The tag is inevitable no matter what he accomplishes on his own but it’s a label he unquestionably is proud to hold; Stephen Marley knows he’s always going to be seen as Bob Marley’s son. The same can be said about his brothers Ziggy and Damian, both respected musicians and both forever linked with their father.

But something happened in 2005. Instead of being acknowledged as a second-generation star with a hit single, Damian saw the order reversed when he released one of the biggest songs of the year, “Welcome to Jamrock.” Suddenly, he was an artist with a massive hit, who happened to be the son of the most influential reggae artist ever to live.

Every step towards Damian’s new manner of fame, Stephen was there. Stephen, the second son of Bob and Rita Marley, produced that song and much of Damian’s work over the past decade. Stephen saw how people were coming to Damian’s concerts, not at the chance of hearing a Bob Marley cover song performed by his son, but to hear Damian’s work.

“We don’t want to separate ourselves from our father,” Stephen says, “but I saw that.”

And it soon may be Stephen’s turn to experience it. The 34-year-old will release his debut solo album, “Mind Control,” on March 20.

His solo project seemed like it was never going to happen as he had been working on it for the better half of a decade. The clouds have decided to just now come together, he explains.

“It’s just time,” Stephen tells andPOP. “No conscious effort not to put out the record. Time has cut into the work that was set for me.”

The album will be his first venture as a solo artist, but Stephen is a rookie in no sense of the word. His recording debut can be traced back to when he was six years old when he, Ziggy and two of their sisters recorded a song with their father. A few years later after Bob passed away, the four siblings, now known as the Melody Makers, released their first of 11 albums. Three of those albums earned the group Grammy Awards.

More recently, Stephen has appeared on tracks with Erykah Badu, Nelly, Buju Banton, Eve and produced songs for Sean Paul, The Fugees, Damian and Julian Marley.

If he never released an album and spent his whole career producing for his brothers, Stephen would be happy, he says.

“(Damian and Julian) are my younger brothers, so I have to teach them all to fly first thing, and make sure their wings are strong,” he explains. “I would have been happy if the things that are inside of me came out, and if all of it came out with producing then I would have been fine.”

Those “things” are largely social critiques that start with the title track, “Mind Control,” and continue throughout the album.

The topic of mind control, he says, was specifically important for him to include on the album because it affects everyone.

“It’s mental slavery,” Stephen says. “The system cannot put chains on us anymore because we will rebel. We came a long way since chains and shackles so they can’t do that anymore but they will try to control us mental; how to think and how to live and how to speak.”

“Mind Control” is the first chapter in Stephen’s book, he says. “It’s the beginning. It’s not the whole story because I have much more things to say.” The eclectic album features appearances by Mos Def, Ben Harper and Damian.

And though it isn’t a priority, Stephen wouldn’t mind a Grammy, like Damian won last year and like Ziggy is up for in February.

“It would be nice, but if it doesn’t happen… I mean I don’t make music for the Grammy.
I make it for the people. I want to have a positive effect on people’s lives so we can all come together, and it might sound unattainable but it is not.”


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