Bob Marley: One Love director and Ziggy Marley visit Canada ahead of the premiere to share their favorite songs, scenes and what they love about Toronto.

Whether you're a reggae fan or not, a new biopic about Bob Marley's legacy will leave you humming his favorite tunes all day long.

Bob Marley: One LoveReynaldo, directed by Marcus Greene, celebrates the life of the iconic Jamaican reggae singer and tells his story for the first time on the big screen.

“Bob gave us his gift of music and the film tries to reveal that gift a little bit. Try to understand what he's saying, why he's singing it, where he's singing it from,” Greene told Now Toronto in an interview ahead of the film's opening in Toronto last week.

The film, made in partnership with the Marley family, covers the period 1976 to 1978 because that period was “the richest musical production, it was an outpouring of music at that time,” Green added.

Eight-time Grammy Award winner Ziggy Marley, eldest son of Bob and his wife Rita, is a producer on the film and was on set every day of the shoot to portray his father in real life. Bob's daughter Cedella is also among the producers, along with executive producer Brad Pitt.

BEING BOB MARLEY

British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir (Barbie) stars as legendary musician and Brit Lashana Lynch.A woman is a king) plays his strong and supportive wife Rita.

Ziggy says it's not easy to understand Bob's essence, but when he meets Ben-Adir, he knows he's the best man for the job.

“He was the only one who really had that thing about him, and then we would talk and how seriously he took the role. We're not trying to be deceptive, it's not a sleazy Bob Marley character… it's an artist doing Bob Marley in his own way, because no one can ever be Bob Marley,” Ziggy told Now Toronto.

Over a year of preparation, Ben-Adir studied the icon carefully to become it.

“I mean, he had to go through physical changes, choreography, learn to play the guitar, learn to speak Patois. So, a huge amount of work. I think the guy didn't sleep for a year and a half. So it was a relentless work ethic for a change, kudos to him. What a great job he did,” Green said.

As for Bob's unique way of speaking Patois, Jamaica's native language, Ziggy said he was impressed by Jamaicans and Ben-Adir's performance who saw the film when it premiered on the island.

“Kingsley did a good job because it was tough. This is one of the most difficult roles due to dialect. It's not like Americans that someone can easily imitate American style,” he said.

Ziggy added that the film is a true reflection of Jamaica and Bob and his musical creativity. The film also shows a never-before-seen emotional side of Bob, with Ziggy admitting that he becomes sad when he thinks about the hardships his father went through.

“…Realizing that he's been through this and that all of this trauma that he's been through will never stop him or stop him from finally fulfilling his destiny to serve people, and he's on target,” Ziggy said. said.

ABOUT BOB MARLEY: ONE LOVE

The film depicts the height of Marley's career and begins with an assassination attempt against him in 1976, at a time of heightened political violence in the country.

However, this threat and turmoil provided an undeniable catapult for Bob's musical creativity.

“And this is actually an album, Exodus from Egypt the album that put them on the map. I mean, not just a Jamaican star in a big way, but a world star. So it felt like it took a lot of concentration to go there,” Greene said when talking about why the film focused on that period.

“It's hard not to be in a good mood with 'Jamming,'” Green said, adding that his favorite song on the album is “Jamming.”

Throughout the film, the beautiful scenery of the island and its people will be captured with the help of over 250 Jamaican crew and a cast of established and up-and-coming Jamaican artists.

According to Greene, he and cinematographer Robert Elswit spent hours scouting locations and finding the right areas at the right time of day to shoot each scene.

“There were a lot of Saturdays and Sundays to find what you were going to see in the film, but every minute spent with the Jamaican people was amazing. They helped us make this film and it was special,” he said.

Ziggy said that making the film in Jamaica created lasting opportunities for the locals.

“We didn't just go there and leave, we left things there, we left the development of the schools, you know, we left the community flourishing, we left the dreams of people saying, 'Wow, there's going to be a movie in the ghetto.' .' I think it was a great experience for the community and for the people who were a part of it … it really served my father's purpose very well on many different levels.”

The film finds Bob making and recording hits after he exiles himself to London after an assassination attempt. Exodus from Egypt along with his bandmates, the Wailers.

One of the scenes shows the group discussing the album cover, and Ziggy described the moment as one of the funniest scenes for him because of its authenticity.

“One of my favorite scenes is when he and Bob are in the office and the guy, I think he's a publicist, right, and he's trying to explain to Bob that you don't have a picture. And Bob tried to say, “No, that's the reason,” and the guy said, “What?” he thought. He doesn't understand Bob, that's very typical and true and most people can't understand how Bob thinks. It's so funny to me because it's real and Bob has a sense of humor,” Ziggy said.

ONE LOVE FOR TORONTO

Both Ziggy and Green attended the film's premiere in Toronto last week, but this isn't their first visit to the Six.

“It has a great art culture, great museums, great food, I love being here. And of course TIFF! Green was excited and told us what he likes to check out in the city.

Meanwhile, Ziggy smiled unapologetically and said, “I don't like doing nothing, I don't like too many nails around here.”

However, she said she feels more and more at home.

“I still like the Canadian vibes, I'll be honest, yeah. Because I live in America now, you know. So it's different from the American vibe, I like the Toronto vibe, you know Canadian vibes. Feel at home?

Bob Marley: One Love premieres on Valentine's Day, February 14.