Photographer: Cory Vanderploeg
Fashion Editor: Chaunielle Brown
Grooming: Brittan White
Stylist Assistants: Wintry Smith + Shannen Azuredee

 

Words: Adina Ilie

ZIGGY MARLEY’S immersion in music came at age ten when he sat in on recording sessions with his father, Bob Marley. After eight records with The Melody Makers and three GRAMMY Awards, with such chart-topping hits as “Look Who’s Dancing”, “Tomorrow People” and “Tumbling Down” he kicked off a legendary solo career in 2003 with Dragonfly. The reggae icon is now on the cusp of releasing his seventh full-length studio album Rebellion Rises, a testimony of togetherness and love. The eponymous artist opens up to FAULT about the future of our generation, the emotional turmoil of being a reggae artist in 2019 and why hope lies is in the hands of our children.

Carrying the Marley name must have been a blessing and a curse at the same time. How did your father’s career influence your own?

I don’t think it’s his career that influenced me. When I was a child, it was a very influential time because of the political situation and the newness that was happening in music, especially in reggae music. It was such a new thing to the world. And seeing that and the purpose behind what the music was for, really gave me a sense of inspiration… It gave me a purpose. The career is one thing but the life that you’re living is a different thing. It’s a more influential thing than a career for me. When we look at someone, we don’t look at their career, we look at the life. It’s the way you live your life in general and the philosophies that guided you through life that inspire other people.

Do you feel that you have a safer environment to proclaim certain political messages now as opposed to the times when your father was in the same situation as you currently are?

Me and my father are two different people, right? We grew up in different environments. We had different experiences and different exposures. We even had different exposures to different ideas. I think the foundation that my parents built in terms of me and my music is a good foundation to build on, but it’s not the final destination to the journey. It’s a good vehicle to the journey but it’s not the final destination. My evolution and my own purposes have helped bring forward my music with the foundation that was built by them. But it had to do a lot with my personal evolution. Creating enough for myself, for my life for what I think and what I feel. My religion is love.

You’ve always stayed away from making straightforward political statements through your music. Yet your latest album seems to be heading subtly into that direction. Is this something intentional?

The times are so weird. Life inspires me, so these are the inspirations that I have received that I want to put into music. I don’t think too much about it, ideas just come into my head. I allow the process to lead me instead of me trying to lead the process.

Do you see yourself as a vehicle for change?

Not in those words. I am just a messenger of the universe. We get messages from the universe sent through different people and I am one of those people. This message is coming from me, but it’s a message from the universe. I am just doing what I have been given to do, what comes to me naturally.

What was the most important thing that you wanted to project to people?

Just to wake up. Wake up their minds and their consciousness. Because we have experienced the awareness of our own consciousness. If we can reach that level of consciousness, everything will be better, we will have fewer problems.

You’re also doing a lot of charity work with the UN, Little Kids Rock and your very own Urge Foundation. Do you feel that children are the ones that we need to focus on for a better future?

Most adults are set in their own ways. Children haven’t been brainwashed yet. They still have open minds, they’re like sponges. They’re still willing to learn. If we can get a few good ideas into the children’s minds, then when they grow into adults, they will have a good foundation for humanity. It’s

 

How would you like to see people mobilizing themselves through the help of the charities that you’re supporting?

It’s not about prizes or money, but it’s all about doing something that will help people.

What went into the makings of your latest album and how does it differ from your past releases?

The album is called Rebellion Rises. It was an urge inside of me to be a cheerleader, to be a positive force for people. We can do anything that we put our minds to. If human beings want peace on earth, we can do it. We can do anything that we set our minds to. If the majority of human beings on earth said ‘alright, let’s change things’ we could do it. This isn’t a dream, it isn’t a fantasy, we can do it. We need to come together to make it happen. That’s where Rebellion Rises is coming from. I know that the majority of us want more love, more peace, more togetherness. We don’t want ideological division, political or religious division. The majority of human beings are not racists, they don’t hate each other because of one religion or another. If we want the world to be better, we have to be willing to do the work. That is the message within Rebellion Rises.

The cover on your latest album is an image of yourself holding a child’s hand. Is the album formulated as a message for the generation to come?

We have to set the foundation and leave them with the right tools and the right inspiration. People try to keep us in a state of demoralization. No matter what we do, the worries that we have are not true, we can change the world.

What’s your FAULT?

I can be a bit too introverted. I’m a quiet person.