Watch the video "I tell people it was my first trip physically, but I have been to Ethiopia in my dreams before," says Ziggy Marley, who traveled to Ethiopia alongside his mother, grandmother and siblings to celebrate what would have been Bob Marley's 60th Birthday two years ago. "Africa and Ethiopia are part of our spiritual existence," Ziggy explained, "and I have seen (Ethiopian Emperor) His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie in my dreams since I was a child." He expressed his precocious vision in "Dreams of Home," the closing track on the Melody Makers' 1988 Grammy Award winner Conscious Party, where he sang "We're having dreams of home and you know we're not alone/ Look how long we've been away, how long are we going to stay?"
Fast forward to 2005 and Ziggy is (physically) in Adis Ababa, Ethiopia singing "Africa Unite" at the concert extravaganza that crowned Bob's 60th birthday celebrations. The lyrics to "Africa Unite," featured on his father's 1979 landmark album Survival convey what the Africa Unite concert represents to the Marleys and, it would seem, to the thousands in attendance. They also provide an accurate summation of the spirit of oneness among all Africans that is captured in "Africa Unite," the new documentary film about the event. "How good and pleasant it would be before God and man to see the unification of all Africans," Bob famously sang three decades ago. "As it's been said already, let it be done, we are the children of the Higher man/ Africa unite...unite for the benefit of your children/ unite, for it's later than you think."
Highlighting the interconnectedness among Africans throughout the Diaspora was of supreme importance to Bob. Whether delivering seven shows in four consecutive nights at Harlem's legendary Apollo Theater in October 1979 or performing at the momentous Zimbabwe freedom celebrations in April 1980, Bob brought the unifying, uplifting message of Rastafari to his brothers and sisters everywhere. "When my father carried me to Zimbabwe for the independence celebrations, his inspiration to me was not in telling me things but letting me see all the things he was doing," Ziggy says in the film. "Even in listening to his songs, those were his words to me, as they were to many people."
In the new film "Africa Unite," Bob's words resonate profoundly: in the performances of his songs including "Get Up Stand Up" and "Could You Be Loved" by sons Stephen, Julian, Ky-mani, Damian and daughters Sharon and Cedella; in the snippets of his original recordings that are interspersed throughout and especially in the concept of the title song that served as the impetus for the 60th birthday concert and its subsequent documentary. Throughout the film, Ziggy, the eldest son of Bob and Rita Marley, adopts a patriarchal role, speaking on behalf of his siblings. His observations provide a significant portion of the feature's narration, beginning with the descent of the Marleys' aircraft into Addis Ababa's Bole International Airport, onward through their visits to the city's historical sights, including the headquarters of the (now disbanded) Organization of African Unity (which His Majesty founded in 1963 to promote solidarity among African states) and in a discussion at a UNICEF sponsored symposium attended by youth from all over the continent.
"Even though we are far in the West, we don't leave the struggle and the struggle don't leave us," Ziggy told the young people. "We are a part of everything that is happening in Africa and every sadness and every joy is the same thing we feel."
In a phone interview from Miami, almost three years after his Ethiopian sojourn, Ziggy reflected on his experiences there. Is Ethiopia the home he envisioned in his 1988 song? "Anywhere that I am can be my home," Ziggy began, "but in saying that, what I find in Ethiopia is kind of different. Ethiopia is a Christian nation and what I find there is a true spirituality. I walked up to a church and was just observing what was happening and there was a great sort of humility in the way they practice their concept. A very quiet spirit, it is not loud, it is not judgmental, it is not condemning, it is very loving and I felt that from just observing how the people practiced their concept of the Almighty. I felt welcomed also. Everyone knew I wasn't an Ethiopian but nobody looked at me in any way, they just went about observing their spiritual concept. I felt that love, that they were doing it from a truthful place. Even if the people are poor, them still give their thanks and praises. It was a quiet, special experience going to Ethiopia, a quiet and humbling experience."