Ziggy Marley, eldest son of Bob Marley, will be performing at Club Nokia LA Live Center on Saturday night. Marley will be performing songs from his newest album, “Wild and Free,” nominated for this year’s Best Reggae Album Grammy award. Ziggy Marley spoke with Daily Bruin’s Brigit Harvey about his newest album and the messages that drive his music.
Daily Bruin: What was your inspiration for your new album “Wild and Free”?
Ziggy Marley: There isn’t one thing. There are a few things “¦ like cannabis and how it should not be demonized and criminalized in society. I wanted to talk about revolution and what it means to people today. When I was younger, revolution was about social change, economic change, political change. One revolution we still need is the personal. When do we change as human beings? And I always talk about love, love, love and God.
DB: Is your music’s message different than that of your father’s?
ZM: I don’t know “¦ I don’t analyze it. We all express ourselves in different ways. Some of it is different when you get to specific words, but not entirely. The similarities (are) that the music carries a message, and that is important because some music now does not carry real value to people or to society “¦ our similarity is maintaining that our music carries meaning beyond just entertainment.
DB: Your oldest son, Daniel, wrote some lyrics for your new album. Do you hope that your children will carry on the music?
ZM: Yes, but I want them to do what is true to them “¦ it is up to them, there is no pressure on them. They do what they want to be.
DB: You and your family are involved in a lot of humanitarian and philanthropic activities. Can you talk a bit about URGE?
ZM: URGE is an acronym for Unlimited Resources Giving Enlightenment. It is a small organization that I started a few years ago “¦ a portion of the ticket sales goes to it to help the education of the kids in Jamaica, and we have built a school there. We are a small organization, but we do what we can. It is very personal to me because it comes from the heart “¦ we do not ask people to give away money, just do what they can.
DB: Could you talk about your participation in Little Kids Rock?
ZM: It is aimed to help kids keep music in school. I have been giving my life to support it … I attend and perform at school events to keep the music going, you know … to promote music in school. Children learning music is essential to brain development, and it should be kept as part of their opinions.
DB: How have these experiences influenced you in terms of your music?
ZM: Who knows? Some incentives are not visible, (they) are subconscious … you don’t know about it … it just comes out in life and has an effect on the world. I think consciously about these things all of the time. I like doing good. I like helping people. It is part of who I am “¦ something subconscious, invisible “¦ don’t know it but it is there.
DB: You released a comic book called “Marijuanaman.” What message do you wish to come across to your readers?
ZM: The idea behind it was to put the plant into the perspective of being a hero and not a villain, (like) how the political people say it is a demon or a villain. I wanted it to be a hero. There are different uses of the plant besides medical, there are recreational (uses) and most of the public is ignorant of the facts and truth. They hear only what is said by the media and government “¦ I wanted to try to find different avenues and angles to speak the truth and a comic book was a creative way to do it.