Most people pay serious money to see a Marley play live. On Monday, a fully booked Southwest Airlines flight from Orlando to Montego Bay got a reggae set for the price of a plane ticket.
Julian Marley stood up in the cabin, took a guitar, and performed a two song set dubbed Live at 35, a nod to the 35,000 feet the plane was cruising at, according to DancehallMag. Phones went up across the cabin as he played So High, a fitting title for a debut at cruising altitude.
An Organic Moment, His Words
The performance was not random. Marley told The Star the set came out of a collaboration with Southwest Airlines, and the timing landed right after his Give to Life tour wrapped.
“It was all a very organic type of thing for me,” he said, according to DancehallMag. “Our South East Asia, UK and European tour generated a lot of attention, which I believe made Southwest Airlines reach out to us, and now we have performed live at 35,000 feet.”
He added that everyone on board was chilling and enjoying the vibes, and that he felt blessed and humbled for every opportunity to showcase the power of reggae music, according to DancehallMag.
A Song With a Bigger Landing Ahead
So High comes from Tropical House Cruises to Jamaica, an album set for release early next year. The lineup alongside Marley includes Tifa, Jethro Sheeran, Shatta Wale and Chris Gayle, according to DancehallMag.
The track was produced by Richard Roache of Digital One Production. Executive producer Sean “Contractor” Edwards picked So High because it is a love song, saying the world needs to spread more love for humanity, according to DancehallMag.
Southwest has not said whether the song will feature in a campaign. For now, the cabin clips are still circulating, and the real test comes early next year, when the album lands and the song has to win people over on the ground.
Nation, be honest: if a Marley stood up on your flight home to Jamaica, what is the first song you would want to hear?
Leave a Reply