Ziggy Marley has been making music for decades, ever since he first recorded with his father, the legendary reggae musician Bob Marley in 1979. He’s won six Grammys and an Emmy for his music.
He’s now released a children’s book based on his Emmy-winning song “I Love You Too.”
“To speak to children is even more important than speaking to adults, than making music for the general public,” Ziggy Marley told Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson.
Marley hasn’t given up making music for adults though. Along with “ I Love You Too,” he’s also released the new album “ Fly Rasta.”
Interview Highlights: Ziggy Marley
On the impact of his father’s legacy
“It’s been good, mon, positive. I mean, my father is loved all over the world because of, you know, his music and his personality, and it has been something positive for us. We continue to help him as he helps us. We help him too, it is a mutual benefit … By what we’re doing, we’re still uplifting his legacy, we’re still making sure that, you know, his music carries on. You know the tree by the fruits. We are the fruits of that tree, and if the fruits are not good, then the tree might get a bad point of view. So in that way, we keep talking about him, loving him, we sing, so his music is alive within us too.”
On why he wrote a children’s book and recorded a children’s album
“This song is from my children’s album, and the book is based on those words, those lyrics. For me, if I’m serious about, ‘Hey, I’m Ziggy Marley and I want to make a difference in the world, and I’m trying to inspire people with true words and music,’ then to speak to children is even more important than speaking to adults, than making music for the general public. Because children — you know, adults, we kind of already have a set mind. Most of us, we’re kind of already set in our ways and have have an outlook on how things are and how things should be, while children are open-minded, children are sponges. They’re willing to hear something and see something and accept it without any stereotypical point of view. So we try to get to them from an early age to instill ideas and philosophies, and love is one of the biggest things we can instill in them.”
On what inspires him
“I’m 45 in age, but I’m still learning, I’m still open. My humility makes me just always wanting new ideas and learning. I’m nowhere near where my potential should be, so I’m still active learning. And I’m still fascinated by a tree, by looking at a tree and saying, ‘Wow, look at that, how old is that tree? How long has it been there? It’s a living creature.’ I’m fascinated by things still. I’m fascinated by nature and the things around me, so I have that, I think, it’s a childlike fascination with things that keep me wanting to learn.”
Guest
- Ziggy Marley, Jamaican musician and leader of the band, Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. He tweets @ziggymarley.
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