Its a blessing to not have to stagger through life. I was born firm and conscious, explains Stephen, who was first heard on record at age six as part of the familys group Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. All the Marley children share the politics and passion of their father, so Stephen needed no introduction when he stepped up to become the de facto musical hub of his fathers recordings and the familys various projects around age 18. It was a special experience but at the same time it was nothing new, because I grew up around itso I had it, he continues. But even though I had it, I still had to man it. And even if its anticipated, it come when it come.

Now the wait is over, and perhaps the most surprising thing about Got Music? is just how rooted in the real world it is. Never content to simply rehash the sounds and themes of the past, Stephen uses the full length of the album to balance his range of ideas as a songwriter, musician and a man. The lead single Mind Control opens the album with a slow-burning groove that builds to a brushfire as it calls out the unseen social forces that still subject us to mental slavery; Chase Dem is even more explicit about the effect of political corruption on our lives. Stephen is never dragged under by bitterness, however: Inna Di Red is a poetic mystical soul search that escapes the shackles of everyday strife, while the albums title track is a family roll call that shows the unity of the Marley clan in the face of struggle.

But Stephens also a man unafraid to take a detour into music about emotional struggle. Hey Baby is an up-tempo yet tender apology to the woman whos stood by him as hes made his way through lifes complications to grind for a better tomorrow. On the other hand, Fed Up flips the conversation with a self-explanatory title while afrobeat meets the hard blues on My Baby Mama. Got Music? has more magic than great songs, says Stephen mischievously. But it has a little magic in it, still. And perhaps more than anything thats the secret to this Marleys auspicious solo debut: the magic created when diverse roots combine in an artists singular musical visionwhen a blistering electric guitar solo slides into a bluesy harmonica riff and Stephens wails let me out, let me out/Im an angry lion on Iron Bars, a collaboration with brother Julian and longtime friend the rapper Mr Cheeksthe only guest artists on the album. With the release of Got Music? that lion is outand hes roaring.