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  • Essay / Artist Analysis: Bob Marley and Reggae Music

    Bob Marley, his original name being Robert Nesta Markey, was a Jamaican songwriter and singer. He was born on February 6, 1945 and is considered one of the pioneers of the reggae industry. His musical career was marked by a mixture of rocksteady, ska and reggae (Onyebadi, 2017). Bob Marley primarily applied distinctive and fluid styles of songwriting and singing. He was a global ambassador for reggae, an opportunity which allowed him to produce and sell more than twenty million records during his entire musical career. This record placed him as the most influential international superstar ever to emerge from the Third World. He died in 1981 on May 11 while in Miami, Florida (Dunkley & Shonekan, 2018). Reggae music includes songs sung primarily by Rastafarians who usually sing about normal events regarding politics, social issues, love, and religion. The music is often accompanied by popular instruments such as the trombone, saxophone, trumpets, guitar and drums. Bob was the son of a white father and a black mother, and he spent most of his years in St. Ann Parish. He struggled with poverty in Trench Town, Kingston, a situation which sparked his admiration and love for reggae music. He met many friends who introduced him to music, including Joe Higgs, Peter Tosh and The Wailers. One of the albums he produced with Wailers was The Wailing Wailers created in 1965 (Bannister, 2019). The album focused on a single love and rallied people behind a united struggle. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay Most of Bob Marley's songs were inspirational, revolutionary, and hope-oriented. In one of his popular songs, “People Get Ready,” he expressed the idea of ​​unity. The use of words such as “One Purpose, One God and One Destiny” echoes the words of Garvey who called on people to maintain peace and live in harmony (Onyebadi, 2017). This song asks people to express their love for each other and help others in difficult times since they are one. According to the song, have pity on those whose chances are dwindling. Bob Marley's lyrics ask people to help others since God is one and everything people do must generate love, care and kindness. “No Woman, No Scream” conveys a message of love, compassion and respect for all mothers, sisters and wives. The song acknowledges the type of heartbreaks mothers experience, based on her true story while living in Trench Town. In this song, Bob sings: "In this future, and you can't forget the past, so dry your tears, I say: No woman, no cry, little darling." Bob was referring to the hard life and hypocrisy of government officials who made mothers work a lot. He uses harsh words in this song to warn people who make the lives of mothers and children difficult and go against what they promise. Buffalo Soldier is another song by Bob that shows the revolution for humanity. As he is Rastafarian, he compares himself to the 10th Calvary of the US Army who fought in the Civil War alongside the Union Army (Onyebadi, 2017). As he wears dreadlocks, he identifies with the other Buffalo soldiers who helped the Americans win the war. He calls on Africans to be like the same buffaloes because of their courage and determination to end the colonial yoke of oppression. He declared that "hewas already fighting to survive upon its arrival.” This means that black people had to stand up and defend their status, their dignity and their freedom. Finally, Redemption Song calls listeners to redeem themselves from mental slavery. He sang the song after being diagnosed with cancer. He stated that “no one but ourselves can free our minds” (Bannister, 2019). This means that although humanity can liberate its body, the mind is the sovereign and sole master of happiness. He calls people to realize that they are doomed to be the slaves of men capable of using their brains. Bob's mother, Cedella Marley, was 18 when she gave birth to him. The rural community of Nine Miles shaped Bob Marley's life, especially in the lands of St Ann, which is home to many cultural norms and customs for the locals. Bob's father was Norval, and Captain Marley's family vehemently opposed his marriage to Cedella. Bob first saw his father when he was five years old, who at that time had been taken to Kingston to say with his nephew where he had started his education, but later recalled by his mother. Bob was raised with mixed heritage from a black mother and white father. His father, however, did not take much interest in Bob's life, but he provided for the family and died when Bob was ten years old. Poverty proved too much for Bob to abandon his studies and pursue a music career. Around this time he met a friend, Bunny Wailer, who supported his dreams and together formed the album "The Wailers" in 1973. The Wailers were later signed to Chris Blackwell's Island Label who later released two albums who shaped Bob's musical career. . He became a global brand, notably when Eric Clapton recorded a cover of his best song of the time, 'I Shot the Sheriff' for him. Additionally, in 1976, Marley became a well-known reggae artist in the United States when his "Rastaman Vibrations" reached eighth in the top two hundred on the Billboard charts. His album, Exodus, also became the bestseller of the 20th century, as reported by Time Magazine (Alleyne, 2019). In terms of political climate, the 1970s were a critical time for Jamaican politics. The period of the 1970s and 1980s was a time of political tension and uncertainty which saw a brutal war between two parties and the deaths of many Jamaicans. Bob always participated in peace concerts and gave words of comfort to his countrymen and women. The continued changes in the political climate in Jamaica between Marshall and Massop led Bob to organize various peaceful protests and events to rally the country for peace (Bannister, 2019). He was able to rally the Prime Minister at the time, Manley Michael, and his opponent, Seaga Edward. Bob's albums were produced in different eras with different meanings. 1973's "Catch the Fire" was introduced at a time when reggae was taking root. Being his first album oversees. The literary term means to burn in hell. It was a hit album produced while Bob was living a life of squalor and poverty. He conveys his negative perception of oppression and slavery. The same year, Bob also produced another album called “Burnin”. The most famous song from this album was "I shot the sheriff", which made the record a success. The songs in the album gave the country great concern in social and economic matters (Cooper, 2015). During this period, Kingston was a rural economy and the influx of people due to the post triggered an economic and social imbalance. Most cities had become ghettos of abject poverty and suffering. This difficult environmentis the basis of most of the songs on this album, where Bob Marley conveys a message of hope and campaigns against the harassment of ghetto families. Natty Dread is considered one of the best albums produced by Bob Marley. It contains one of the best hit songs, “No Woman No Cry”, which depicts the poor life of Jamaica and the need to stand up to defend one's dignity. The album depicts a life full of hope and optimism in the face of challenges, encouraging friends to help each other. The other successful album is “Confrontation”, which mainly revisits the themes of oppression and unity. The album is about the life and teaching of Jah Almighty and how Jamaicans should have hope for their destiny and future. The album contains the most popular “Buffalo Soldier,” famous for addressing the determination and plight of black people (Onyebadi, 2017). Exodus is also an important masterpiece that reflects the life of Bob Marley after he was attacked in Jamaica and exiled to London. The album speaks out against the political intolerance of authority that encourages people not to be afraid. Bob Marley also applies various stylistic techniques to get his message across. First, in Redemption he uses imagery to make people aware of the need to emancipate themselves from slavery to gain freedom. He says that being free from the colonial spirit will make the black person free and productive. Additionally, Bob Marley uses all types of musical elements in his songs, such as mento, rhythm and blues. His songs mainly use mento, that is, songs sung with celebratory tones and hymns such as those used in church (Onyebadi, 2017). Also, one of the main recognized aspects of Bob's reggae are the offbeat rhythms like "No woman no Cry". In 1978, Bob Marley also produced another album called survival. The album was produced alongside the Wailers just after 1979. The album contains songs with a laid back and relaxed sound. The album carries a message of hope and unity among those who suffer. He calls on Africans to unite and escape the slavery of Babylon. For example, he says that “Africa is uniting because we are coming out of Babylon” (Dunkley & Shonekan, 2018). This message signals the need for Africans to revolutionize and unite to defeat the enemy of oppression and suffering. In this album, Marley also appreciates African values ​​and their place in shaping their history. Thus, Bob Marley encourages black people to be wary of harsh social elements and to fight for their freedom and emancipation. To further illustrate his 1979 album, Burning, Bob used the album to depict the oppression and mistreatment meted out by the dictatorship. He said: “This morning I woke up to a curfew, oh my God, I was a prisoner too – yeah! This means that the album aimed to wake up black people to prevent them from being undermined by strangers. In this album, Bob describes the need for Africans to stand up and confront the men in brutality uniforms (apparently the police). The album's message is so strong and subtle that it calls on victims of oppression not to be vulnerable to the forces of brutality. The style of Bob Marley's songs is played stylistically using various vocals, keyboards, bass, guitars and drums. . One of his best songs, like Buffalo Soldier, has many musical arrangements. The song also contains various guitar work, but popularly there is the continued use of grinding beats. He typically uses percussion tools such as maracas, snare drum, and washboard. Listening to his album Exodus, he uses many guitars which, 52(1), 56-79.