Sharon Marley experiences true metamorphosis in 2022
Re-emerges with new single, ‘Butterflies in the Sky’
Published:Wednesday | June 22, 2022 | 12:11 AMStephanie Lyew/Gleaner Writer
Last year, Sharon Marley did a rendition of Rita Marley ballad, Just One More Morning from the classic 1988 album We Must Carry On, after being absent from the forefront for approximately 20 years.
“Everything started happening very quickly after I recorded Just One More Morning as a tribute to my mother. That project reintroduced me to my voice,” Sharon shared.
Like a butterfly, we have seen her image transform from short to long locs, an Afro and now with a low-cut hairdo that she finds joy in experimenting with through colours. Sharon has a new project up her sleeve – her latest single, titled Butterflies in the Sky, which was actually written by her son Ingemar Prendergast two years ago.
Sharon added a few lines to her son’s words, being inspired by love – the desire to love and be loved in return – and before she could snap her fingers, she had the “perfect song” for the Asteroid Riddim on which it is recorded. The rhythm was sent to her by Polish producer K-Jah Sound.
She said, “The configuration of the numbers 2022 seems to bring with it change, a metamorphosis as you say. Change in a lot of ways.”
This is not a comeback, she said, but more of a continuation of what she already started. She describes it as “a new chapter only because I’ve never walked this way before”, having always been with her posse, that is, her brothers and sisters. Being a free-spirited individual, Sharon explained that she has always felt the pressures of being able to reach the standards of others but with music, she does not feel pressured to do what everyone else is doing.
MATURED MELODY MAKER
“As a Melody Maker, I have always been in my own lane. I’m now a matured Melody Maker and so my love for music has evolved too. Growing up in my house we listened to a wide variety of music: soul, R&B, jazz, opera, rock and roll, ska, rocksteady, gospel ... you name it …we listened to it. So my repertoire, my sound, includes a little of all of these.”
She continued, “Keeping up with people’s expectations is very tiring. I don’t think everybody will ever be satisfied at the same time with the same thing. The most important is that you enjoy and are satisfied with what you’ve done, knowing that you gave it your best shot. I love singing gospel, one day I’ll do a gospel song. How will people feel about that?”
Throughout her career, Sharon toured extensively and has won three Grammy Awards with Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. Now, she is going with the flow, she said.
“My mother introduced me to keeping journals at a tender age [so] I’ve also kept journals for years, which has been a great tool for me to track my own development, I’ve truly seen an evolution. Now, I’m working on some new music with this new gust of inspiration. Who knows, maybe by the time I’m through, I’ll have a full album of easy listening vibes. I’ve been talking to a lot of great musicians and producers who have truly inspired me to spread my wings and fly, just like the beautiful butterfly,” Sharon said.