Bob Marley birth anniversary: Three lesser-known facts that every fan should know

Bob Marley was a legendary singer and songwriter who died at an early age of 36 in 1981. His music is still popular amongst his followers and music lovers everywhere. On his birth anniversary today, take a look at some facts that you most probably did not know about this renowned personality.

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Facts about Bob Marley every fan needs to know:

He was nicknamed 'White Boy' due to his mixed racial heritage

Bob Marley was born on February 6, 1945 in St Ann Parish, Jamaica. His father was a white British naval captain named Norval Sinclair Marley who was nearly 60 when he met Bob’s mother, Cedalla, who was just a 19-year-old country village girl. Bob was reportedly bullied because of his mixed racial background and was nicknamed 'White Boy' by his neighbours and peers. But he used this as an inspiration and later came up with the philosophy that he is neither on the white man’s side nor the black man’s side but on God’s side.

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He went from being a juvenile fortune teller to singer

When Bob Marley was a young child, he could reportedly tell people their futures by reading their palms. At the age of 7, he is said to have declared that his next occupation was becoming a singer. He thus stopped taking requests to read palms. Bob, with a couple of his friends Neville O’Riley Livingston and Winston Hubert McIntosh, spent hours listening to rhythm and blues on American radio stations and later formed a band. The band was initially named Wailing Wailers but was later shortened to only Wailers.

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Music and Politics

When the other two members of the Wailers left to invest in their solo careers, Bob formed a new band and took charge as a singer, songwriter and rhythmic guitarist. He was famous for his politically charged albums that reflected on the social, economic and political conditions of Jamaica. These turned him into a cultural icon. He and his wife Rita Marley even survived an assassination attempt in 1976, two days prior to his Smile Jamaica concert aimed to reduce the tensions between warring political parties.

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