Bringing peace through music - Shasha Marley

Can music preserve peace? Shasha Marley is about to find out. Marley is the leading reggae artist in his native country of Ghana, and one of its most popular entertainers. Watch Maata Family by Shasha Marley

This fall, he and other singers and musicians from his country will undertake a two-month series of concerts through his West African homeland, all aimed at producing a peaceful presidential election in December.

“We don’t want our country to be another Zimbabwe, another Kenya or Liberia,” Marley said while preparing for a concert at the Enchanted Garden Conservatory of the Arts tonight. “We don’t want to lose our country. It’s the only one we have.”

The concert — which will feature dancers, traditional drummers and a 10-piece band backing Marley — is the only Ghana First Peace Train event that won’t take place in Ghana.

Instead, it will benefit the Peace First series of 16 concerts that will feature a series of Ghanian artists singing pop, reggae, gospel and hip-hop. The leaders of the country’s political parties will participate in the events, which have the blessings of both the UN and the World Bank.

Preserving the peace in Ghana is important on several levels, said Marley and Isaac Hirt-Manheimer, the director of the Enchanted Garden Conservatory and a devotee of Ghanaian life and culture.

For one thing, they said Ghana has escaped the political and social violence that’s marred the history of its neighbors in West Africa. Ghana is a place refugees flock to.

“It’s really a beacon of stability,” said Hirt-Manheimer, who has spent three months a year in Ghana for the past 11 years and is building a center for traditional Ghanian arts and culture there.

Ghana is the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to gain its independence, leaving British colonial rule in 1957. But it’s only been a true democracy since 1992, when a constitution replaced military rule. Marley said recent presidential primaries in his country were marred by bloodshed, leading to fears the past 16 years of peace might be threatened.

“That sends a message to us,” he said.

And if violence erupts, international investors flee. In a country where the average annual income is $400 a year, that investment is crucial for Ghana’s future.

“Without peace, there can be no development,” said Marley, who is not related to reggae legend Bob Marley but took his last name in tribute to him.

“That needs to be everyone’s chief emphasis,” Hirt-Manheimer said.

Marley, who grew up as an orphan on the streets and shantytowns of Sekondi in western Ghana, is now one of the best-known popular artists in his country. His music, impassioned and infectious, is laced with a strong social message.

He’s been outspoken on the AIDS prevention program in his country. Through his “Save a Million Lives” campaign, he met, recorded and performed with American soul great Isaac Hayes.

His love of reggae — which originated in Jamaica and spread around the world — involves the love of his own country and its music, he said.

“Reggae is a synthesis of African and Afro-Caribbean music,” Marley said. “For me, it’s African music that was taken to Jamaica by the slave trade. Now it’s come back to Africa. We’re taking charge of it.”

What: The Ghana First Peace Train concert, featuring Shasha Marley, plus a 10-piece reggae band, and dancers and drummers When: Tonight at 7 p.m. Where: The Enchanted Garden Conservatory of the Arts. Ethan Allen Highway (Route 7), Ridgefield. Cost: $50 a ticket. For More Information: Call the Enchanted Garden Conservatory of the Arts, at (203) 894-1987.