Things You Probably Didn't Know

[IceWizard]

About Bob Marley







On May 11, 1981, Reggae star Bob Marley died at the age of 36,
leaving a musical legacy that remains popular still today. 
Get your reggae on with these facts you probably didn’t know
about Bob Marley.




He Worked for Chrysler and DuPont

A little-known, surprising fact about Marley is that he actually lived in the
United States for a short time in the mid 1960s. He had initially followed his
mother to Delaware after she remarried, living close to her in the town of
Wilmington. While there, he surprisingly worked on the Chrysler assembly
line and also as a lab assistant at DuPont. But his heart wasn't in either job
and when his visa ran out, he moved back to Jamaica to continue with music
with the Wailers. Wilmington holds a People's Festival
every summer in Marley's honor.



The "Is This Love" Video Features a Very Young Naomi Campbell

Naomi Campbell was just seven years old when she appeared in Marley’s video
“Is This Love.” The video was shot in London at the Keskidee Community Centre
in 1978, and shows Marley singing and playing with kids, including a young
Naomi Campbell. The supermodel said of the experience, "I was just seven, and
didn't know what it would involve. I didn't realize Bob Marley would be standing
right next to me, tucking me under a blanket. He was the most handsome man,
with beautiful bone structure; mellow, too, and soft-spoken, with a strong
Jamaican accent, the kind I already knew from home."







The Wailers Were Originally 'The Teenagers'

In 1963, Marley and his friends Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer started a band called
The Teenagers. They later renamed themselves The Wailing Rudeboys, and then
The Wailing Wailers and finally The Wailers. The young men spent much of their
time listening to rhythm and blues on American radio stations, and used the word
“wailers” as a reference to their social and economic position in Trenchtown, a
deprived area where they were “born wailing.”



Marley Is a Top-Earning Dead Celebrity

Marley ranks number eight on the Forbes list of top-earning dead celebrities. In 2020,
his estate earned $13 million– more than the likes of Prince, Marliyn Monroe and
John Lennon. Bob Marley also saw his music streams soar last year—the reggae
legend accumulated more than a billion streams globally. House of Marley, his line
of speakers, turntables and headphones, and sales of T-shirts and lighters adorned
with his likeness also added more than $3 million to his coffers.



Marley Died From Cancer That Started in His Toe

Marley died at age 36 from a rare form of cancer called acral melanoma that began
under his toenail. Acral melanoma forms on the palms of the hands, soles of the
feet or under a nail and is not caused by sun exposure. Although he was advised
to have the toe removed, he refused, and the cancer spread quickly, reaching his
lungs, brain and other parts of his body. Marley was Rastafarian and cited his
religious beliefs as the reason he refused the amputation, and by the time he
sought medical treatment, it was too late.