The new Busy Signal album is a dedication to his commitment to praising and contributing to the beloved genre. No better way to achieve that then a collaboration with my favorite Marley, Damian. The video candidly documents footage of their recording session as well as securing some local footage of a random street in Kingston. When you travel to exotic locations it’s exponentially better when you have local guidance, big ups to Busy and Damian on providing that here.
Cop the Reggae Music Again album from VP Records. And check out our interview with Busy regarding the release.
Bob Marley died at the age of 36 exactly 30 years ago today. I was born three months after his death, and yet his impact makes the word “profound” look petty. Check the documentary out, tis a life worth acquainting yourself with, opposite of Charlie Sheen. Burn a tree, get up, stand up. One Love.
The family of the late Bob Marley, the best selling reggae artist of all time and father to Stephen, Damien, Ziggy, and a gaggle of others, lost their fight for the copyrights to some of their patriarch’s best known records. The Marley family had sought royalties from five records by the Marley-fronted Wailers (Catch a Fire, Burnin’, Natty Dread, Rastaman Vibrations and Exodus) from the period of 1973 to 1977 when they were on Island records (the lawsuit does not make clear why royalties were not sought for albums released under the same agreement after that date). New York judge Denise Cote ruled the records were “works made for hire” (works created by an employee for an employer that designate the employer as the legal author as opposed to the artist who created them) and awarded ownership of the copyrights to Universal Music Group, who own the Island imprint.
Rita and her nine children claimed that the ownership of the renewal term copyrights reverted back to them when Bob died in 1981 (as would be the case with works not made for hire) and that Universal breached the contract by failing to properly account for royalties. The Marleys were suing Universal Music Group for royalties from the 2001-2005 period, with major points of contention being the royalties from digital downloads (Eminem’s producers won a digital download dispute earlier this month against Apple and Universal) and Universal’s granting of unauthorized licenses.
The language of the contract seemed a little strict, with Island including provisions that allowed them to dictate the time and place of any recording session and required Bob to perform “to the best of his skill” whenever, and wherever, called upon. The agreement also granted them approval of all of Marley’s music and lyrics and ownership of the recordings. Now, had Marley delivered an album that Island decided lacked commercial potential, he could repay Island for the recording sessions and release the album with someone else (though that record would not count towards those owed to Island by Bob under the contract). This was back in 1972 and Bob was an artist of colour in an unproven genre, so it’s not terribly shocking that a label would take advantage. It must be noted, however, that Marley signed nearly identical contracts with Island in 1974 and 1975. The 1975 agreement gave him the right to dictate the time and place of the recording sessions, at the very least, but Island still retained ownership of the recordings and approval of the music and lyrics.
When you consider the facts of the contracts, they are terribly one-sided agreements where Marley had his work exploited for a fraction of what it brings in (Bob Marley and the Wailers have sold nearly 17 million records in the US alone). The decision is disheartening as the courts have been known in the past to side with the exploited artist and cancel unfair contracts even in the event they were signed willingly. While the language of the contract does appear like a “work made for hire”, certainly the spirit of good business would lean towards declaring it an unfair agreement in a recent trend towards artists rights. With the burden of proof being on the Marley family, it appears as though their arguments weren’t enough to persuade the judge to make a moral judgement even though Island did not contribute so much as direction to the creative process.
Universal outdid themselves in the counterclaim by asserting that in the event the Marleys were successful in regaining the renewal rights, they then would be liable to Universal for any and all court costs and expenses as well as numerous other costs and liabilities. While I understand that the contracts were signed by a grown man with free will, I’m a lousy Canadian socialist who would like to see some fairness brought into the industry. I would, however, gladly settle for any little measure of balance between the artists and corporations. Historically, Universal has reportedly taken advantage of artists, so I’d settle for anything that takes them down a peg. With this judgement, Universal maintains renewal rights to the copyrights for 67 years after the records were first released.
On a related note, the Marleys pursued this lawsuit under the name of their “Fifty-Six Hope Road Music Limited” which, interestingly, was sued earlier this year in a copyright case where artistJürek Zamoyski claimed that the Marley estate was using three images that Zamoyski created in the mid-nineties without proper compensation. Fifty-Six Hope claimed to have a valid license agreement with Zamoyski’s business partner, Richard Rogala, that granted them ownership of the images in 1995. The Marley were eventually successful in having the suit dismissed, but I’d wager that they would have rather used their win on this one.
Bob Marley died on May 11th, 1981 in Miami, Florida from skin cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain and received a state funeral in Jamaica. His last words, spoken to his son Ziggy, were “Money can’t buy life”.
The 5 coffee blends offered are: Mystic Morning Wake Up Coffee Medium Roast, Simmer Down Organic Swiss Water Decaf, One Love Organic Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, Lively Up! Organic 5 Bean Espresso Blendand Buffalo Soldier Premium French Blend Light Roast.
This was my view as I passed the coffee section in my local Whole Foods grocery store this past weekend. Marley Coffee, bloody genius, and product of a Marley kid, that makes it legit to boot. The coffee company started as a business plan in Rohan Marley’s imaginative fantasy world, its rise to mainstream acclaim is a real Jamaican/American success story, the kind right-wingers can get down with on account of its economical implications for the proverbial American start-up business. Soul Culture Magazine just hooked up an in depth piece on Rohan Marley and his budding coffee empire, watch the video, enjoy the aroma.
This is a 7 track advance of the upcoming Damian Marley and Nas album, Distant Relatives. The LP drops May 18th, which is 20 days too far away. I’ll be sure to review the album, and hopefully get an interview when they perform at UCLA Jazz Reggae Festival this year. But for now, sit back, get acquainted with some distant relatives.
The pessimist amongst us would say that the plethora of concept mixes being released is a sign of a lack of creativity with music being produced in the present. The optimist in me says, I love reggae, I love hip hop, praise Jesus for the fusion. On a subjective tip, this mix is the best fuse I’ve seen between my two favorite genre’s, at least since Def Jamaica went defunct. I’m going to stream some of my favorites, be sure to click the image to download the project. Quick disclaimer: I drive an Infiniti purely because of a line in a Mobb Deep track from their first album, so yeah, I may be bias, just a little.
Naturally, a mash-up of any hip hop material with reggae is going to pique my interest. Let alone the fact that this mash-up is of legends within their respective genres; Nas and the great Bob Marley. I’m not going to front, this isn’t the cleanest music fusion I’ve come across, but the fused renditions of Ether and Made You Look are worth the acoustic investment. Plus it’s Nas and Bob Marley, and free, download it, duh.
A conversation with reggae legend Chuck Fenda. Paraphrased to our greatest ability from a grainy cell phone call to Chuck in Jamaica. Big Up to Joe Wiggins at VP Records for hooking up the interview.
How has growing up in between Jamaica and the US influenced your music?
Well, I was born in Brooklyn, NYC but moved to Jamaica at 6 weeks old. I went to school in Jamaica and the US. Reggae music is the rock of Jamaica and to really bust out in the music business I wanted to establish myself in Jamaica first. So I moved there to do music in 1998.
ZIF readers have heard a bit of conscious reggae; could you please tell us the difference between conscious reggae and more commercial reggae music like Sean Paul.
Conscious reggae is the same type of music that Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer were making. I consider myself part of the new generation that is carrying on Bob Marley’s work. His influence lives on and will never die. Bob laid the foundation, and now reggae music is known across the world. It’s huge right now in Europe, Canada and Africa.
What music are you listening to right now?
Besides (the artists listed above), I also listen to Burning Spear quite a bit. But really, I listen to everybody! It is about the message of the song. I listen to music that does not perpetuate or create illusions. The music I make and the music I listen to is about the message. I want to listen and learn from my music. Music has the power to change your life, elevate and inspire. There is music out there now that makes no sense and its creating false realities (violent music, gun this, bling bling that etc.) making people stray from what’s right.
So, if you are trying to bring a positive message about focusing on the right things and educating people, why was your music banned from the radio? Particularly “Gash dem and light dem” which was banned in Jamaica based on the government’s recommendation.
That song was inspired by a gruesome news story I saw on TV. A 6-year-old girl was kidnapped on her way to school and brutally assaulted, stabbed and murdered, her body dumped. This gruesome act highlighted the abuse that children suffer around the world and I wanted to bring this issue to light. There are many children missing and abused and the song is built around this topic. Unfortunately the government took it the wrong way and suggested it be banned. It was misunderstood, but I’m happy that the whole country was upset about it not being played, because they understood the positive message of empowerment I was attempting to convey. The government and media did not understand the concept.
This is a big issue in the US too, with all these kids being kidnapped. It’s time for the authorities to recognize that not all children are fortunate enough to be chauffeured to school. There are parents that can’t make ends meet, are poor and suffering and that is affecting the children. I wanted to highlight their plight, but the authorities are not interested in improving the situation for them.
It does not make sense to me because other songs about gun violence are allowed to be played. The rules are being applied arbitrarily. I’m actually talking about eradicating gun violence and not encouraging it.
Maybe it’s the fact that the public wants to be shielded from the brutality of such acts, and wants to protect itself by keeping it out of the public eye?
It was banned, but I’m speaking the truth. I’m not a racist. I am talking about unity and love. About the Almighty and how he will bring out the light to those who suffer and who are in the darkness.
My song may not play on the radio but it is serving the people of Jamaica because they are speaking and discussing the issues of the poor. In fact it is serving everyone, because the track is presenting relevant topics. I’m not against anyone, everyone should be free to do what they want, and I’m inspiring people to do what is right. I’m not against gays, etc. I want to do music, not bash other people. I want to elevate, highlight and speak the truth, and eradicate guns and violence.
Sounds like a true Rasta. The message in your music is closely linked to Rastafari culture. We’ll take any excuse to smoke a joint, but what is the role of marijuana in Rastafari culture?
It’s a natural herb of inspiration and meditation, which is like praying. It helps you meditate. Natural vibes. Authorities can say what they want about it but it’s not going to change the fact that it is a natural plant.
In the US, the justice system is not set up with rehabilitation in mind. The three strikes rule could have you spending life in jail for marijuana related offenses. What is the law like in Jamaica regarding weed?
They mostly go after people shipping it overseas in containers. They are only tough on the big dealers. As an individual, you could get away with a night in jail for about ½ pound. No matter how they make the rules, herb is good and natural. Bob spoke very highly of it and its abilities.
Bob Marley has a sizable roster of offspring and each of them, for better or worse, are making strides to carry out his irie ideologies. Marley was the son of a black Jamaican mom and a white Jamaican father, who had family in England.
In our current recession, I suppose a good amount of genealogists are out of work because the connection has recently been made from Bob Marley to Carole Tovey (born Carole Marley), a white English woman who lives in the English countryside and enjoys Tea and the Everley Brothers. Tovey shares a paternal great grandfather with Bob.
Here’s the exciting part; Tovey was unaware about her connection to the Reggae icon until this week and when she was played her distant cousin’s music for the first time her response was…..”it’s all right.” Tovey’s son has also indicated that his mother smokes plenty cigarettes but has never puffed the ganj.’ For more absurd comparisons between the two Marley cuzo’s peep the full story here.
