Marley kin won't license music for movie

KINGSTON, Jamaica, March 24 (UPI) -- Bob Marley's family said that, in keeping with its longstanding policy, it won't license the late Jamaican singer's music for an upcoming bio-picture.

The family doesn't license Marley's music for any film or television production in which an actor portrays the reggae icon. The Marleys said this will include the upcoming Weinstein Co. adaptation of Rita Marley's memoir "No Woman No Cry."

"When I sold the film rights to my book the contract did not include any rights to use my husband's music," Rita Marley, Bob Marley's wife, said in a statement. "Though I am the head of the Marley family, each decision is made democratically amongst all of us, I requested an exception be made for my book to be turned into a movie, but that request was declined."

The family has, however, agreed to license his music for a Martin Scorsese-directed Marley documentary, which is a co-production between the family's Tuff Gong Pictures and Steve Bing's Shangri La.

"We believe that this project is the best way to represent our father's life from his perspective and any other film project pertaining to our father will be empty without his music to support it," Ziggy Marley said.