Julian Ricardo Marley, ⋆ 4 June in London is a British reggae musician and… Read Full Bio ↴Julian Ricardo Marley, ⋆ 4 June in London is a British reggae musician and singer, son of Bob Marley and Lucy Pounder. He is a member of the Rastafarian house The Twelve Tribes of Israel . His childhood was spent between England and Jamaica, and he learned to play the keyboard, drums, bass, guitar, and various percussion instruments. Together with his brothers Ziggy Marley and Stephen Marley , Julian became an active partner of Ghetto Youth International, a production company, in 1989. He has released three albums: Lion In The Morning (1996), A Time & Place (2003), Awake (2009)

For Julian Marley, music is life, life is music, and both are blessings from above. "From a small age music has been there in my life. It's just natural. And it is with the inspiration of the Most High that I create my songs," he explains. Julian's development as a singer/songwriter began when, at age five, he recorded his first demo tape, a version of his father's classic composition, "Slave Driver," at the Marley family's Tuff Gong studio in Kingston. Since that auspicious beginning, Julian has devoted himself to a life in music, mastering a variety of instruments and writing songs that reflects his dedication to spiritual boost and social change.

The 90s were a watershed period for the young artist. During these years, Julian formed his own band (the Uprising band), released a critically acclaimed album (1996's Lion in the Morning, on which he wrote or co-wrote all the songs) and toured the world, both as a solo performer backed by Uprising and as a member of Ghetto Youths International, a musical collective whose core members are Julian and his brothers, Stephen and Damian Marley. Together, Julian and Damian were the opening act for Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers' 1995 US tour and featured artists in 1997 on the rock-oriented Lollapalooza festival tour. Julian also assisted his brother Stephen with production on 1999's platinum selling Chant Down Babylon and, along with Spragga Benz and Marley siblings Stephen, Cedella, Damian and Ky-Mani Marley , contributed an inspired version of "Master Blaster" to the 2003 Stevie Wonder tribute album, Conception.

Julian's newest offering, A Time and Place, is an organic fusion of rootical reggae and breezy jazz sounds that represent the next milestone in his artistic path. "Coming from Lion in the Morning," Julian explains, "I have more knowledge and I'm growing. And this is a very personal album. A lot of it came from reasoning with bredren. We would converse about a situation and just start writing from there." The thirteen tracks are, as the artist himself says, "very much of the time. If you check it out right now, most of the music out there is about bling blings and crazy things. My songs are to be taken as wake up calls." Each is built on a solid foundation of traditional reggae but contain a wide range of influences, showcasing Julian's natural love of music

Things Ain't Cool
Julian Marley Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yeah, eh! Yeeea. Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]
Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]

Why's there this fussin and fighting.
I think it's too much material delighting.
When will we come to realize it's not real.

Some them brothers lose their identity.
And the sisters living for vanity.
When will we come to the light and see.

Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]

Wise men follow the guiding stars.
Without guidance we won't get very far.
When will we see that love is the way.
Time out, time to take a stop.
With a shepherd chosen to lead the flock.
And so we suffer through all these misery.

Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]

Out of manmade comes a nation.
One of the time it will fill the whole population.
We've got to stand and speak for the right.
Riiight! Live good nurture the children, so tomorrow will be better for them.
But today we about to look for liberty.

Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]

Overall Meaning

The song "Things Ain't Cool" by Julian Marley is a commentary on the state of society, particularly focusing on the loss of values and moral decay. In the song, Marley laments the existence of too much materialism and the pursuit of vanity at the cost of losing one's identity. He calls for people to wake up and see the light, to realize that love is the way, and to stop being fooled by the false values and beliefs that society has constructed. Marley's lyrics suggest that we need wise leaders who can guide us towards a better path and that we need to nurture our children so that they can create a better tomorrow.

The repetition of "Things ain't cool anymore" and "We can't be fool no more" highlights the urgency of the message and emphasizes the need for change. The lyrics suggest that unless we take action now, things will only continue to get worse. The reference to the "shepherd chosen to lead the flock" suggests the need for spiritual guidance and the importance of faith in finding a better way forward.

Line by Line Meaning

Yeah, eh! Yeeea. Things ain't cool anymore [Repeat x4]
The world is not in a good state, and it's not alright to ignore it

We can't be fool no more [Repeat x2]
We need to stop pretending everything is alright and take action

Why's there this fussin and fighting.
Why are we constantly arguing and fighting with each other?

I think it's too much material delighting.
I believe that too many people care too much about material possessions and it is causing problems

When will we come to realize it's not real.
When will we understand that material possessions are not important in the grand scheme of things?

Some them brothers lose their identity.
Some people are losing their sense of self and identity

And the sisters living for vanity.
Some women are only concerned with their appearance and material possessions

When will we come to the light and see.
When will we open our eyes and truly see what's important?

Wise men follow the guiding stars.
Intelligent people follow their own path and don't rely on others for guidance

Without guidance we won't get very far.
Without guidance, we can only go so far in life

When will we see that love is the way.
When will we recognize that love is the key to happiness and success?

Time out, time to take a stop.
It's time to take a break and reflect on our lives and actions

With a shepherd chosen to lead the flock.
We need someone to guide us and show us the way

And so we suffer through all these misery.
As a result, we continue to struggle and endure hardships

Out of manmade comes a nation.
A nation is created by the people who live in it

One of the time it will fill the whole population.
Over time, more and more people will join and build up the nation

We've got to stand and speak for the right.
We need to stand up for what is right and just

Live good nurture the children, so tomorrow will be better for them.
We must raise our children well so that they can create a better future for themselves and the world

But today we about to look for liberty.
But for now, we must focus on finding and achieving freedom for ourselves and others

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

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