The life of Bob Marley - The King's children!

It is well known that Bob Marley, in addition to being a revolutionary through his music and message, left a huge legacy through his sons and daughters with various women he met throughout his life. The idea of this column was precisely to outline a profile, even if brief, of each of them and what they are doing. Bob Marley married Alpharita Anderson, better known as Rita Marley, on February 10, 1966. Rita was already a mother to a daughter named Sharon, who later became part of the group Melody Makers, formed by Bob's children. She was adopted, recognized, took his last name, and was raised as the daughter of the future king of reggae. Rita had a total of six children, three with Bob and three from other relationships, one of them after her husband's death. Later, she also adopted 35 children in Ethiopia. In total, Bob Marley had 13 children (two from Rita whom he adopted, three with her, and eight with different women). Get to know who Bob Marley's sons and daughters are and a little more information about them in this research that included not only Marley’s biography but also accounts in interviews about his relationships with various women.

IMANI CAROLE MARLEY

Bob's first daughter, born on May 22, 1963, is named Imani Carole Marley and is the result of a relationship with Jamaican Cheryl Murray even before his marriage to Rita. Little is known about her mother, but Imani is currently a successful senator in Jamaica, and recently (in February 2013) had a daughter, making her another granddaughter of Bob Marley.

SHARON MARLEY PRENDERGAST (Adoptive)

Sharon was born on November 23, 1964, also before Bob started dating Rita. She was not registered by her father, and Bob decided to give her his name and raised her as his legitimate daughter. The first "member" of the family that Bob formed with Rita ventured into the arts and recorded backing vocals with most of her siblings who were born later (Damian, Ziggy, Stephen, etc.). She was also part of the group The Melody Makers along with Ziggy, Stephen, and Cedella, all children of Bob with Rita. With the group, Sharon won three Grammy awards. Currently, Sharon is the curator of the Bob Marley museum and works with a wide variety of social services and charity, helping children not only in Jamaica but in various countries, especially in Africa. She has had four children up to the date of this research (Donisha, Ingermar, Matthew, and Peter-Shane).

CEDELLA MARLEY

Better known as Ciddy, Cedella Marley was born on August 23, 1967, and was Bob's first daughter with Rita. Like Sharon, Cedella was part of the Melody Makers. In addition, she works in fashion, is a dancer and actress, and is the director of Tuff Gong International, the family company that manages, among other things, the copyright of the songs of the idol Bob Marley and other members of the "clan." She also has a clothing design company called "Cedella Marley Design". Cedella appears in several films, including the famous "The Mighty Quinn" from 1989 starring Denzel Washington. Like Sharon, she is also dedicated to charity and is the leader of a foundation called "1Love." She lives in Miami, Florida, is married, and has three children.

DAVID "ZIGGY" MARLEY

The oldest of Bob's children, David Marley, or simply "Ziggy," was born on October 17, 1968, in the Trenchtown slum (Jamaica), the result of his marriage to Rita. He began to follow in his father's musical footsteps early on and founded "The Melody Makers" with Sharon, Stephen, and Cedella. Ziggy sang at his father's funeral in 1981 and moved everyone. Since then, he has won four Grammy awards for Best Reggae Album and produced a lot of important work for the genre. He has six children and lives in Miami with his wife Orly Agai, who is the vice president of the William Morris Agency, one of the largest talent agencies in the world. Like his other siblings, Ziggy is dedicated to a series of philanthropic projects, especially in Jamaica and Ethiopia, and in addition to music, he has also made several appearances as an actor in films and series. Access Ziggy Marley's profile.

STEPHEN MARLEY

Stephen is the last son of Bob with Rita Marley and was born on April 20, 1972, in Wilmington (USA) and was raised in Kingston, the capital of Jamaica. He was also a member of the Melody Makers along with his siblings Ziggy, Cedella, and Sharon. From his experience with his siblings (his first song was recorded at age 8, the hit "Sugar Pie"), he launched an extremely successful solo career, not only as a singer and songwriter but also as a producer. As a solo artist, he has won three Grammy awards. Currently, Stephen lives in Miami where he also runs a recording studio. Access Stephen Marley's profile.

ROBERT MARLEY

Robert Marley (same name as his father), better known as "Robbie," was born on May 16, 1972 (less than a month after Stephen) and was Bob's first child outside of marriage with Rita. He is the son of Pat Williams, a Jamaican from Trenchtown who one night while visiting Bob's house at 56 Hope Road met Marley, who was enchanted. The next morning he wrote the song "Midnight Ravers" in a phone book. Despite being the son of another woman, Robbie was brought to live with his other children and raised by Rita. He did not pursue a musical career and graduated in graphic design, and also worked as a stuntman in motorcycle scenes.

ROHAN MARLEY

Rohan was born just three days after Robbie and a month after Stephen. He is the son of Janet Dunn, a dancer from a nightclub that Bob met in the 70s. The boy, born on May 19, 1972, was also raised by Rita, as his mother was not taking good care of him (according to Marley’s biography). He pursued a career as a businessman and American football player (a skill he developed after moving to Miami with his grandmother Cedella, Bob's mother). Among the companies he managed and founded are the Tuff Gong brand and Marley Coffee, an organic and sustainable coffee plantation in Jamaica. Also dedicated to social causes, Rohan is active in the 1Love foundation alongside Cedella. He is also well known for being married to singer Lauryn Hill with whom he had five children and for dating Brazilian model Isabeli Fontana.

KAREN MARLEY

Karen was born in 1973 in England and is Bob Marley's daughter with Janet Bowen. In the books, her mother is referred to only as "Janet from England" (in Bob's notes). Despite being English, Karen lived in Jamaica where she attended school with Stephanie (born in 1974 and daughter of Rita with another man but adopted by Bob), and developed a passion for fashion and interior design. She always wanted to have a life away from the "gaze" that public figures receive. When Bob was diagnosed with cancer, he asked Rita to take care of her and ensure that she attended the same school as Stephanie.

STEPHANIE MARLEY (Adoptive)

Stephanie was born in 1974 and is the daughter of Rita Marley with another man named Ital. Like Rita, she accepted and welcomed Bob's children outside of marriage, and he did the same by acknowledging, accepting, and raising Stephanie as if she were his daughter, even including her in his will. She studied psychology at a college in Canada and also has a bachelor's degree in arts. She currently lives in Nassau in the Bahamas and manages a Resort and Spa that bears her father's surname - "Marley Resort and Spa."

JULIAN RICARDO MARLEY

Son of Lucy Pounder and born on June 4, 1975, in London, Julian Marley is one of the most well-known artists in the family. Fully devoted to music, Julian is a multi-instrumentalist. He plays bass, drums, and keyboard and recorded his first song at the age of five. His first album was released when he was only 14 years old. In 1992 he moved to Jamaica and got closer to his siblings, especially in music. In 2009 he was nominated for a Grammy with the album "Awake." Although he hasn't released many albums, his work is quite solid and acclaimed by fans and critics. Access Julian Marley's profile.

KY-MANI MARLEY

Born on February 26, 1976, Ky-mani is Bob's son with Anita Belnavis, a Caribbean table tennis champion (also known in Brazil as ping-pong). He did not spend much time with his father. He lived most of the time in Miami (USA) and initially was more interested in sports than music. Over time, he began to show interest in other activities such as the performing arts (he starred in the movie "Shottas" and has been in other feature films). Click here to watch the movie "Shottas," known in Brazil as "Conexão Jamaica." In music, Ky-mani revealed himself to be multi-genre, as his virtue has always been mixing reggae with other elements and beats. Although he does not have a very high-profile musical career, he periodically tours various countries singing his father's songs and his own themes.

DAMIAN MARLEY

Damian was born on July 21, 1978, and is the son of Cindy Breakspeare, a model (who was also Miss World) and dancer whom Bob met in the early 70s. According to literature and Bob Marley's own manager, Cindy was the only woman he truly loved. In addition to being one of the most successful Marleys in music today, Damian has won three Grammy awards for Best Reggae Album. He is Bob's youngest child and began his musical career at the age of 13. Known for mixing reggae and dancehall, Damian released his first album in 1996 ("Mr. Marley") and has been hugely successful since then. Recently, a project called "SuperHeavy" with Mick Jagger, Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, and A.R. Rahman garnered a lot of attention and was acclaimed by international critics. Damian has one son (Elijah) who was born in 2009 and divides his life between Kingston (Jamaica) and Miami (USA). Access Damian Marley's profile.

MAKEDA JAHNESTA MARLEY

Bob Marley's last daughter was born in Miami on May 30, 1981, weeks after the death of the reggae idol. She did not grow up or was raised with any of Bob's children. She spent her adolescence and graduated in Pennsylvania and currently resides in Philadelphia, United States. "Children are wonderful... it's never too much, you know?" Bob Marley