Following their victory in winning Best Reggae Album at the 66th annual Grammy Awards, Julian Marley and Alexx Antaeus graciously shared their winning sentiments exclusively with WMV, expressing heartfelt gratitude for the prestigious recognition.
Julian Marley, in a statement exuding warmth and appreciation, said, “Thank you from the depths of my heart for the incredible honor of receiving a Grammy. This recognition is a testament to the love and support of my fans, and I am forever grateful. Together, we continue to spread the positive vibrations through music. One love.”
Meanwhile, Alexx Antaeus, who produced the award-winning album “Colors of Royal,” conveyed his appreciation by saying, “Honored to have produced Colors of Royal. We created a new chapter in reggae music, and we were rewarded with this Grammy. Thankful that the people of Jamaica have accepted me as their own. Out of many, one.”
Julian was not present to collect his award, but Alexx accepted the award dressed in a black suit and a Jamaican-colored tie, giving an emotional speech, “I am not Julian Marley; I am Antaeus. Julian couldn’t be with us tonight; he is in Australia touring. Thank you to the Academy and all the members around the world. Thank you to the New York chapter; thank you, Mom. My beautiful wife, Hannah, and I would like to dedicate this to the people of Jamaica who have accepted me as their own and have lived up to the motto of the country, Out Of Many One.”
Vision Alexander, co-writer of most of the tracks on “Colors Of Royal” also chimed in on the Grammy speech at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles by giving a shout out to Wailers musician Aston Barret who recently passed away at the age of 77.
Following the Grammy win, “Colors Of Royal” reached a new peak of No. 27 on the Reggae iTunes chart, while Bob Marley’s “Legend: The Best Of Bob Marley & The Wailers” re-entered the US iTunes chart (all genres) at No. 3. It is No. 1 on the Reggae iTunes chart. “Exodus (Bonus Track Version)” and “Exodus (Deluxe Edition)” are at No. 2 and No. 4.
The Best Reggae Album category at the Grammy Awards is presented in honor of the genre’s finest. Forty albums have received the award since 1985 based on the votes of registered Recording Academy members.
The Grammys are not based on sales and to eligible albums must be released during the annual eligibility period and satisfy the Grammy Rules.
Several tributes have poured out for Julian for his inaugural win, not the least of which was from his brothers Ziggy Marley on Instagram saying, “Hail up juju royal @julianrmarley and @alexx_antaeus on winning the grammy for best best reggae. ❤️.”
The young Marley’s first Grammy win comes two days before the Hollywood premiere of “Bob Marley: One Love” on Tuesday.
