Getting to know… Jo Mersa Marley
Intimate conversation with Jo Mersa Marley about his life, music and love for Jamaica the land of his birth. Get ready to learn about next generation of Marley
How did you get into the music, because not everybody who was born into the family (Marley) would want to jump into the music?
Well it wasn’t really a want. Music spoke to me. I can speak for myself when I say that music spoke to me. A it call me a never me call it. I was always fascinated wid it but I have never been the one ….. How do I say it? I never picked up music like a hobby and then mi tek it serious at a point. It was just always there.
You were surrounded by music…..
Yeah so it was always a calling. Mi wake up a beat di drum and mi a knock di table or mi a knock di pan dem or whatever it may be. Mi jus did live music, you know what I mean. Music made me alive which is the best way I can say it.
Ok, people will want to know why it took so long for you to release tunes and get into that part of it. Because for someone who is a part of a musical family would have music out there from early out….
I can say haste makes waste. Nuff of my elders would like to tell mi, slow leak nuh buss fast. Mi can hurry up and put out supp’im yes but by tomorrow I would listen to it and woulda seh “Bwoy dah piano yah it offkey” or this or that. So yuh tek time see if yuh can perfect the music itself so when yuh hear it yuh really hear di feelings and yuh hear the time that we put into it. In that kinda sense yuh hear the passion. So that is one thing for me personally and I do production as well. So is not like I DJ and just put it on a riddim or mi sing and mi just put it pon a riddim. I am VERY involved wid all a dem tings to, yuh nuh.
Where are you based?
I am a child of the world.
Is the “Burn It Down” release your first?
It is the first release from my album that I have been working on but this would be my fourth or fifth single released.
When did you start to release singles?
I would say from about ’09 going into ’10, we start release music.
What would you say was your first single?
“My Girl”. That was the name of the tune, I released it with my cousin Daniel. My second single was “Bad So”, third tune was a song called “Comfortable”……
Were these all released under the “Ghetto Youths” label?
Yeah, the fourth was “Sunshine” then “Rock & Swing” the fifth and now “Burn It Down”.
So the album will be predominantly new music and what would be the name of the new album?
New music to you because you haven’t heard it. Who knows I might remix or refix couple things that you hear already.
When is this album slated to release?
We don’t have a confirmed date yet and we don’t have a solid name we still a go back and forth with those things. Which would be the most marketable and all dem likkle tings deh. Which name really describe mi yuh know wah mi mean? We deh pon di drawing board and a gwaan sketch it out.
Do you feel any additional responsibility when you put out music considering the legacy you born under?
Wah I can tell yuh what is instilled in us is to do our best and to do you. Is to mek sure yuh always clean hearted and good hearted that is instilled in us. Everyone doesn’t do music, look on uncle Rohan him doing di Marley Coffee, we have the headphones, di ganja, all a dem ting deh a gwaan. So is not only through the music alone. So mi nuh feel nuh burden nor nuh stress. We doing yea, wah di Gong woulda want but we doing it our way. You know what I mean we a do we man.
That was good answer because as long as you are allowed the freedom to do what you want to do. It is a great thing.
Everybody different yuh nuh. My father wear size 10 and me wear size 8. We following that same path, yes, but we a set it with our own footprint along that path.
How involved was your father in the making of your music?
Very involved! Every minute, “Yo mi like dah drum deh” or “Di piano waan tune”. Is just nuff nuff tings, Pops a di golden ears that. Him ears caan do yuh no wrong. I am privileged, in the sense that I grow around such great musical idols and icons. Man weh well professional, mi give thnks fi dem ting deh. Nuff yutes nuh have those types of opportunities.
Do you have an instrument that you play?
Drums. Drums is my ting. Other than that we inna di 20th century everything is on the computer. Buld things on the computer software and the ProTools, Logics, Reasons and MPCs all a dem tings a dehso it deh production wise fah mi.
Anybody else apart from your father would be involved with album?
Yeah, my younger brother. Black-Am-I which is one of my labelmates. A nuff a we man and there is still more to come. Nuff people deh pon it.
What would be your relationship with the island of Jamaica?
This is home. A yah so mi born, yuh nuh. Just wah day yah would be 10 years mi woulda deh inna di USA. Jamaica is home for me nutten nuh new to me here so. Mi come here so mi see mi family, every time mi come a dem regardless if di media knows or not. We deh ‘mongst di family dem same way. This is where everything boil down to. This is it.
Where have you performed?
Majority of the places around the world me can seh. Going around the world wid mi father dem. Mi only perform inna Jamaica, one time mi waan mek sure seh that change.
Where in Jamaica was that?
Di last Rebel Salute my father was on, that was it. Maybe 3 or 4 years ago.
Where do you see music taking you to?
New heights ah di best way mi can put it. Is always a new heights, Even if I don’t attain a certain ting wid di people themselves, Memba is an expression is still have a lot to do wid growth. It still haffi do wid simulation of the mind and body so you would have to ask music where it has taken me. Is just that whole musical journey deh.
And for the fans, where can they find your music?
YouTube, Soundcloud, iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, wherever.
And how can they contact you?
Jo Mersa Marley on the Instagram and all a dem tings and jomersamusic@gmail.com, yuh can book mi from there so.
Anything you want to leave your fans with?
I will leave by telling dem to listen to “Burn It Down”. Dah tune deh which features my younger brother Yohan. That is the first single from the album, I feel that will give you a stronger taste of what is to come.
photos by: Jik Reuben
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