Ziggy Marley

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David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born October 17, 1968, Trenchtown) is a Grammy-winning Jamaican musician. He is the oldest son of Rita and Bob Marley, the legendary roots reggae singer. His mother Rita called and baptised him David, but his father Bob nicknamed him "Ziggy" in reference to a big spliff [1]. The rumour that his nickname was chosen after the character "Ziggy Stardust" created by David Bowie is not true. Born in Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica, he learned how to play guitar and drums from his father.

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Contents

[edit] Career

[edit] With the Melody Makers

In 1979, Ziggy and his siblings, Cedella, Stephen and Sharon, made their recording debut with their father, "Children Playing in the Streets". The Melody Makers, as the group came to be known, played occasionally for several years, including at their father's funeral in 1981. Their debut LP was Play the Game Right, which was a very pop-oriented album, earning Ziggy some derision from critics. The band's label, EMI, wanted to market Ziggy as a solo act, and so the Melody Makers moved to Virgin Records, where they recorded Conscious Party (1988, produced by Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth). The album was critically and popularly successful, as was One Bright Day (1989) and Jahmekya (1991).

As the 1990s continued, the Melody Makers' sales slowly declined, beginning with Joy and Blues (1993), Free Like We Want to Be (1995).

[edit] Solo career

Ziggy had become politically active by this time, working with the United Nations and creating a record label called Ghetto Youths Crew. A solo album, Dragonfly was released on April 15, 2003.

He voiced a Rasta jellyfish in the 2004 film Shark Tale and also collaborated with Sean Paul on a cover version of his father's song "Three Little Birds" for the soundtrack. The cover was the title song for the film. However, it gained less exposure than "Car Wash" by Christina Aguilera and Missy Elliott, possibly due to not being released as a single.

The theme song for the popular PBS children's television show Arthur is sung by Ziggy Marley.

On July 2, 2006, his second solo album Love Is My Religion, was released.

As Ziggy gets older, his voice sounds more and more like that of his father's. Ziggy recorded the beloved reggae-style theme song for the childrens television series Arthur. A remixed techno version of the song (under the name "Believe in Yourself") was used over the closing credits to the sixth season.

[edit] Personal life

Ziggy is married to Orly Agai, a vice president at William Morris Agency. They have two children: a daughter, Judah Victoria Marley (born April 7, 2005) and a son, Gideon Robert Nesta Marley (born January 5, 2007).

Ziggy also has two children from a previous relationship with Lorraine Bogle: a son, Daniel Bambaatta Robert Nesta Marley,and one daughter, Justice Marley and from another previous relationship with Carlene Samuels produced a daughter named Zuri Marley.

[edit] In popular culture

[edit] External links