Ifย Ziggy Marleyย is challenged by the idea of following his iconic father into the streets of Brixton, heโs not showing it.
โMy father used to hang out a lot in the UK,โ he tells HuffPostUK. โHe told me, โIโve had an infatuation with the UK all my life.โ
โNow I want to connect with those same people. I am who I am because of who I am. Everything plays a part, the difficulties, the benefits, my father and his legacy, itโs all part of the eco-system, and I get to play my part.โ
If anything, it seems that his history as the son ofย Bob Marleyย has energised Ziggy, fresh from recent Grammy triumph, and with a new album out next April. This album, unlike previous ones, has a mission statement tooโฆ
โThis album has much more thought process, more knowledge,โ he explains. โI didnโt have that knowledge before. I wanted to explore, like an astronaut, look out in the skies. I wanted to have an adventure that would excite me. I didnโt want to repeat.โ
What about the fans still hanging out for old favourites, including ‘People Get Ready’ and ‘Tomorrow People’?
โYou can start to worry about what people will like, instead of putting something new,โ Ziggy justifies his new direction. โItโs going to take a second for my audience to get into my fresh new songs.
โBut bringing people forward, thatโs my passion, I donโt do it to please other people. I am Rasta, but still I am individual, I am not a clone of someone elseโs ideas.โ
Many other creative types have walked along this Rasta path, most recentlyย Snoop Dogg with his conversation to Rastafarianism and his new moniker of Snoop Lion, which was be-wailed by Bunny Wailer for not being authentic. Ziggy takes a more laidback viewโฆ
โEveryone can express themselves,โ he says.
โI donโt judge either, I donโt worry. Everything in the end, the truth will be known. No matter where you start out, that is where you end up. The proof is in your pudding.โ
