BY DANIEL ALEMAYEHU
Though geographically Jamaica is a far cry from Africa, there are a multitude of issues they share. History teaches that Jamaica was the slavery bay for black Africans as Spanish and English conquerors used the place in different occasions.
In early times when slavery was practiced, Africans were the victims, and their destination was America and the Caribbean Islands. People who lived in those places were under the shackles of slavery for long time; they also tasted to the full the acrimonious life under white bosses.
From the villages of Jamaica, Nine Miles, Saint Ann, a boy was born on 6 February 1945. He was from an English descent father and a black teenager mother from Jamaica. He went by Robert Nesta Marley aka Bob Marley. Time showed that this boy was not just a boy; he was an artist who soon became one of the greatest reggae singers of all times.
From his song lyrics, ‘the music hits the best, so hit me with music’, he magnifies his thoughts with his lyrics. There are his songs that depict the real pictures of the world and convey the best ideas and philosophies regarding black freedom and equality. As slavery was the hot potato in the 80’s and 90’s, Bob had well expressed what he felt regarding the black people and the grief they lived in. His songs were directly related with Africans and freedom of black people around the world.
It was a time when the movement of Rastafarianism busted out, and Bob and his new band, ‘the Wailers’ had embraced the philosophy. It influenced their perspectives and their music greatly. As the movement directly related with Ethiopia and the Emperor Haile Silassie I, Bob sang mainly about black people movements and depicted Ethiopia as a major actor for the freedom movement.
There are typical songs dedicated for anti-colonialism and black people’s struggle for freedom. Bob translated one of Emperor Haile Silasie’s speeches, presented at the League of Nations when the Emperor requested the member countries of the league for help after Italy forcefully invaded Ethiopia and the war started. The title of the song is ‘War’. In the first lines of the song, it says,
“Until the philosophy which hold one race superior
and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned…”
“….Until the color of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes.”
In this song, Bob conveys equality among the races of humankind. Man’s skin color has no other significance than the color of his eyes. He depicts everyone the skin color he/she owns notwithstanding is equal with others because he/she is a human being.
People may tune to Bob’s songs on various occasions. Some of the songs even become familiar with our daily chores. Conversely, there are still many songs that truly carry across ideas that hold water in relation to freedom and black uprising.
In the above song, he also talks about the ugly regimes in Angola, Mozambique, and South Africa that took the lives of our brothers. Concerning the bond between Ethiopia and Rastafarianism, Bob’s songs didn’t confine themselves only to this relation. Rather the struggle was for all black people.
To showcase added bond with Africans, Bob sang for Zimbabwe. He encouraged people to fight for their rights. Some decent and quite amazing ideas are encapsulated in the song. In the middle of the song, it says:
“To divide and rule could only tear us apart;
In everyman chest, mm- there beats a heart.
So soon we’ll find out who are the real revolutionaries;
And I don’t want my people to be tricked by mercenaries.”
What a beauty! What an idea! We, Africans have so many burdens to bear. Accordingly, we have witnessed that we Africans are the ones who are the source of the problems and again we can become part of the solutions. Bob kept urging the black community to fight for its rights.
To diminish scarifies paid for freedom, the other side has been fomenting the so called system ‘divide and rule’. He told us that this system will tear everyone apart, so he said we should be brave enough to achieve our goal. That’s why he said there is a heart under our chest. In addition, he said that of course, there are plenty of freedom fighters that labeled themselves as the real revolutionists, but he warned us not to be fools. He disclosed that in this struggle path, our brothers and sisters had been killed and hurt, but we must have the bravery to overcome those challenges and keep going forward.
Besides, Bob and his band, the Wailers, have another song called ‘Them belly full (but we hungry)’. The song says:
“Them belly full, but we hungry;
A hungry mob is an angry mob.
A rain a-fall, but the dutty tough; (the rain is falling, but the dirt is tough)
A yot a-yook, but d’ yood no ‘nough. (a pot a cook but the food not enough)”
“… cost of living’ gets so high,
Rich and poor they start to cry:
Now the weak must get stronger:
They say, “Oh, what a tribulation!”
In this song, Bob wanted to convey the difference between the poor and the rich. He also advised people who take the power that the question of bread needs to be treated well. If not, chaos is imminent. He also uncovered the reality how the rich tricked the poor by echoing their complaints. Deep inside, they know the reality that they are not the ones bearing the misery. This shows the real world and how things are working these days. This is the reality, and we need to face and fight it!
Just to add one more example among the many meaningful songs, Bob sang ‘Top Rankin’. It says:
They don’t want to see us unite;
All they want us to do is keep on fussing and fighting.
They don’t want to see us live together;
All they want us to do is keep on killing one another.
Top rankin’, top rankin’
Using his lyrics, Bob saw what would happen in the future, and the intent that these super powers have to rule the world. Sometimes, his words made him a prophet, foretelling the future. The above idea is about telling what these super powers of the world want in order to sustain their power. All they want the people of the world to fight and fuss one another. They want no peace in the world. When we see the world, we can witness how those powerful states interfere and do things for their own benefits. That is why Bob sang that they don’t want us live together.
Bob Marley along with his band, the Wailers released around 164 songs. There are songs we didn’t hear before, but for sure he has it all. He has 13 studio albums, 6 live albums, 38 completion albums, and 133 singles.
I believe that we Africans are far from understanding his ideas and the theme he wanted to convey. With many cultures, heritages, and natural resources, Africa is still waiting for the good will of the whites. All these miseries are caused by the ones we call white friends. So like Bob, wake up and live. We, Africans should wake up from our eternal sleep and fight for our freedom and equality. AFRICAN SHOULD BE DUPPY CONQUEROR!
The Ethiopian Herald March 26/2022
