundwork for Southern African reggae consciousness. From the hills of Tshikwarani to listeners across the world, this album emerges as a cultural landmark affirming that reggae, rooted in memory, community, and resistance, continues to rise, reinvent, and resonate with undiminished force.
