Reggae legend Bunny Wailer will be honored by the Jamaican and Rastafarian community in Shashamane, Ethiopia, on April 10, marking what would have been the icon’s 79th birthday. The tribute forms part of Rastafari Month celebrations in Ethiopia and will also commemorate Donald “Flippins” Leach, a key Jamaican figure in Ethiopia’s Rastafari repatriation movement who died in 2012.
The joint tribute will take place at the Lily and Vernon Leach Lounge in Shashamane, a community widely regarded as a spiritual home for Rastafarians and often referred to as “Jamaica in Africa.” The event will celebrate the life and legacy of Bunny Wailer, who died on March 2, 2021, at age 73, following complications from a stroke.
Sydney Salmon, chairman of the Jamaican Rastafarian Development Community (JRDC), said the reggae icon maintained a strong connection to Shashamane and had expressed interest in returning to Ethiopia.
“Bunny Wailer has a significant link to Shashamane. Back in the days when I came to Shashamane, I remember Bunny contacted his good friend, Brother Flippins, and they discussed Bunny’s desire to return to live in Ethiopia,” Salmon explained.
Originally from East Kingston, Salmon migrated to the United States in his early 20s and worked as a banker before relocating to Ethiopia in 2001, where he has lived ever since. He will headline the tribute concert with the Imperial Majestic Band, performing songs including Babylon Falling, Ethiopia Calling, Oh Lord, Trees, Give To You, and selections from his latest album, Andromeda.
Other performers scheduled to appear include Orthodox Issachar, Teddy Dan, Iron Gad, Pat Joseph, and the Melody Sisters.
According to Salmon, Bunny Wailer had taken concrete steps toward repatriation, even requesting that representatives contact Ethiopia’s Ministry of Tourism to explore ways he could contribute to the country. However, those plans stalled following the death of Donald “Flippins” Leach.
“Bunny made it clear that he had full intention to return to Ethiopia and spend the rest of his days. We were waiting for a response when Flippins died,” Salmon said.
Bunny Wailer was a founding member of the Rastafari Millennium Council, an umbrella organisation based in Jamaica that aims to unify the various “mansions” of the Rastafari movement, particularly around repatriation and intellectual property rights.
Salmon disclosed that approximately 600 Jamaicans and their families currently live in Ethiopia, many in Shashamane. The community traces its origins to a land grant provided by Emperor Haile Selassie in the 1940s and has since developed into a hub where elders, musicians, and families maintain a Rastafarian way of life.
April, widely recognised as Rastafari Month, was considered the most fitting time for the tribute.
“The seeds came back at the right time … he and Flippins share the same birth month, so we decided to honour them together at this time,” Salmon said, noting that the event will be held at the Leach family property. “This will create a focus on the rest of Rasta globally that he made the transition and his presence is here in Ethiopia based on his stated intention from years ago and his legacy.”
Funds raised from the concert will support initiatives tied to the EADUMC-JRDC memorandum, including healthcare for Rastafarian elders, educational support for a community school, and development projects in Shashamane. A portion will also assist the Leach family.
Born Neville O’Riley Livingston on April 10, 1947, Bunny Wailer was a founding member of The Wailers alongside Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he was widely regarded as one of reggae’s most influential standard-bearers and remained a vocal advocate for Rastafarian culture and repatriation throughout his life.
Wailer suffered a minor stroke in October 2018, followed by another in July 2020. He was later hospitalised at Andrews Memorial Hospital in Kingston, where he died on March 2, 2021, from complications related to the stroke.
