Bob Marley’s grandson, Jamaican-American reggae artist Joseph Mersa Marley is dead at the age of 31.
The musician was found unresponsive in a vehicle in the United States on Tuesday, according to the streaming service TIDAL.
The artist – who went by his stage name Jo Mersa – reportedly had suffered from asthma his entire life and the Florida radio station WZPP claimed he had died of an asthma attack.
He is the grandson of iconic reggae musician Bob Marley and the son of Stephen Marley.
Bob tragically died of cancer in 1981 at the age of 36, but he is widely considered one of the pioneers of reggae music. The late star had 11 children with seven different partners.
Marley spent his early years in Jamaica, where he attended Saints Peter and Paul Preparatory School. He then moved to Florida where he was a student at Palmetto High School. When at Miami Dade College he studied studio engineering.
In 2014 he released the EP called Comfortable and in 2021 he came out with Eternal.
There is a new movie about Bob Marley in the works.
Kingsley Ben-Adir is set to portray the legendary singer in the movie, which will be helmed by King Richard director Reinaldo Marcus Green and produced by Rita and her and Bob’s son Ziggy, and daughter Cedella Marley.
Rita and the Marley family are said to have given their blessing to Lynch being cast in the film.
The musician was found unresponsive in a vehicle in the US on Tuesday. Seen in 2017
Lashana Lynch will play Bob Marley’s wife in a new biopic.
The No Time To Die star – who portrayed MI6 agent Nomi in the James Bond motion picture – is said to be in line to take on the role of Rita Marley in the as-yet untitled film for Paramount.
Sources told Deadline in August that there was a lengthy search to find the right actress for the part, and movie bosses were keen to find someone with Jamaican descent. While Lynch was born in London, her family is from Jamaica.
He is the grandson of musician iconic reggae musician Bob Marley and the son of Stephen Marley. Seen in 2018
Bob tragically died of cancer in 1981 at the age of 36, but he is widely considered one of the pioneers of reggae music.
The late star had 11 children with seven different partners, and Ziggy, 51, previously admitted his mother Rita, 76, Bob’s widow, treated them all like her own.
He said: ‘Some people didn’t approve of Bob seeing other women while he was married to my mother, but I didn’t know too much about it, so it never bothered me. I know that my mother didn’t like it, but she wasn’t the kind of person to be vindictive or jealous.
‘As far as she was concerned, Damian [whose mother is Cindy Breakspeare, a former Miss World] was Bob’s child and all of Bob’s children were her children too.’
While Bob was known as the king of chill, Ziggy previously admitted his father could be a tough parent because he was aware of the ‘danger’ of life in Jamaica.
He said: ‘Growing up in Jamaica in the 1970s could be dangerous. There were guns everywhere. But as a kid the danger felt exciting. Every day was an adventure. I did not understand the seriousness of the situation.
‘There were times when my father would tell me not to play on the street because he wanted to keep me safe. If I disobeyed him, he would give me a spanking.
‘People think Bob was laid back about everything, but he was tough when it came to discipline.
‘That is a traditional type of Caribbean parenting – old-school. Kids grow up very differently today.’
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