Damian “Junior Gong” Marley never wanted to pursue music using his father’s name, said Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange, Jamaica’s Minister Of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sports.
In her address at the launch of the “Dancehall Queen” book by Professor Donna Hope at Mecca Night Club at Marketplace St. Andrew, on Thursday, April 18, she recalled the young Marley’s early aspirations to become a deejay rather than a reggae singer.
“Little Junior Gong at the age of 12, said, ‘I want to be a DJ’ and everybody said, ‘A Marley wants to be a deejay?’ and every dancehall I went to, I took him with me, Southside, everywhere he was there with me,” she recounted.
Minister Grange shared how she discouraged Damian from only using the stage name “Junior Gong” instead of leveraging the iconic Marley surname because young Marley wanted to carve his own path in music. “I said you need to use the name Marley because that is your father’s legacy,” she said. Adding, “That is why today it’s Damian ‘Junior Gong’ Marley,” she declared.
Damian, a four-time Grammy-winning reggae artist, told WMV in a 2019 interview that he was initially inspired by dancehall acts like Shabba Ranks, who was managed by Minister Grange.
Other than the obvious connection through his father, he traces his interest in music back to his deep admiration for dancehall music of the 1980s.
“Really for me, it kinda started as being a fan of especially dancehall music, 80s dancehall music, is the first music that I started to buy for myself,” Marley shared, reminiscing about his early influences. “Because of imitating people who I was a fan of, was I started to want to perform for myself.”
Among Marley’s list of artists who inspired him during his formative years were “people like Tiga, Peter Metro, Ninja Man, Shabba Ranks, Super Cat, that kinda era of artist,” he revealed to WMV.
“We used to listen to their music and want to be like them,” Marley continued.
Damian Marley’s debut album “Mr. Marley” was released in 1996 under his father’s Tuff Gong label, showcasing his DJing skills. His second album, “Halfway Tree,” released September 11 2001, symbolizes his mixed heritage, with its title reflecting his parents’ backgrounds. That album won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae album in 2002 and has sold 250,000 combined streams and sales in the U.S. according to Billboard Sales tracker Luminate.
The album, co-produced by Damian and his brother Stephen, won the Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 2002, featuring the iconic Half-Way-Tree clock tower on its cover.
In 2005, Marley released his magnum opus album “Welcome to Jamrock,” which peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. The title track, produced in collaboration with his brother Stephen, became a cultural phenomenon, and the album is now eligible for platinum certification in the US for selling 1.2 million units since its release, according to Luminate. It is the third highest-selling Grammy-winning reggae album of all time.
“Welcome To Jamrock,” the song, addresses themes of poverty, politics, and crime in Jamaica and peaked at No. 55 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Other standout tracks from the album included “The Master Has Come Back,” “Road to Zion” featuring Nas, and “Khaki Suit” featuring Bounty Killer and Eek-A-Mouse.
Building on his success, Marley embarked on a collaborative journey with hip-hop icon Nas, resulting in the 2010 album “Distant Relatives,” which peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200 and #30 on the UK Official Albums chart. Proceeds from the album were dedicated to building schools in the Congo. The album is certified Silver in the UK for selling 200,000 units as of December 18, 2022, by the British Phonographic Industry.
Marley also joined forces with an eclectic supergroup, SuperHeavy, featuring Mick Jagger, Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, and A.R. Rahman. Their self-titled debut album, released on September 16, 2011, peaked at #13 on the UK Official Albums Chart and #26 on the US Billboard 200.
The album, which featured tracks like “Miracle Worker” and “Satyameva Jayathe,” peaked at #8 on the US Billboard Top Rock Albums chart, giving Damian the distinction of being the highest-charting reggae act on that chart.
Damian’s last solo studio album was 2017’s “Stony Hill,” his fourth studio album, which earned him yet another Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album. With singles like “Nail Pon Cross,” the album has sold 177,000 units in the US, according to Luminate.
He executive produced Kabaki Pyramid’s “The Kalling,” which won Best Reggae Album at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards.
Currently on the Stephen for the Traffic Jam Tour with brother Stephen, Damian will be joined by his other brothers Ky-Mani, Ziggy and Julian for the Marley Brothers Tour presented by Live Nation starting September 15 in Vancouver and ending in Miami a month later.
