Family Trips with the Meyers Brothers - ZIGGY MARLEY Took A “Trip To The Moon” To Zimbabwe

Episode Date: May 26, 2026

This week on the pod, Seth and Josh welcome Ziggy Marley! Ziggy talks all about growing up in Kingston as the son of Bob Marley, what his father’s fame felt like during his childhood, and the family... trips that shaped him: from modest weekends in the Jamaican countryside to traveling to Zimbabwe for the country’s 1980 independence celebration. He also shares stories about moving to Delaware for a year, experiencing snow for the first time, visiting Miami, and meeting half-siblings during rides in the family’s yellow VW. Plus, Ziggy also chats about his upcoming studio album "Brightside," out now! Watch more Family Trips episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlqYOfxU_jQem4_NRJPM8_wLBrEEQ17B6 ------------------------- Support our sponsors: Shopify Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at https://SHOPIFY.COM/trips Rula Rula patients typically pay $15 per session when using insurance. Connect with quality therapists and mental health experts who specialize in you at https://www.rula.com/trips #rulapod First Leaf Stop settling for wines that don't quite hit the mark. Head to https://TryFirstleaf.com/trips to sign up and you'll get fifty percent off your first box PLUS free shipping for an entire year. ------------------------- Family Trips is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Theme song written and performed by Jeff Tweedy. ------------------------- About the Show: Lifelong brothers Seth Meyers and Josh Meyers ask guests to relive childhood memories, unforgettable family trips, and other disasters! New Episodes of Family Trips with the Meyers Brothers are available every Tuesday. ------------------------- Executive Producers: Rob Holysz, Jeph Porter, Natalie Holysz Creative Producer: Sam Skelton Coordinating Producer: Derek Johnson Video Editor: Josh Windisch Mix & Master: Josh Windisch Episode Artwork: Analise Jorgensen #familytrips #sethmeyers #joshmeyers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey, tripsters, Pashi here. Solo intro today because Sufi is traveling. His brother-in-law actually just made this documentary, I think, series about Rafa Nadal. So he has gone to the premiere of that, which is very cool. Zach Heiserling, is that dude's name? Who's a great documentary filmmaker. I'm going to try to be less grumpy because the last time I did one of these solo intros, I got pegged as being a Karen about a couple of times.
Starting point is 00:00:30 things. So I'm just trying to keep it a bit lighter. Although I will say, last night, 245 in the morning, we have a smoke detector in our bedroom. And it started chirping. And it would beep three times. And then it would say, clean the alarm. And then it would be quiet for about 30 seconds. And then it would beep again and go, clean the alarm. And it was very frustrating. I had to go get this little stool out of the closet stand up. I do have compressed air. I'm proud of myself for that because McKenzie, my wife was looking online at how does one clean this alarm. So I sprayed it with that, no luck, kept chirping the dogs. We have a very old dog who was starting to shake. There's a button that said test and I felt like if I hit that, it was going to just set off the full on alarm. So I was
Starting point is 00:01:27 afraid of that. Eventually, the solution was I had to go all the way down to the garage, get a full-on ladder, come back up, kill the power, and physically remove the smoke detector from the wall, and then I put it under a bunch of pillows on the couch. And I'm just seeing this morning, I was trying to see what was going on when I was up on that ladder and trying to see if there was anything else I could try. And because it was the middle of the night in 245 and I was a bit rocked, totally out of a dead sleep, I put my phone in my mouth to hold it and I cracked my phone screen with my teeth and I'm just seeing that right now. So I'm frustrated by that. And I've already called the smoke detector people and they're sending me a new one, but it doesn't,
Starting point is 00:02:21 no one's going to give me my 245 back. I just had a great trip back east. It was a belated 50th birthday trip that some of my friends threw for me. It was really wonderful. A little time in New Jersey, a little time in upstate New York. Finished off with a couple days going to visit my parents. Got to see Seth for a night in upstate New York. He showed up.
Starting point is 00:02:50 His wife offered to sort of handle all of the kids. and getting them situated on a Friday afternoon so that he could come up and spend a night with me and some of these fellas. And Seth met us on the golf course. He played the last two holes with us, but he and another friend of ours just like jogged out. And when you see Seth, when he's just completely unencumbered,
Starting point is 00:03:21 like there is no more work for the week, he is going to see his kids the next day, any stress that he might typically have in his life, and he handles that stress all very well, I should say. But he was bounding across this golf course with a smile that just made me so happy. And then we just had such a fun night, you know, just being stupid, just sitting around, making each other laugh, telling stories. It was really great. So my thanks to Mike Lazaro, to Fresh, to Stradley, to Stanch.
Starting point is 00:03:59 It was great. And, yeah, then see, my parents was great, but you're going to hear more about that on Thursday of this week, because as Seth is traveling, my father, Larry Myers, is going to be the guest host on the listener episode. But for this episode, this was very exciting. Sometimes when guests are pitched to us, it is another level of excitement. And when Ziggy Marley crossed the email wires, both Seth and I were very excited about the possibility. And he certainly delivers. Obviously, you know him as a musician.
Starting point is 00:04:42 He is also a philanthropist. He is on tour right now with his new album Bright Side. So if you're so inclined, go check him out. I can't imagine it is anything less than a fun, feel-good night out. A lot of outdoor venues for him as well, which feels right for the summer. I saw Florence in the Machine a couple nights ago, and she's so good. It was so fun. That was at the forum in L.A.
Starting point is 00:05:15 And something about live music. You can listen to it at home. You know, you can stream it, but going to see it really gives you that sense of community. And it was a blast. So go out, see Ziggy. But before that, have a listen to this episode. Hello. Hey, hey, no, I know, I know.
Starting point is 00:05:59 How are you? Yeah, I'm good, all you guys. You guys good? We're fantastic. We're so happy to be talking to you. No, I'm glad for talk to you. A closer look is one of my, like, I watch the closer look all the time, bro. You made my day, Ziggi.
Starting point is 00:06:18 He distills it down. He boils it down to the essence. I was wondering what happened to you. I was looking at whatever. You was off, so he just came back. I know. Well, you know, it didn't seem like much was happening in the world, Ziggy, so I thought I would just take a break. It's lovely to see you.
Starting point is 00:06:34 Where are you joining us from, Ziggi? In L.A. I'm in L.A. That's great. That's great. How long have you lived in L.A. now? 20 years now since my daughter is 21 today. Yeah, 21 years. Congratulations. Yeah, thank you. How often do you go back to Jamaica, Zeggi?
Starting point is 00:06:53 Two often. When I feel like it, I usually go back to do charity work or, you know, do some kind of community service. that's what I usually The last time I was there I think it was for the premiere The Bob Marley movie And we did a lot of community service
Starting point is 00:07:07 While I was there So I usually go back to do stuff like that That's fantastic You now obviously you grew up You know Unlike I think a lot of us grow up You know You had a very
Starting point is 00:07:18 A famous musician As a father Did you guys Travel a lot with your dad? Yeah but let me get Let me put that statement In that context kind of Because, so we grew up in a Jamaica, right?
Starting point is 00:07:31 So the way we know Bob Marley today is not the way he was when I was growing up. It's not the same level of fame and, you know, like, you know, love and all of that. In fact, some people never love Bob Marley, you know, some people, yeah, because it was a revolutionary, you know, so it's not everyone liked him. So, yeah, when we were growing up, it wasn't anything. I mean, it wasn't, we never really. feel in a special way or acting a special way, especially in Jamaica.
Starting point is 00:08:05 I know we never feel special, I don't like that. After he passed away and the film kind of grew and, you know, he's adored by so many people. You know, that's when you kind of see that type of thing start taking place, you know? But he was his, obviously, he was making music all your upbringing.
Starting point is 00:08:22 It seems like, is it safe to say, you spent a lot of time in the recording studio with your father as a very young person? Recording studio, driving to pick up manufactured records. He was hustling. He was hustling. He was trying to make ends meet. He was trying to take care of his kids, you know?
Starting point is 00:08:39 So he was always like trying to like open business and record shop. But it was all based on music. But he was trying to like get ahead, you know what I say? Yeah. Would you ever sort of travel as a family? Would you take vacations that weren't around his performing or music? Would you ever just have a quiet weekend somewhere? Or was it always music focused?
Starting point is 00:09:02 No, no, I mean, vacation is a stretch. Because we never usually really take vacay. So we live in Kingston, and a lot of the stuff happening in Kingston. And we would travel to where he, in the countryside where he was born sometimes. You know, on the weekends or whatever. That's a little vacation. My biggest trip that I went with him on was actually... for the independent celebration of Zimbabwe in 1981,
Starting point is 00:09:33 1980, yeah, 1980. That was a great trip for me as a kid. I think I was, what, 11, 11 year old, and going to Africa for the first time, and it was a whole, like, it was a whole revolution. It was so much, like, change happening in energies. Like, it was weird for me, because it was like a revolutionary trip, you know,
Starting point is 00:09:56 and I saw how the gorilla fighters came to the hotel to meet Bob and they were talking. It was just amazing for me as a kid, you know. It's such an amazing thing to think of through a kid's eyes. Like, you know, obviously, you know, he was, you know, that was such a thrust of who he was. So, like, were you, was that idea of revolution and what it was? Like, was that a big part of your upbringing? Yeah, yeah. So as an 11-year-old, like, you know, if we'd go on, I mean,
Starting point is 00:10:26 In vacation with our dad and guerrilla fighters had shown up, we would have assumed he defended someone at the airport. But was it just normal to you? They're not normal because even in Jamaica, them all their talk about, it's like, I don't know, my father and his group of friends, you know, people around him,
Starting point is 00:10:43 they're like, they're rebels, they're rebels, you know, they're rebels. Not with guns are not like that, but with ideas, you know, and like, philosophy and how they want, you know, especially during those days when Jamaica was in a lot of turmoil
Starting point is 00:11:02 because of political violence, or they want to unify the people. And because of the politics, the politics don't want the people to unify. So it was a whole, yeah, we hear about this art. It was life. It was great, though. It was great. Do you remember being excited about,
Starting point is 00:11:18 and did any of your other siblings go on the Zimbabwe trip? Or was it just you? My brother. My brother. My younger brother. Stephen, yeah. And were you, do you remember the time being excited about it and saying, oh, my God, I can't believe we get to go on this?
Starting point is 00:11:31 Yeah, I remember I was on the plane and I said, my father, this is the biggest joke from the trip. Like my father, they always make, you know, back in the note, they would make fun of me because I said, I said to him, boy, this is coming like a trip to the moon. You know? What's a trip to the moon? I don't know. Have I been there before? I've never been there.
Starting point is 00:11:52 So I'm not sure. But that was my comparison. to like this long flight. Yeah? Oh my God. It's like a trip to the moon. And then when we got there, so the first, the concert, he did a concert for, it was like dignitaries were there.
Starting point is 00:12:05 So Prince Charles was there and the British, you know, because it was getting independent from the British monarch. Yeah. So Prince Charles, it was the whole thing. So he was performing there and then there were people outside of the stadium, outside of the ceremony, the official ceremony. And they started to break down the fence. They wanted to get in.
Starting point is 00:12:24 to hear the music. And so the security forces, the tear gas. Now, I'm on stage, I'm a brother, and my father's performing, and tear gas go off. And it's burning my eyes, and my father come and pick me up. He wet a towel and put it over my face and my nose, and we were kind of had to run out of there.
Starting point is 00:12:43 And all of that stuff, in retrospect, was so exciting. But, you know, as a kid, you know, but got through that, it's an adventure. You say he wasn't what he is then what he is now. But like you obviously were aware that when he played music, people were incredibly affected by it.
Starting point is 00:13:06 I would imagine seeing him through a kid's eyes, you must have been like, wow, my dad is beloved. I tell you the first time I kind of realized that, right? He put out an album called Babland by Bus. And it's a live album. so I've like I've never experienced him being on stage with like thousands of people screaming or I've never so when I was at home I went that album and I listened to that album and I hear like the big roar I feel so proud I was like yeah that that is killing them I think that was a moment I realized that it was more than just like in Jamaica and it was like
Starting point is 00:13:51 a big world thing, you know? Because of that album, because of hearing the crowd responded to him on that record, you know? I'm so glad, because I feel like if my kids heard people cheer for me, they'd be like, oh, my God. I like that you're proud. I like that you're proud. Yeah, it felt good, yeah. Do you, have your children been, obviously they've been on the road with you?
Starting point is 00:14:16 Do you feel like your children feel that way when they watch you perform music? No. These kids today, you know, they're different, you know. They've seen it all. They've done it all. Yeah. No experience is like, oh, it's, yeah, you know, it's like. What age do you think that the sort of the jadedness kicks in?
Starting point is 00:14:40 Because I imagine a kid who's like eight, you can still sort of see the awe and wonder. And then is it when they're teenagers, they've seen it all? Yeah, no, you're right. My youngest son, he's 10 right. know. And he's kind of cool, you know. He's like singing my songs and... And how many is that? How many do you have? How old is your youngest? I'm seven. I'm seven. God, see, so that's the thing. I'm only at three. Nobody thinks I'm cool. I got to keep having.
Starting point is 00:15:07 The seventh. They say the seventh is the one. Yeah. Lucky seven. Hey, we're going to take a quick break and hear from some of our sponsors. Support comes from Shopify. You know, starting some of new isn't just hard, it's terrifying. So much work goes into this thing that you're not entirely sure will work out, and it can be hard to make that leap of faith. And Shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses around the world
Starting point is 00:15:34 and 10% of all e-commerce in the U.S. From household names like Allbirds, Magic Spoon, or Momafuku, to brands just getting started. Get started with your own design studio, with hundreds of ready-to-use templates. Shopify helps you build a beautiful online store that matches your brand style. Accelerate your efficiency,
Starting point is 00:15:54 whether you're uploading new products or trying to improve existing ones. Shopify is packed with helpful AI tools that write product descriptions, page headlines, and even enhance your product photography. So get the word out like you have a marketing team behind you.
Starting point is 00:16:09 Easily create email and social media campaigns wherever your customers are scrolling or strolling. Best yet, Shopify is your commerce expert with world-class expertise and everything from managing inventory to international shipping to processing returns and beyond. What if people haven't heard about my brand? Well, Shopify helps you find your customers with easy-to-run email and social media campaigns. What if I get stuck? Shopify's always around to share advice with their award-winning
Starting point is 00:16:38 24-7 customer support. It's time to turn those what-ifs into with Shopify today. Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at Shopify.com slash trip. Go to Shopify.com slash trips. That's Shopify.com slash trips. Support comes from Rula. I've had a bout of depression in my life. It's a scary, weird time. It's very unsettling, and you don't always know how to get through it.
Starting point is 00:17:11 And sometimes the best thing is some good old-fashioned therapy. But finding a therapist can be difficult in finding the right therapist. finding the right therapist for you can sometimes be something that's hard when you're already in the midst of dealing with something that's difficult. And Rula makes it all so much easier. And finding a therapist is hard enough, but finding one who actually takes your insurance, that's rare. And that's where most online therapy platforms fall short. Many don't work with insurance at all, which means you're stuck paying full cost, out of pocket, or paying for an expensive monthly subscription. Rula does things differently. They partner with over 100 insurance
Starting point is 00:17:53 plans making the average copay just $15 per session. That's real therapy from licensed professionals at a price that actually makes sense. Think about it. You use your insurance benefits to maintain your physical health, so why wouldn't you do the same for your mental health? And Rula isn't just affordable. The experience is tailored around you. Other online therapy platforms might match you with the first available provider whether or not they're the right fit. Rula considers your goals, preferences, and background to provide you a curated list of licensed, in-network therapists who are actually aligned with what you need, because they know that finding the right therapist can make all the difference.
Starting point is 00:18:30 No wait lists, no frustrating back and forths. Rula makes it easy to find a mental health provider who is accepting new patients and appointments are available as soon as tomorrow. Plus, Rula sticks with you throughout your journey. checking in to make sure your care is helping you move forward. Go to Rula.com slash trips to get started today. That's Rula.com slash trips for quality therapy that's covered by insurance. Thousands of people are already using Rula to get affordable,
Starting point is 00:18:59 high quality therapy that's actually covered by insurance. Visit rula.com slash trips to get started. That's Rula.com slash trips. You deserve mental health care that works with you, not against your budget. This message is a paid partnership with Apple Card. Planning family trips can get chaotic, but my Apple Card makes things way easier. I applied right for my iPhone in as little as a minute, and now I use it for everything travel-related. I saw it in action when you picked up dinner last time I was in L.A. for your birthday.
Starting point is 00:19:30 Well, you didn't have your wallet or your phone. Oh, my phone is in my pocket. But you love your Apple Card, right? Yes, because with Apple Card, I can spend, track my purchases, and earn up to 3% daily cashback when I use Apple Card with Apple Pay. No fuss. And that titanium card? Always a conversation starter. It's sleek, smart, and seriously useful.
Starting point is 00:19:52 With the titanium card, I still earn daily cashback wherever Apple Pay isn't accepted. You know, for when I'm on the roads, less traveled. Applying the wallet app on your iPhone today. Subject to credit approval, Apple Card is issued by Goldman Sachs Bank, USA, Salt Lake City Branch, Terms and more at applecard.com. What were weekends, when you would go to the countryside, like what were those weekends like? It was nothing.
Starting point is 00:20:21 It's just like just being one of the kids on the countryside. Yeah. I mean, we just, yeah, whatever was going on, we would just hang out there and do nothing really. Just watch and, you know, it's a different life than in Kingston because when we go to the country, we stop at these places that they do, they like they roast. like, I'm going to call it vegetables
Starting point is 00:20:45 because I don't know what or you guys. Yellow yam. Yellow yam. Okay, got you. White yam. Okay. Salfish. So that was always
Starting point is 00:20:56 fun first when we're going to the country. It's like a truck stop, but without the trucks and the building. Okay. It's like some guy on the side with a fire and he's cooking. Okay, great. So on the way to the country
Starting point is 00:21:10 would make that truck stop. And that was always fun. for us. And then we get to the country and we just like picking stuff off the trees and just hanging out, playing with the kids, playing sports or whatever, you know, just normal. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you're from Trench Town's the name of the neighborhood you grew up in, yeah? I was born in Trench, on the city of Kingston, in Kingston. Got it. And then at what point of your life, is it true that you went to school in the States for a while? Yeah, in Delaware, I went for like a year. Come up, parents were trying for
Starting point is 00:21:42 final living, you know, try to make a better living. Right. So they pick Delaware. Yeah, because my grandmother, I'll tell you why. So his mom, my grandmom, their family started migrating. Okay. And I guess the first one of them migrated to Delaware. So now everybody is
Starting point is 00:22:00 migrating to Delaware because that's where the family is. Yes. That's how we end up in there. My grandmother was living there, and that's how we ended up in Delaware for a year while my mother was doing nursing and my father was just trying to say if there was any possibilities in America. But he didn't like America.
Starting point is 00:22:20 So we came back to Jamaica. What was your year of Delaware? Do you have many memories of it? Terrible, terrible bullying. I got bullied. Really? Yeah, because guess what? No, I got bullying in school,
Starting point is 00:22:32 but I had fun in the snow. I saw snow for the first time. But I'm a Jamaican kid going into an American school, I'm totally a fish out of the water. Fully. No, no, no sort of understanding of me to them or them to me. I'm a total stranger.
Starting point is 00:22:53 So a couple kids picked on me a couple of time, but we had fun. You know, we had fun. I had fun. I had fun trying to chasing them around and running around. It's very funny to realize that, like, maybe more than anyone, like, your family has, like, changed perceptions about, like, what Jamaica is. and yet they just hadn't done it yet. So you were too early.
Starting point is 00:23:13 Yeah, I was ahead of the times. So how many brothers and sisters did you have growing up? Oh, many brothers and sisters had, but I mean, my mother is one, two, three, four of us. And then my father had some kids outside, some younger kids. We are the oldest ones with my mom. And so we grew up together. That was our household, basically.
Starting point is 00:23:38 It was him, my mother, my brother, and my two sisters. And then later on, some other kids came around, and it was cool, you know. Later on my family were going to take, my father would take us to meet my brother. That was one of the vacations going to meet the other siblings in some of the country side. Now, paint a picture for us. What is the car all the Marley kids are piling into to go meet the other siblings? Volkswagen. That's kind of what I wanted it to be.
Starting point is 00:24:10 That's kind of what I wanted it to be. It's that yellow Volkswagen. It's that VW that he drives to the countryside all the time. We don't know. We just driving. We stop. Yo, come meet your brother. Were you excited about the trip to go meet your brothers?
Starting point is 00:24:28 No, but no, we didn't know we were going on a trip to meet the brother. And then we meet a brother on the trip. You know, oh, yeah, this is your brother. Did you stay close with those brothers over the years? Yeah, very close, very close. Oh, that's great. How old were they when you first met him? They were like little boys.
Starting point is 00:24:51 I was like, I was probably like, I'm like 10 or, yeah, 9, 10 and, yeah, I'm the bigger brother. So some of them were little babies too. They were babies. That's good. And you were a benevolent, you were a kind older brother? No. No. I used to beat them up. Oh, well, that's your job.
Starting point is 00:25:15 Now I feel a little bit better about the fact that you got bullied in Delaware. Yeah, right? It was karma. I used to put them in my little brothers. We had fun. I used to toughen them up. I toughen them up. That's good. You got to toughen them up. I got to make them toughen up. I used to toughen up. We used to wrestling and Mr. and all that.
Starting point is 00:25:31 Were you, the brothers and sisters that you grew up in the house with, were you the four are you close? Yeah, man. Yeah, man. That's where we started making music in the house. Yeah. Like doing the concerts from my grand aunt and her friends. Did you know at a young age? Are you like, oh, it always made sense that we were going to be in a band together? Was that something that?
Starting point is 00:25:51 No, not really. No, we never think about it in the band sense. But we always used to love play music anyway, naturally. You know, it wasn't forced on us. We used to just love doing it. And in Jamaica, we have these, in those days, this cultural event is like, independent celebration there. And we used to take part in those kind of performances
Starting point is 00:26:13 for, you know, to celebrate the independence, like with traditional Jamaican type of songs, you know, like, like, Ullam Joe. I think Harry Belafonte did this one over. Oolim Joe and I let him go down, Kimmer Water, Wolling Joe. So it was the first song I sung. It was like that song. Were you guys looking back, do you think you were good?
Starting point is 00:26:37 Like, did your parents like watching you guys do music, or were they sort of suffering through it? No, I don't think they really care for the good. I don't know. I don't think that was the, like, if you're good or not. It's just... Yeah. I didn't feel that. I didn't feel that.
Starting point is 00:26:51 I don't think we were good, because we never know what we're doing. We're just doing it. Were you drawn drumming? Did you start... Drumming was your first instrument? Yeah, drumming. All right. So, Delaware.
Starting point is 00:27:04 Let's go back to Delaware quick. Great. Because they're coming to America, we never celebrated Christmas where I came from. There was no Christmas. So my first Christmas was in Delaware. Christmas trees, Santa Claus, whatever, supposed to come through the chimney. And that's, I mean, I used to see my father and the band play drums, you know, but my grandmother was married to an American guy. And he, you know, the Christmas thing was big.
Starting point is 00:27:36 My first Christmas gift was a Mickey Mouse drum set. Wow. And that's how I started doing drums on a Mickey Mouse drum set. And then I got a Batman and Robin thing with a car. It seems like it was a pretty positive Christmas. Steve Austin. Oh, yeah, a $6 million man. With a bionic eye and you could look through the thing and you could do this.
Starting point is 00:28:01 These presents made a big impression on you. Yeah. Christmas, bro, Christmas. It seems like that was the highlight of the Delaware year, maybe. Yeah, yeah, that was the highlight. Did you, after you moved back to Jamaica from Delaware, was that somewhere you would go and visit? Would you still go back to Delaware to visit your grandmother?
Starting point is 00:28:21 Yeah, yeah, we went to Delaware, and then she moved to Miami, and then we started going to Miami. Gotcha. So it was Delaware and then Miami, yeah, we used to visit Delaware. Were you happy when you got the news that she'd moved from Delaware to Miami? Yeah. No, yeah, Miami was more fun, definitely. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:28:38 Yeah. We got into go-carts and motorbikes and when we... The summers were fun in Miami. Yeah. Some were fun in Miami, yeah. Would you go for a whole summer? Was that sort of your summer? Yeah, man, we'll go for a little while.
Starting point is 00:28:53 I'll spend time with grandma. And by that time, you know, my father had bought her a nice house. You know, because Delaware was just a little other thing. But by that time, you know, my father could afford to get a nice house with a nice yard. And so we kids, we had fun in that, you know? Yeah, that's fantastic. Did you have a lot of aunts and uncles back in Kingston? Yeah, yeah, we have uncle, yeah.
Starting point is 00:29:19 I have two uncle and an aunt. And they're my age. It's not like, oh, my uncles are like my, my uncle was my age and younger. I had a younger uncle, too. Gotcha. Yeah. And would you, would all the Marley's get to get, Would you get together with them?
Starting point is 00:29:33 Would you have, like, family reunions? No, reunion. We never have them type of thing. We just, I mean, the reunion is when we see each other. It's not like a... Yeah, but not a plan. No, no, it's not planned like that, no. What is it like being...
Starting point is 00:29:48 Obviously, you're from a place that a lot of people go for their family vacations. Like, were you aware, like, that you were growing up in a place that, like, people would come, like, tourism was a part of it? Yeah, I was aware. I think I think one of the time I mean one memory of mine is they used to have this reggae festival in Montiga Bay, Jamaica
Starting point is 00:30:08 and my father was on it going to perform so we drove down with him and I think when I really realized this tourist thing was when we went into this hotel and you had to give them the money and then you got little bananas
Starting point is 00:30:21 you got a little banana that was their currency in the hotel right and then it's kind of like Like I saw the tourist, them and the little bananas. And they're always sticking my head. Oh, this is what Jamaica. Oh, it's these people and the little bananas.
Starting point is 00:30:42 Were you friends? Did you grow up with other kids from like the music community in Jamaica? Because obviously your dad was not the only person who came out of that. No, yeah, we grew up with, we had some kids that was like, good in music in Jamaica. Like we were up with our peers, you know. And my father and my mother try help out the younger generation. So there's one kid named Junior Tucker,
Starting point is 00:31:09 who was great. He used to sing this earthwind and fire song. And I remember, like, I remember doing a show. The first concert we did as a group, me and my brother and sisters, was a concert that my father was also built on. Oh, wow. And Juno Tucker was on the concert. And I'm like, I always remember Juno Tucker.
Starting point is 00:31:35 You know, it was our first time we did one song. And my father playing. But Juno Tucker was a bigger star in Jamaica kind of than my father. Because when he did that, whew-hoo. The other people like scream, you know. So it was funny to me. I'm like, Junet Tucker like get more screams than my father. My father's like Bob Marley.
Starting point is 00:31:57 Yeah, it was kind of funny And he was a kid, you know? Yeah. You are not doing it justice. I'll tell you that much. Do not cover that song. Are your kids musically inclined? Yeah, but not, you know, not like I don't think they have to be,
Starting point is 00:32:23 they want to be in the music. My son, my son is in college, he's in. Howard. He's a great drummer. He's doing jazz music and stuff. He's a great drummer. You know, they are. They are. Actually, they are. When I think about it. Was your dad and were your mom, like, obviously, like,
Starting point is 00:32:39 were they sort of, did they take your music education seriously? Was it a lot of like, hey, kids gather around and listen to this, or did you just kind of learn it by being around it? Learning by being around, and then I bought some books and started, like, learning how to play guitar and stuff like that. We did some
Starting point is 00:32:55 piano lessons. My mother said, no, still this lady. It was very, you know, you don't like that stuff. You know, it kind of means like they're like miserable late. I don't know. They're kind of miserable. They have a bad reputation piano teachers. Did you have a nice piano teacher?
Starting point is 00:33:12 No, no, no. I think maybe she was nice, but I don't know, no. Tell us about her. What do you remember about your piano teacher? Just grumpy, you know, just grumpy. Well, I mean, was she disappointed that you hadn't done the homework? Grumpy and very, you know, very strict.
Starting point is 00:33:31 Yeah. It's true. Yeah. And then you, like, you come home, you want to go relax after school. You got to go see the piano lady up the street. You got to walk up the street to see her. I guess, I mean, imagine you love, you're a piano teacher because you love piano. You've learned how to play piano.
Starting point is 00:33:50 And then you have to spend your day with kids who, one, don't want to be there and two are bad at piano. I'd be grumpy, too. Yeah. Yeah. But when I look back, because also I grew up with my grand aunt, and I thought she was grumpy. But when I look back, she was great.
Starting point is 00:34:05 Like when you kids, you think them grumpy. But when I look back, she was great. No, I think that's true. I mean, again, like, now I realize, you know, I'm just like, if my kids think I'm grumpy, it's like that's because you're around. Like, you're just making me grumpy. Like, I'm a good, I'm a good, chill guy.
Starting point is 00:34:23 You should see me when you guys aren't. I hear me questions. Hidden camera. What else, do you remember, did you ever go on vacation to anywhere in the States other than Delaware? Did you ever go to like New York or anything? Oh, we used to, you know what? When we used to live in Delaware, we used to take the train to New York to visit my grandfather, my mother's father. He was a saxophone player.
Starting point is 00:34:50 He used to live in New York. I remember. The only thing I remember about that is like he lived right near where the train is. run, like above the ground trains. I always remember the noise of the train. Like we're, like, living, like, spending time with him,
Starting point is 00:35:06 I just remember the trains being there. As a kid, did you think this is cool that the trains you can hear him, or did you know that that was... No, no, no, no. I thought it was crazy. I thought it was kind of crazy, like on the trains and they live,
Starting point is 00:35:22 like, it's kind of crazy now. Oh, yeah. It's crazy those people that grew up in New York and can't sleep without a lot of, like, street noise or whatever. If they get to a quiet place, they're very unsettled. But if you go the opposite way,
Starting point is 00:35:36 it's just, yeah, it can be very jarring. And then did your did your mother grow up in Jamaica? Yeah, my mother born in Cuba, grew up in Jamaica, yeah. She was a singer. She's a singer, too, but she'd do some nursing and stuff, you know? Did you go, did you ever go to Cuba to visit family of hers, or had they all left?
Starting point is 00:35:55 No, I think them leave. Yeah. Yeah. Have you ever been to Cuba? No, I've never been to Cuba. I want to go, though. I would love to go to Cuba. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:36:04 Yeah, Cuba. Yeah, Moola. Where is your mother still around, yes? Yeah, my mother's still around, yeah. That's great. Where is she now? She's in Miami with my sister and my brother. Like, I know of my family, kind of settled in Miami for a little bit now.
Starting point is 00:36:20 That's great. Is she a fun grandmother? Do you think your kids would say she's fun or grumpy? No, no, she's cool. Yeah, I would hope so. She's been cool, yeah, no, she really cool. Yeah, she, I don't know, I feel like I have a lot of her demeanor with me. Like, you know, she's a loving woman and charity and she has a horror about her, you know?
Starting point is 00:36:44 That's, yeah, she really cool, yeah. Hey, we're going to take a quick break and hear from some of our sponsors. Support comes from First Leaf. You know, guys, I like a good glass of wine at the end of the day, but I never really know what to buy. I'm just, I don't know, there's something about wine knowledge that has eluded me or I don't have time for it, but I do know how to say what I like. I like a crisp white wine. I like a full-bodied red. And usually I just kind of like grabbed something in a store and I hope for the best. But then I found First Leaf and honestly, it just makes the whole thing so easy
Starting point is 00:37:19 because they match wines to your taste and they send them right to your door. First Leaf delivers premium wines straight to my door every month. I answered a quick quiz about my preferences, and now they send me personalized selections. I'm guaranteed to love. No more guesswork, no more settling. So if you want better wine that actually fits your taste without the hassle of hunting for it, first leaf makes it incredibly simple. Here's what really makes it click. Every box comes with easy to follow tasting notes and pairing suggestions right in the box. So whether I'm making pasta on a Tuesday or putting together a cheeseboard for friends. I always know exactly what to pour. It's like having a cheat sheet that actually makes me
Starting point is 00:38:00 look like I know what I'm doing, which trust me, I do not. First Leaf works directly with wineries, which means I get access to award-winning bottles, including wines, you can't always find at your local store at prices well below retail. Better wine for less money is kind of a no-brainer. I control my delivery schedule completely if I need wine by Friday. I can adjust timing. If I'm going on vacation, I can skip a shipment. It fits my life perfectly. And if a bottle doesn't hit the mark, First Leaf has a 100% satisfaction guarantee.
Starting point is 00:38:33 They'll make it right, and you definitely don't get that by buying wine at the store. Stop settling for wines that don't quite hit the mark. Head to try firstleaf.com slash trips to sign up, and you'll get 50% off your first box, plus free shipping for an entire year. That's T-R-Y-F-T-L-E-A-F-com. Try firstleaf.com slash trips.
Starting point is 00:39:03 When did your sort of charitable work appear to you as something that was important in your life? Like, how old were you? Let me say, so when I was leaving high school, when I was leaving high school. Well, I mean, we always used to go back to where we came from. My father always, even when we left, I would have trench town and those years. because I went through, you know, we poor, lower middle class, upper middle class,
Starting point is 00:39:31 I know, like, you know, you know, you know, you know, you have little material richness. But we would always go back. And so I think,
Starting point is 00:39:42 and I would always see them helping people. You know, helping people, giving people money, you know, some guy who comes needs help, whatever, whatever, you know,
Starting point is 00:39:51 so that was an example that was set by my parents. So we grew up So when I was a teenager When I could have my own money I started doing some of the same things like that Helping people You know do like food programs
Starting point is 00:40:08 For people who don't have food Or build bathrooms in community That don't have bathrooms A lot of work and helping individuals out too Because that's a big part of it In Jamaica Like just helping people And so yeah
Starting point is 00:40:23 That's how that came about So yeah That's fantastic. Yeah. You have a new album as well. Congratulations. Yeah, thank you. You have a new album.
Starting point is 00:40:34 I couldn't listen to it yet because it's not, I mean, again, shame on me, but it's out on vinyl, digital in a couple of days. Digital, yeah. May 1st, May 1st. Is it cool to still have, see a vinyl album that you made? No, yeah, it is cool. It's one of the coolest things. Like, for just.
Starting point is 00:40:54 To hold it? Yeah, it is. It is cool. Maybe it's because I'm nostalgic about it or I know. I've lived in that world. It's like when I lived in that world and I live in this digital world. So I know the difference. Some kids grew up. They just started in the digital world.
Starting point is 00:41:10 They have no idea of that world. So they have no reference to say, oh, that shit is much better than this shit. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. But no. So this, the new album is really cool for me because I did some things differently. one of the biggest things I did was I changed the frequency that we tuned to,
Starting point is 00:41:30 that the instruments are tuned to. So the standard tuning, everything that you listen to nowadays is what we call four 40 hertz. Now, I decided, I don't want to be different. I don't want to be like everybody else. I'm going to tune in 432 hertz, which is a thing I've been exploring for years.
Starting point is 00:41:51 You know, musical, like, hey, what's different, what's up? And this 432 hertz, what is said about it is that it resonates at the frequency closest to how the human resonate, how we as human beings resonate. And it's using meditation, it can be used for healing. So I tried it out. I like it. I like how it feel.
Starting point is 00:42:15 And I just decided that this record is going to be in 4302 hertz. When you tell, like, I'm assuming you worked with producers you've worked with before, but how is it greeted when you let people know we're going to be doing it a different way like this? So let me tell you, I'll tell you exactly how we think. So I walked in, right? The ban was in there and I walked in and said, everybody, we're going to tune the 432.
Starting point is 00:42:39 And it was first like, they never understand what I'm talking about. And then when they did understand, they were like, oh, no, my tuna doesn't do that. My keep all. And I was like, let's get the tunas that do that. Let's get the keep. boys that do that. And then
Starting point is 00:42:55 since, on this record, since we're doing like trying to use real instruments, you know, like a real, a B-3 organ, for example, we were like, oh, we're going to choose a B-3 organ to 432. That's impossible. Like, and then some guy came in
Starting point is 00:43:13 and he was like, oh, I can do it. And he was like, all roughen his chin. All right of these change of voltage, you know. And it worked. in change of voltage. It's a whole, like, mad scientist. We went through some whole other things to, like, get everything to 432 hurts.
Starting point is 00:43:31 Was your band, like, enthusiastic about this, or were they rolling their eyes? Yeah, I think they never really understand what it was or why. Like, when a guy said, I can fix the organ, were they like, oh, dude. Yeah, no, we were like, coming in all, because the organ is a very,
Starting point is 00:43:48 it's the first thing, it's an old technology. And, you know, but this guy was, he knew about it. He knew about it. So, yeah. No, the band, them never know, but I think, you know, we really, we did it live before I went into the show, we've been doing it live. And I think there's really a different vibe to it for us.
Starting point is 00:44:09 That's very cool. I mean, we're sensitive to it because we've been playing music and frequencies, so we're sensitive. But I feel like frequencies match, and I think with how the world stays right now, And music is a very powerful tool. I think if I was saying this like, I said this, like, if the music were the size, say, you know, let's change the frequency. Maybe it can affect the population, just like it does know in four-foughty,
Starting point is 00:44:40 but in a more communicative frequency that brings harmony, it might have something to do with it, you know? It's a good idea. We should all consider changing the group. We should all do that. Yeah, we should all do that. And we'll have to get the number of your organ guy so we can share it around. I know.
Starting point is 00:45:04 My friend Ziggy knows an organ guy. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know a guy. What about vacations that you've taken with your wife and your kids? Do you ever go somewhere to just get away from it all? Yeah, my wife insists. Yeah, all right. Good for her.
Starting point is 00:45:21 She insists. vacation. I'm like, vacation. Vacation, for me, is not really vacation. It's like, I got to do a lot of stuff. Yeah. On vacation. So you're not a sit-on-the-beach guy? Yeah, I am a sit-on-the-beach guy.
Starting point is 00:45:35 Okay, all right. But I'm not going out to the breakfast spot and the next. Oh, I see. Yes. You want to do, yeah. Yeah, I just want to do nothing. I just want to do nothing. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:45:46 Well, that's what vacation is. You know, we love Hawaii. We just came back from Hawaii. We love Hawaii. I like going to Hawaii. Hawaii is like, I think, there's one place I can, like, relax. Yeah, a little bit.
Starting point is 00:45:57 It's beautiful. Do your kids get along? Yeah, ma'am. I keep them get along, yeah. That's good. Yeah, I mean, the little one, a little annoying to the older one, but, yeah, that's a role.
Starting point is 00:46:09 You got to play that role, too. Yeah. I do that for Seth. Yeah. Still, still. Still. Still. Still.
Starting point is 00:46:16 A hundred percent still. Uh, what was the first? time you brought your kids out of the country. Do you remember? Yeah, to the first time I took them to Jamaica. Yeah. And did they, did they love it? Yeah, man. I'm like Jamaica, man. Like, we stop, we get them, because Jamaica now, we get them, stop, we drink coconut water. That's at first. They never drank coconut water out of real coconut before.
Starting point is 00:46:40 Yeah. So that, those kind of little experiences is so unique for them, you know, because, you know, like, it's funny. In America here, them eat, you know, they eat chicken. but they never really see a chicken It's true They go to Jamaica They say chickens
Starting point is 00:47:00 Run around You know Yeah You can make that connection Much easier Oh, it's that I'm eating that Yeah, yeah
Starting point is 00:47:10 That's a chicken That's what chickens look like In real life You know It is It is so great talking to you What a delight To meet you
Starting point is 00:47:20 and speak to you. Congrats on the album. But we also have a speed round questions for you that Josh is going to ask. All right, here we go. What's the speed round? What am I supposed to answer fast?
Starting point is 00:47:33 No, no, we're going to ask fast. You take your time. Oh, okay. Yeah. But it goes like this. You can only pick one of these. Is your ideal vacation relaxing, adventurous, or educational?
Starting point is 00:47:47 Relaxing. Yeah, that was our bounce on you. What is your favorite means of transportation? Favorite means of transportation? What is my favorite means of transportation? I like, I don't know. You know, I like airplanes. Yeah, sure.
Starting point is 00:48:05 I like airplanes. I like flying. If you could take a vacation with any family, alive or dead, real or fictional, other than your own family, what family would you like to take a vacation with? Good question. I don't know.
Starting point is 00:48:20 The first thing come to my mind, I don't know. Yes, sure. Okay. Great. Yeah, that's the first time. You're the first one to give that answer. If you had to be stranded on a desert island with one member of your family, who would it be? My brother, Stephen, we grew up together, yeah.
Starting point is 00:48:44 How many? What's the year gap with you and Stephen? Oh, four? Okay, great. Four years, yeah. Good, good, good. What is your dream destination for a family vacation? Africa.
Starting point is 00:48:55 I haven't taken the kids to Africa yet. I want to take them to Africa. If you took them to Africa, how many days do you think? Would it be like a three-weeker, two-weeker? I was going to say one week, but I'd say two weeks. I'd say two weeks. The most. Like, after a while, vacation get too long, it's like, man.
Starting point is 00:49:17 Yeah. You just felt bad. You were ashamed because. the white guys were like two weeks, three weeks? You're like, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's what I was going to say. You are from Kingston, Jamaica. If you had to get more families to come visit Kingston, what would you tell them about that city? Kingston is a real experience. It's real people. You know, you're going to be, you're going to feel like, you're going to feel like a real person, because I would treat everyone the same. There's no hierarchy.
Starting point is 00:49:46 You know, yeah. So I feel like that. It's a real place for the real people. and you can just feel like you're a part of the community basically. You know, they will really be, people come to Jamaica, they go down into the trench town, like the worst part. You know, sometimes I go down there and I see some people from like Norway. Like, why are you living in trench town? You know, but it's like they welcome people, you know? So we're welcoming, you know?
Starting point is 00:50:16 Oh, that's great. And Seth has our final questions. Ziggy, have you been to the Grand Canyon? No. Do you want to go? Yeah, but I'm not in a rush. Yeah. Man after my own heart.
Starting point is 00:50:29 It's been there for ages. It's not going to my own heart. It's not going anywhere. I don't have to race. But I'm not like, oh, I can go see it. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. I love everything about that answer.
Starting point is 00:50:42 Well, you're also going to be busy this summer. You've got 20 tour dates. Really between like June 19th and July 22nd you're doing 20 shows that's going to be some work Do you love the road?
Starting point is 00:50:58 Do you love being on the road for music? Yeah, I like playing music I love being on the road I mean after a while When you come back after the road Then you feel like what happened on the road
Starting point is 00:51:09 Is it like After you fake You know But when I do like being on the road I like playing music for people And I feel like You know I feel purposeful
Starting point is 00:51:18 because the words that I'm singing, and I feel like people listening more now too than before, the words I'm singing have meaning. So I feel like I'm not just there like an entertainer, like going out there. I feel like there's a real purpose band what I'm doing. So it helps me to keep going on that, you know? That's fantastic.
Starting point is 00:51:39 Well, congrats on the new album. Can't wait for the tour. Thank you so much, Ziggy. All right, man. Good for talk to you guys. Thank you, thank you. Yeah, thank you. Bye now.
Starting point is 00:51:49 Bye, bye. The flight was so long, Ziggie said it was like taking a trip to the moon. Hop inside his dad's Volkswagen, Velifante singing, hold'em Joe. Pull up, there's a little boy there. Zingie's dad would say come meet your road. Down to Miami got to drive, go carts and motorbikes. Teacher was too grumpy. Looking back, she probably was all right.
Starting point is 00:53:37 This town, Grandpa lived in a train drive. was so loud first Christmas the snow Mickey mess gift you got a

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.