Ziggy Marley. Photo: Supplied
Jamaican superstar Ziggy Marley has been announced as Womad's first headline artist for the 2024 festival.
The eldest son of legendary reggae performers Bob and Rita Marley, Ziggy has cut his own path in the music industry and is an eight-time Grammy winner.
New Zealand programme manager Emere Wano said Ziggy Marley was due to play Womad 2020 but had to pull out for family reasons, so it was super exciting to confirm him for next year.
"The good thing about Ziggy was him and his management committed to coming back to New Zealand and performing at some stage in the future and so that time has arisen."
Wano said it was significant to be able to announce such a recognisable name so early in the festival schedule.
"For us it's really important and special because it gives everyone confidence that we are back. We're here and we're not going away.
"It's fair to say last year was a test [after Covid] and it felt like we were starting again after two years of not presenting.
"So, to be able to come out strongly with a known name - and reggae royalty - is really, really a confidence booster for us as a festival but also our audience."
Wano saw Ziggy Marley perform at Womad UK in 2019 which confirmed to her he was a perfect fit for Womad Taranaki.
"It was an amazing live show and I remember standing in the crowd and thinking 'gosh this would be amazing at the Bowl of Brooklands' given that New Zealanders love their reggae and to have a Marley and especially Ziggy, that would be incredible if we could pull that off."
She said although Ziggy Marley worked within the reggae genre, but he put his own twist on it infusing it with folk, blues and rock - and a little bit of the stardust suggested by his name.
"It's reggae, but it's really entertaining and upbeat at times and gets you dancing. Sometimes reggae can be a bit cruisy and a bit laid back, but he's got that pizzazz and I think that is something on the Bowl stage that is really going to rock the audience.
"He's definitely a headliner, no doubt about it."
In a career spanning 40 years, Ziggy Marley is also an Emmy winner and a producer, activist and humanitarian.
Known in equal parts as a master storyteller and motivational guide, Wano said, Marley explored issues from environmental awareness to self-empowerment, social injustice to political inequity and the transformative power of love.
Woman Taranaki 2024 will reveal more acts in September and October.
Womad 2024 is scheduled for 15 to 17 March at the Bowl of Brooklands and Brooklands Park in New Plymouth.
