Rohan Marley supports Snoop Dogg’s conversion to Rastafari

“Why condemn a man for his love of Rastafari and Bob Marley?” asked the reggae legend’s son.

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Friday February 1, 2013 – American rapper Snoop Lion has been given a reprieve from the Dogg house by none other than Rohan Marley, son of Jamaican reggae icon Bob Marley. 

According to celebrity website TMZ, Snoop Lion/Dogg “just got the MARLEY FAMILY SEAL OF APPROVAL ... because Bob's son Rohan tells TMZ the reggae legend would've totally supported Snoop's Rastafarian rebirth”. 

The website quotes Rohan as saying that he's well aware that an original member of the Wailers -- along with the Rastafari Millennium Council -- attacked Snoop, claiming the rapper is nothing more than a “Rasta Imposta”.  

But Rohan says “those guys have it all wrong,” according to TMZ.

"Our father's name should not even be mentioned in this issue because like a true Rasta, he would have embraced Snoop's reincarnation and welcomed the positivity," Rohan told the website.

"Why condemn a man for his love of Rastafari and Bob Marley?" he asked.

The controversy stems from Snoop Dogg’s name change to Snoop Lion and his claim that he had converted to the Rastafarian faith after a visit to Jamaica last year.

But legendary reggae musician Bunny Wailer – an original member of the immortal Bob Marley and the Wailers – had a bone to pick with the Dogg, taking issue with Dogg/Lion’s documentary “Reincarnated”, which depicts Snoop’s immersion in the Rasta culture as he recorded his first reggae album.

Wailer claims Snoop engaged in “outright fraudulent use of Rastafari Community’s personalities and symbolism” and failed to meet “contractual, moral and verbal commitments”.

Snoop Dogg also raised the hackles of leaders of the Rastafari Millennium Council, who are said to have sent him an indignant seven-page letter.

The offended parties reportedly want Dogg to stop using the name Lion and issue a public apology after he pays “the financial and moral support” they claim he promised them.

The letter from the Rastafari Millennium Council also made it clear to the American rapper that “smoking weed and loving Bob Marley and reggae music is not what defines the Rastafari Indigenous Culture!”

Rohan Marley nevertheless took an opposing view.

"We have been cool with Snoop before his transformation and he will continue to have our blessings and support," he told TMZ. Click here to receive free news bulletins via email from Caribbean360. (View sample)