75th ANNIVERSARY FOR BOB MARLEY – FEBRUARY 6

A number of activities is being planned for the late reggae icon Bob Marley who will be celebrating his 75th Anniversary on February 6. The Marley family made the disclosure recently and informed that this year is a significant milestone of the family patriarch, and global superstar who died in 1981 at the age of 36.

Five of Marley’s sons – Ziggy, Stephen, Ky-Mani, Julian and Damian, will be the main highlight of the activities. In a recent interview, Ziggy shared that the idea came about as his brothers tried to decide on how best they could honor their father at this milestone. He said “one of the things is the release of a book…a photo featuring rare and some never-before-seen pictures from the family album. In all the planning, Stephen and I were in the studio and it just came to us, why not put out a song to pay tribute to our father. There is still quite a bit of work to be done on the 75th birthday edition of Cornerstone”. Some of the Stephen’s brothers are yet to lay down their vocals, but Ziggy is confident that the recording will make the February 6 date.

Bob Marley was born on February 6, 1945 in Nine Mile, St Ann to Cedella Booker and Norval Sinclair Marley. He was diagnosed with cancer and died on May 11, 1981 at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Miami, now University of Miami Hospital. He was accorded a state funeral which was held at the National Arena in St Andrew and interred at his birthplace in St Ann. Bob received many distinguished awards locally and overseas including Order of Merit from the Government of Jamaica in 1981, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, 2001 and in 1978, the Peace Medal of the Third World.

As a solo act, Marley took reggae music even further with anthems such as One Love, No woman No cry, and Redemption Song.

How much is Bob Marley worth?
He is actually the only Caribbean artist to grace a Forbes list, which is mostly dominated by North Americans and Britons. Reportedly, Marley’s estimated net worth is around $130 million U.S. dollars. As both a singer and songwriter, Marley is credited with popularizing reggae and the Rastafari movement worldwide.

Contributed by HE Prof Colin O Jarrett
Senior Editor