Ziggy Marley und Thievery Corporation

Ziggy Marley puts his incredible mark on the legacy that was started by his father Bob Marley. Ziggy is the eldest son, and has been releasing reggae and Jamaican infused soul for the past decade.
When you see Ziggy live, you understand immediately where he comes from, and how he's managed to amass a large following in a relatively short time. As far as reggae goes, Ziggy plays the style in the familiar modern style, with Caribbean sounds and feel. There is political, romantic, and cultural references abound in the songs, which are incredibly smooth and catchy.Ziggy Marley plays for bigger crowds in recent years.
I saw him open up for 311 back in 2011 in St. Louis. For an opening act, he really blew me away -- as well as the rest of the crowd -- with an incredible performance full of passion and professionalism. He had a large band, including backup singers off to the side of the stage, which added to the feel of the show. He played songs spanning his entire studio collection, but I'd say the show peaked during "Melancholy Mood" and "Changes."
The show is full of color and rasta attitude; I can't wait to see him perform again.

If you’ve heard of Thievery Corporation, it’s likely down to Zach Braff’s inclusion of them on the Garden State soundtrack, with the track ‘Lebanese Blonde’; a dramatic, brass-driven number with a mellow vocal that runs contrary to the instrumentation, it really only hints at the creative talents behind it. In fact, Thievery Corporation aren’t a band in the traditional sense; it’s the project of Washington D.C. musicians Rob Garza and Eric Hilton, who have spent the best part of twenty years making electronica and trip hop that incorporates a diverse range of musical influences; bossa nova, reggae, dub and acid jazz all included. Accordingly, their live shows play less like typical gigs and more like lavish celebrations of world music; a vast array of guest vocalists tend to take part, in order to translate their records as honestly as possible, and the same can be said for the instrumental side of things; whilst there’s a core band, with drums, bass and guitar taken care of, the palette is extended to all manner of weird and wonderful foreign sounds; a jazzy brass section, in particular, is key to the group’s aesthetic, as are the steel drums. They’re long overdue a return to the UK at this point; expect a veritable feast of international sounds should they ever make it back.