David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born October 17, 1968, Trenchtown, Jamaica) is a four time Grammy-winning Jamaican musician and leader of the band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. He is the oldest son of Rita and Bob Marley [1], the roots reggae singer. [2] [3]

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Performing career

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). Some of his most popular singles include "True To Myself", "Drive", "People Get Ready", and his US Top 40 and UK Top 20 hit "Tomorrow People".

As the 1990s continued, the Melody Makers' sales slowly declined, beginning with Joy and Blues (1993) and continuing with Free Like We Want 2 B (1995).

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.

On July 2, 2006, his second solo album, Love Is My Religion , was released on his independent record company Tuff Gong Worldwide.

He is listed as the featured artist on Donna Summer's song, "Crayons," the title track from her 2008 album. Marley is also currently (July 2009) on tour with 311.

Personal life

Marley is married to Orly Marley who is a former vice-president of William Morris Agency ^[4] and presently manages his career and his record label, Tuff Gong Worldwide. When not on the road, Ziggy divides his time between homes in Jamaica, California, and the Bahamas.

Marley is the father to five children: Daniel Marley (born July 12, 1989), Justice Marley (born December 9, 1991), Zuri Marley (born October 28, 1995), Judah Victoria Marley (born April 21, 2005) and Gideon Robert Nesta Marley (born January 5, 2007).

His father, Bob Marley, died in Miami. His last words to Ziggy were "Money can't buy life."

Philanthropy

• Unlimited Resources Giving Enlightenment is Ziggy Marley's charity which works to help children. ^[5]
• In 2007, Marley signed on as an official supporter of Little Kids Rock, a nonprofit organization that provides free musical instruments and free lessons to children in public schools throughout the United States. He has visited with children in the program and sits on the organization's board of directors as an honorary member.

In popular culture

In 1991, Marley and the Melody Makers contributed the song Give A Little Love to the Disney album, For Our Children . The album is a collection of kid-friendly songs by popular artists (e.g. Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, and Elton John), with proceeds given to the Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Marley and the Melody Makers recorded the reggae-style theme song for the children's television series Arthur . A remixed techno version of the song, "Believe in Yourself," was used over the closing credits to the sixth season.

He voiced Ernie, one of Sykes' (Martin Scorsese) Rasta jellyfish henchmen in the 2004 film Shark Tale . In the film when Oscar (Will Smith) tries to sing the Bob Marley song Three Little Birds , Marley's character zaps Oscar on the head and says "That's not the way you sing that song, mon" The title song for the film was a cover version of Three Little Birds performed by Marley and Sean Paul.

He sang Rainbow in the Sky on the American television series Charmed in season 6.

His song Love Power was played during the end credits of Muppet Treasure Island.

He sang a cover of "Drive" by The Cars which was featured in the Adam Sandler movie 50 First Dates.

He sang a cover of "Three Little Birds" for Dora The Explorer soundtrack.

He and his Melody Makers made a guest appearance on the popular kids television show Sesame Street and sang a Sesame Street version of "Small People" from their 1991 album Jahmekya

His popular song "True To Myself" was featured on the TV Show Scrubs (Season 8 Episode 14 - My Soul On Fire Pt. 1).

He voiced Reflux in the 2003 video game Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc.

On an episode of Celebrity Deathmatch, Ziggy was mentioned while his father, Bob Marley (who was brought back to life via time machine), had his hands full with Shaggy. Shaggy taunts Bob on how Ziggy might have got his name, on which Bob fight backs with comments on Scooby-Doo, where Shaggy got his nickname.

Discography

With the Melody Makers

• Play the Game Right (1985)
• Children Playing (1986) (unreleased)
• Hey World! (1986)
• Time Has Come: The Best Of Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers (1988)
• Conscious Party (1988)
• One Bright Day (1989)
• Jahmekya (1991)
• Joy and Blues (1993)
• Free Like We Want 2 B (1995)
• The Best Of (1988 - 1993) (1997)
• Fallen Is Babylon (1997)
• Spirit Of Music (1999)
• Live Vol. 1 (2000)
• The Best of Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers (2008)

Solo

• Dragonfly (2003)
• Love Is My Religion (2006, grammy winning)
• Family Time (2009)

Notes

1. bobmarley.com/family
2. Jon Faine and Marieke Hardy. "Judith Holder and Ziggy Marley," ABC Radio Melbourne (Australia), April 3, 2007
3. Ivan Serra and Marco Virgona. "Interview with Ziggy Marley," ''Bob Marley Magazine'' (no date)
4. Latin Notas Updates On Latin Conference
5. U.R.G.E.