The late reggae legend Bunny Wailer’s “Fig Tree” is bearing fresh fruit—and his daughter is helping bring in the harvest.
Fifty years after Blackheart Man helped establish Wailer’s solo legacy, emerging reggae artist Blvk H3ro and Wailer’s daughter, Cen’c Love, are giving one of its album tracks a new voice. Their reimagining pairs H3ro’s impassioned lead with Love’s soulful delivery, carrying forward a message whose revolutionary spirit remains undimmed.
At its heart, “Fig Tree” draws strength from Rastafari’s vision of freedom, African identity and self-determination. Those ideas give this revival its purpose: a new generation engaging with the convictions that shaped the music.
“The single is the first release from Rastaman 50, a conceptual album by The Wailers Trio marking the half-century of three pivotal solo records released in 1976: Bunny Wailer’s Blackheart Man, Peter Tosh’s Legalize It and Bob Marley’s Rastaman Vibration,” music executive Maxine Stowe said.
Recorded in Trench Town, the community central to the Wailers’ story, “Fig Tree” was produced by Stowe, Dave Green and Jermaine Williams. H3ro brings the song’s freedom message to contemporary listeners, while Love’s contribution makes the connection to its creator both musical and deeply personal.
Her involvement also marks a shift within the project. Although she was not part of earlier Trio configurations, Love takes the place previously occupied by Abijah Livingston, maintaining a Livingston family presence alongside artists carrying the Wailers’ legacy forward through their community and creative connections.
H3ro brings his own history to the collaboration through his direct relationship with Bunny Wailer and the project’s foundations. Together, the singers connect family inheritance with the wider musical community that continues to interpret and develop the Wailers’ work.
Due November 6, 2026, Rastaman 50 features contemporary interpretations of selections from the three landmark solo albums, alongside earlier songs from the Wailers’ Upsetter period. Dahvid Slur and J Written join H3ro and Love among the Kingston creatives featured.
The release falls within the anniversary period of Emperor Haile Selassie I’s 1930 coronation in Ethiopia, an event of profound spiritual and historical significance to Rastafari.
That timing speaks to the substance behind the celebration. Through Rastafari, the Wailers confronted oppression, affirmed African identity and championed liberation. Their songs carried those convictions far beyond Jamaica, giving audiences a language for resistance, dignity and the right to determine their own futures.
“Fig Tree” brings that inheritance into a contemporary recording, placing its enduring ideas in the hands—and voices—of younger artists.
The project will subsequently spotlight “Dreamland,” further connecting Rastaman 50 with the Blackheart Man 50 anniversary campaign.
“That subsequent focus will build on Cen’c Love’s collaboration with Blvk H3ro on ‘Fig Tree’ and the album’s relationship with her father’s work,” Stowe said.
Rather than trying to exactly replicate Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Bunny Wailer, this new wave of Trench Town talent uses the foundation built by the original trio to usher in a fresh era of roots reggae. The upcoming album features contemporary vocalizations and reimagined versions of foundational tracks from iconic 1976 solo albums, including Bob Marley’s Rastaman Vibration, Peter Tosh’s Legalize It, and Bunny “Blackheart Man”
