Stephen Marley defends his reggae roots
Stephen Marley defends his reggae roots
Stephen Marley, the second-eldest son of acclaimed reggae artist Bob Marley, has set out to prove to the media and music industry that “pure” reggae is still around. The Grammy Award-winning Jamaican artist just completed his third solo album, “Revelation Part 1: The Root of Life,” released May 24. Marley says he was inspired to produce a roots-reggae album after he read an article about how the genre was on a downward spiral. The album is his response that claim.
“It was me getting defensive and being, ‘What? OK, let’s go,’ ” he says.
In comparison with the “poppy” reggae promoted and played commercially, true reggae has integrity and is “the device of the oppressed people … and should always be upheld and defended,” he says.