Line #24 Main/DreadlockRasta


1	[[quoteright:220:[[Music/BobMarley https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bob_marley_9981.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:220:Bob was always easily recognizable by his hair.]]
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4	This is when a character wears their hair in a dreadlocks style, thus visually standing out from other characters, as a sign of rebellion, independence, devotion to religion, or just being free-spirited.
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6	In fiction (and for the specific purpose of this trope), dreadlocks are worn most frequently (but not exclusively) by black characters, though said characters may not necessarily be Rastafarians by faith, or even be religious at all. Said characters tend to be laid-back, anti-authoritarian (to varying degrees, depending on the work in question), users of..."interesting" substances (as per the stereotype that dreadlocks-wearers almost always smoke cannabis/weed/ganja/hashish/marijuana [[note]]yes, those are all the same thing[[/note]]), or some combination of the three.
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8	About dreadlocks: the style involves letting the hair on one's head grow for a long time without cutting it, then twining the hair into several long matted strands. The strands may be very thick or moderately thin, and may vary in length from shoulder-length to going all the way down the back in some cases. When worn by a male, the locks may sometimes give him the appearance of a lion, especially if accompanied by an unshaved beard. (As a side note, some Rastafarians wear their locks in a turban; this trope focuses primarily on those who wear their locks loosely.) Putting one's hair into a series of small braids is not dreadlocks, although it's sometimes used to evoke the style without actually having to get the hair matted.
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10	In RealLife, dreadlocks are most commonly associated with practitioners of the Rastafarian religious movement and, to a lesser degree, with Jamaicans, reggae musicians, and [[NewAgeRetroHippie hippies]]. Music/BobMarley is quite possibly the most famous dreadlocks wearer, as he was a devout Rastafarian.
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12	The reasons for wearing of dreadlocks may vary across different groups, ranging from "deep religious and spiritual conviction" (as in the case of Rastafarians and some Hindus) to "symbolism of rebellion against authority, especially that of the government-controlled type" (as exemplified in Bob Marley's music, and explained above).
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14	Please note that for a character(s) to specifically qualify for this trope, just wearing dreadlocks is not enough: see the text above, and contrast the DreadlockWarrior, who wears the same hairstyle for ''very'' different reasons.
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16	The trope name comes from a line in Bob Marley's 1983 song "Buffalo Soldier", which was released posthumously on the album ''Music/{{Confrontation}}.''
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18	----
19	!!Examples:
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21	[[foldercontrol]]
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23	[[folder:Advertising]]
24	* Referenced in [[http://youtu.be/u6k5MlNGfyM an old Bud Light commercial]] where a man sees a "no pets" sign outside a pub and is upset that he can't go inside because of his [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puli Puli]] (a type of dog known for their long corded coat) until he has a EurekaMoment. Cut to him walking inside with the dog on his head imitating dreads while he uses a Jamaican affectation and talks about "jammin'."
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27	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
28	* Bob, one of the main supporting characters in ''Manga/TenjhoTenge,'' wears his hair in dreadlocks (though he cuts them off later). He's rebellious against school rules when first introduced, and is something of a DeadpanSnarker, but at the same time he acts as a BlueOni to Souichiro's RedOni.
29	* [[HandicappedBadass Kaname Tousen]] of ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' sports dreadlocks, and betrayed Soul Society in rebellion against their system of government [[spoiler:that refused to punish his closest friend's husband for her senseless murder.]]
30	* The dreadlocked (WordOfGod is they're technically micro-braids) Izumi Curtis of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' certainly qualifies, with her philosophy on the circle of life and deep distrust of the Amestrian military government [[spoiler:even before she learns of their {{Ancient\|Conspiracy}} GovernmentConspiracy]]. She even chides her student Edward Elric for stooping so low as to become a "dog of the military" and becoming a State Alchemist.
31	* [[Manga/{{Eyeshield21}} Agon Kongo's]] most memorable feature is his very long, very thick, dread-locked hair. Some of his nicknames include "reggae head", "rasta head" "reggae guy" and "fucking dreads". His hairstyle choices are probably meant to be seen as a sign of rebelliousness, as his previous haircut was also associated with delinquency (long, wavy bleached blonde hair). His dreads being shaved off could be seen as symbolic of his attitude (slowly) improving. Ironically, he's quite obviously NOT a Rastafarian as he attends a very strict, ascetic Buddhist school.
32	* Tom Tanaka of ''Literature/DuRaRaRa'' has a generally laid back personality and is one of the few people able to keep [[HairTriggerTemper Shizuo]] under control. He also generally comes off as free-spirited but he's a LoanShark by profession, albeit a pretty reasonable and friendly one who mostly uses Shizuo's [[TheDreaded reputation]] as a deterrent to anyone who might try something. His ethnic background isn't explicitly stated in the series, though due to his darker skin tone and having two names of different ethnicities its speculated that he's partially of African descent.
33	* Galahad of ''{{Manga/Gangsta}}'' appears to be ethnically of African descent and falls more under DreadlockWarrior than this trope, but his protege Doug, who was inspired to lock his hair by the former and rebels against the Paulklee Guild by taking a contract to kill someone he knows is off limits, definitely fits.
34	* Taisei Yoshida of ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'' wears a hairstyle that consists of short dreadlocks, and is initially one of the more rebellious students of Class 3-E, hanging out with [[TheBully Terasaka]] and taking a little while to warm to Koro-sensei's efforts to reach them.
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36	* ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'': One of Jack Atlus's Tuner Monsters is his Dread Dragon, a funny looking dragon with tied dreadlocks on its head. Its German name is even called "Dreadlock-Drache". However, Dread Dragon has low stats and its main purpose is to be used as a Synchro Material for a much stronger monster.
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39	[[folder:ComicBooks]]
40	* [[ComicBook/XMen Bishop]] has been known to wear dreadlocks. He's also well-known for rebelling against the status quo of his native time period (which usually comes about as a result of something happening in his past, our present, that shouldn't have).
41	* Drew Macintosh, the protagonist of the Jamaican-inspired ''Dread & Alive'' series, wears dreadlocks but holds beliefs based on those of the Jamaican Maroons, who were runaway slaves who fought against the British and who today live in relative isolation from modern society.
42	* Brother Voodoo, aka Jericho Drumm, as fits his station as the foremost Haitian magical practitioner. Combines his with a white stripe for an interesting visual effect.
43	* Dooby from ''ComicBook/PocketGod'' wears dreadlocks and is a zen GranolaBoy who dislikes violence, but [[TechnicalPacifist will fight if he has to]].
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46	[[folder:FanWorks]]
47	* In the ParodyFic ''Fanfic/Plan7Of9FromOuterSpace'', a group of [[DreadlockWarrior dreadlocked]] alien [[Franchise/{{Predator}} Predators]] are smoking dope and talking in Jamaican Patois.
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50	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
51	* ''Countryman,'' a Jamaican-made film about a fisherman who gets entangled in a political drug-running conspiracy, shows the titular protagonist and several minor characters and extras wearing dreadlocks. The protagonist is also a freedom-loving character who makes full use of what the mountains, the sea and the wilderness can provide him with.
52	* ''Film/OneLove,'' a romantic musical film set in Jamaica, has the main character, Kassa [=McKennon=], and his reggae band sporting dreadlocks and being of the Rastafarian faith. This is a source of conflict between him and his love interest's Christian pastor father. Bonus points for the main character being portrayed by Bob Marley's son, Kymani.
53	* ''Film/TheHarderTheyCome,'' a 1970's Jamaican film starring musician Jimmy Cliff, has several minor characters involved in the ganja trade and opposing the police (and each other) from time to time, who wear their hair this way.
54	* The BigBad of the Creator/StevenSeagal film ''Film/MarkedForDeath,'' plus the {{mooks}} and one supporting character for the good guys. In the case of the antagonists, they're involved in a drug and weapons business that swiftly becomes [[ItsPersonal personal]] when they injure Seagal's character's niece as reprisal for an earlier assault.
55	* From ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'', there's a clique of white guys with dreads described thus: "These are your white Rastas, they're big Marley fans, they think they're black. Semi-political, but mostly..." "Smoke a lot of weed?"
56	* ''Film/Predator2'': King Willie and some of the members of his Jamaican Voodoo Posse drug gang have dreadlocks. They like smoking marijuana, and are very violent toward the police, but believe in voodoo rather than Rastafarianism.
57	* The Black Lectroids in ''Film/TheAdventuresOfBuckarooBanzaiAcrossThe8thDimension'' have the appearance of Jamaican Rastafarians. They are a peace-loving race, but they will fight to protect their own independence if need be.
58	* In the Creator/ChrisFarley [[SimilarlyNamedWorks comedy]] ''Film/BlackSheep1996'', Mike Donnelly encounters some rastas at a "Rock the Vote" style political rally, and he gets high with them, discussing things like [[BoomerangBigot how the white man is keeping them down]]. Later, when he's mistaken for his brother running for governor, he sees the rastas from onstage, and yells "Kill Whitey!", much to the horror of everyone, especially the rastas and his brother.
59	* Creator/JackieChan's character sports a dreadlocks hairstyle in ''Film/TheForbiddenKingdom,'' and is presented as a somewhat independent spirit.
60	* Creator/WhoopiGoldberg, who wears dreadlocks, is often cast as a cool-headed and free-spirited person in her films. One of the best examples is ''Film/{{Sarafina}}'', which is set during the Soweto Riots in Africa; Goldberg plays an independent-thinking teacher whose imprisonment inspires one of her students, the titular character, to lead her fellow students in protest.
61	* Iroh in ''Film/TheLastAirbender'' has the Dreadlocks of Spirituality variation.
62	* In ''Film/CoolRunnings,'' Sanka is the only member of the Jamaican bobsled team with dreadlocks and is also the most free-spirited and easygoing. Derice even calls him "Rasta" occasionally. Sanka himself says, after arriving to Canada, that he's "freezing [his] royal Rastafarian nay-nays off!"
63	* Robert Marley in ''Film/JohnDiesAtTheEnd'' is a typical example. And yes, David is surprised that his name really ''is'' Robert Marley when the cops show him his file.
64	* [[Creator/JohnnyDepp Captain Jack Sparrow]] in the ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' movies is a ChaoticNeutral {{Cloudcuckoolander}} with the requisite dreads.
65	* The [[Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban film adaptation]] of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'' adds a talking skull with dreadlocks on the Knight Bus. Creator/JKRowling wishes she had thought of it herself.
66	* ''Film/UndercoverBrother'' The title character disguises himself as this at one point, even quipping, "[[UsefulNotes/{{Jamaica}} Ja Mon! Rasta!]]".
67	* ''Film/TheMiseducationOfCameronPost'': Jane is a black girl with her hair in dreadlocks. Among the kids at the [[CureYourGays conversion therapy camp]], she's probably the most rebellious, openly disparaging the "treatments" as pure nonsense and secretly growing marijuana in the woods nearby herself along with her friends. She was raised on a hippie commune, which could explain a lot of this.
68	* ''Film/BornInTheMaelstrom'': By the end of the film, Rebecca's made her hair into dreadlocks, signifying that she now defies her community's demand for conformity. [[spoiler:She leaves afterward to live her way.]]
69	* ''Film/HowToBlowUpAPipeline'': Theo is a free-spirited young woman who has dreadlocks and jumps at her best friend Xochi's plan to blow up the pipeline.
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72	[[folder:{{Literature}}]]
73	* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfDorsa'': Akella is a black female pirate captain with dreadlocks. It serves as a mark of her being an independent, freespirited woman and LovableRogue.
74	* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' characters Peachy in ''Literature/{{Hogfather}}'' ("a huge man with dreadlocks and a beard you could keep goats in") and Dave (of Dave's Pin Exchange) in ''Literature/GoingPostal'' ("a huge bearded man with dreadlocks, a pin through his nose, a beer belly belonging to three other people and the words 'Death or Pins' tattooed on a bicep"). Race isn't mentioned for either of them, although Dave is played by a black actor in the TV adaptation of ''Going Postal'' (Peachy was cut from the adaptation of ''Hogfather''). Religion isn't mentioned either, although it's ''[[WildMassGuessing possible]]'' the Disc has some [[CrystalDragonJesus Crystal Dragon Selassie]] equivalent. They ''are'' both anti-authoritarian: Peachy is a criminal, and Dave seems to see pin-collecting as some sort of counterculture, and is revealed in ''Literature/{{Thud}}'' to be an occasional ConspiracyTheorist.
75	* Manny from ''Literature/TheStrangerTimes'' has long dreadlocks, speaks in Caribbean patois, and has a laid-back and unconventional attitude.
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78	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
79	* Barrington in ''Series/MaidMarianAndHerMerryMen''. Specifically described as a Rasta on several occasions, [[AnachronismStew despite living centuries before Rastafarianism existed]]. He sometimes acts as a sort of narrator for the ongoing events.
80	* Dave Lister in ''Series/RedDwarf''. Not a Rastafarian -- he's either an atheist or a pantheist. Not to mention being a deity in his own right to a lost race evolved from his pet cat. He is rather anti-authoritarian, however.
81	* ''Series/WifeSwap'' featured a ''white'' family like this.
82	* ''[[Series/TheBible2013 The Bible]]'' (2013):
83	** John the Baptist has dreads, appropriate for a wild mystic who lives off in the desert.
84	** Samson, unusually, combines this with DreadlockWarrior. As a Nazirite, he has untrimmed, matted hair as a symbol of devotion to God. But he also kicks Philistine butt. When he loses the dreads, he can't fight.
85	* Barry Allen's friend Julio Mendez in ''Series/TheFlash1990'' episode "Flash Forward" wore dreads ten years into the future when Central City was taken over by Nicolas Pike. Being a former cop that was demoted to a garbageman in that future time period, he is against the Nicolas Pike regime.
86	* ''Series/{{Glee}}'' played with this trope a little with the character of Joe Hart, a Caucasian, devoutly ''christian'' student who was [[HomeschooledKids home schooled]] until he was 16.
87	* Cosima Niehaus on ''Series/OrphanBlack'' wears dreadlocks, in keeping with her EruditeStoner aesthetic.
88	* Nova, one of the three protagonists of ''Series/QueenSugar'', wears her hair in long dreadlocks. She's a spiritualist and herbal healer who sells weed off her front porch. This contrasts her with her sister Charley, who wear straightens her hair and is more uptight.
89	* ''Series/Sense8'': Amanita Caplan wears her hair in dreadlocks dyed in [[QueerColors the colors of the Bisexual Pride flag]]. She's extremely liberal, making several comments about wealth inequality, and she and her girlfriend Nomi are seen eating pot brownies on several occasions. When the FBI pursue Nomi on false charges Amanita refuses to comply with the agent that [[InspectorJavert keeps coming to question her]]. While she never expresses any religious affiliation she immediately accepts that Nomi is a [[PsychicLink sensate]] and is generally very open-minded.
90	* ''Series/ConversationsWithFriends'': Bobbi has dreadlocks, and she's a bold, freespirited, independent woman.
91	* ''Series/TheCrowdedRoom'': {{Deconstructed}} with Ariana. Though her dreadlocks help to signify that she's a bold, carefree, independent party girl, it's soon shown that she's troubled and quite unstable too. She is an alternate personality of Danny's, embodying the aspect which dealt (or tried to) with his fear, pain and loneliness.
92	* ''Series/HighFidelity'': Rob has dreadlocks and is a cool, freespirited young woman. {{Deconstructed}} however as she's also lonely and pretty unhappy with her life.
93	* ''Series/MonarchLegacyOfMonsters'': May's a freespirited, independent black woman who styles her hair in dreadlocks.
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96	[[folder:{{Music}}]]
97	* Music/BobMarley is the {{Trope Namer\|s}} in his song "Buffalo Soldier" from ''Music/{{Confrontation}}''. The song explicitly equates "the dreadlock Rasta" and the Buffalo Soldiers through their struggles with injustice, indicating that from Marley's perspective, a Dreadlock Rasta is also in a sense a DreadlockWarrior. His sons Ziggy and Damian, who are famous musicians in their own right, also wear dreadlocks and follow in the Rastafarian beliefs.
98	* The members of reggae band Morgan Heritage wear dreadlocks, but they subvert the religious aspect of the trope with their song "Don't Haffi Dread." As the chorus lyrics say:
99	-->''You don't haffi dread to be Rasta; don't haffi dread!''
100	* The white rasta stereotype is parodied in (white) rapper Sage Francis' song "Slow Down Gandhi":
101	-->''"give me ethnicity, or give me dreads". A trustufundian rebel, without a cause for alarm. Because when push turns to shove you jump into your forefather's arms. He's a banker. You're part of the system. Off go the dreadlocks, in comes the income''
102	* Also parodied in Music/TheLonelyIsland song "Ras Trent". The video has Andy Samberg walking around in terrible-looking dreads past some actual Rastafarians who are shaking their heads at the ridiculousness of it. He also doesn't appear to wash his hair, as he smells it at one point and jerks away.
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105	[[folder:Mythology & Religion]]
106	* [[Literature/SamsonAndDelilah Samson]], the [[SuperStrength inhumanly strong]] OneManArmy from the Bible, is specifically stated to wear his hair in dreadlocks in [[Literature/BookOfJudges Judges 16:13]]. As a Nazirite (sort of an Old Testament proto-monk), he actually combines this trope with DreadlockWarrior.
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109	[[folder:VideoGames]]
110	* Cielo in ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei: VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga'' has sky-blue dreadlocks and a stereotypical Jamaican accent, and is described as having a cheerful personality.
111	* The villainous Damnd (or Thrasher in the {{Bowdlerise}}d version) from ''VideoGame/FinalFight'', being the first boss you fight from the Mad Gear Gang, smiles a lot and is somewhat carefree.
112	* Dave Ray, the sole black character from ''VideoGame/{{Loopmancer}}'', have long dreadlocks as his hairstyle.
113	* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': WordOfGod states that the fur on Knuckles the Echidna's head are dreadlocks. Knuckles himself is an IneffectualLoner when he's not willingly being TheLancer. He counts due to there being a deep spiritual connection and importance placed on his job as guardian of the Master Emerald, detailed in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' and ''VideoGame/SonicChronicles''.
114	* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': Dee Jay hails from Jamaica and is extremely laid-back, always smiling and never letting anything worry him. With regards to hair, though, this is downplayed, as he has a hi-fade flat-top plus a couple of dreadlocks.
115	* An Enforcement of the trope occurs over the course of ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration's'' journey from concept to export. The MauveShirt Giado Verendi, as his name suggests, was originally designed to be Italian. But he was given dreadlocks for some reason. The colorist saw the dreadlocks, and made him Black. When the game was exported by Creator/{{Atlus}}, the writers saw a Black man with dreadlocks, and gave him a Jamaican accent.
116	* ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'' has [[ScaryBlackMan Gabriel Tosh]]. Dreadlocks, [[strike:Jamaican]] [[strike: [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Troll]]]] ''some'' accent, liberal use of Terrazine, and ''really'' hates [[TheEmpire Mengsk's Terran Dominion]]. For the haircut part, [[spoiler:Un-infested [[ActionGirl Kerrigan]]]] in the ''Heart of the Swarm'' part seems to fit.
117	* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'': "Little" Jacob Hughes expresses some anti-authoritarian attitudes in-line with Rastafari beliefs, and uses marijuana liberally, but isn't exactly the most peaceful person around. He's still better than most of the psychos running around Liberty City, though. And still more back than his associate, Real Badman.
118	* In ''VideoGame/EagleEyeMysteries'', Randy Hicks sports the hairstyle in his avatar picture. He's a dog trainer who uses, at least as far as his competition is concerned, "unconventional" means of training dogs (that is, he treats them as though they have spiritual energy that can be positive or negative depending on how they're treated).
119	* In ''VideoGame/{{SSX}}'', we have Moby Jones. He sports dreadlocks of variable length and doesn't let anybody push him around. However, he's British, not Jamaican[[note]]There is a sizable community of Jamaican British, but it's not mentioned whether Moby is one[[/note]], although he does listen to Bob Marley.
120	* Lúcio from ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' has these.
121	* ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'': Flow is an anthropomorphic sea slug and NewAgeRetroHippie whose tentacles are styled to resemble dreadlocks.
122	* ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland2LeChucksRevenge'' has a supporting character named Captain Dread. His name may sound scary, but he is actually a pretty cool guy who is only called that because of his hair.
123	* ''VideoGame/BarnFinders'': One of the various characters you can meet, Sebastian, is a Rastafarian man with his hair done up in dreadlocks.
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126	[[folder:WebComics]]
127	* Mona, a secondary character in ''Webcomic/TheQuickAndDirtyLifeOfFritzFargo'', has dreadlocks. Although she's probably not Rastafarian, she's laid-back and unconventional. In addition to the dreadlocks, she has about half a dozen piercings.
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130	[[folder:WesternAnimation]]
131	* Tree Hugger of ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' wears long red dreadlocks under a flower bandanna, as a way to signify her status as a GranolaGirl.
132	* Hermes Conrad from ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' wears short dreadlocks, hails from Jamaica, and is a Rastafarian. [[StereotypeFlip In an inversion of other stereotypes]] he's an ObstructiveBureaucrat.
133	* ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'' has Rocko listening to music on an airplane. He turns into a character associated with each type of music, and one of those was a Rastafarian wallaby guy with dreadlocks.
134	* Major Lazer and [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Old Rasta]] from ''WesternAnimation/MajorLazer.''
135	* Bismuth of ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' has what appear to be rainbow-colored dreadlocks, and is one of the more overtly rebellious Crystal Gems in the series.
136	* ''WesternAnimation/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace'': The Vegans are both {{Granola Girl}}s who refuse to ride a camel in the Morocco challenge, prefering to reach the Chill Zone on foot instead. Laurie's hair is styled into dreadlocks.
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Context Main / DreadlockRasta