Amandla Festival of Unity, 1979
Photos, videos and more from Bob's iconic performance at the Amandla Festival of Unity in Boston
July 21, 1979
Bob Marley & The Wailers agreed to perform at the Amandla Festival of Unity, an event held at Harvard Stadium in Boston to raise awareness and funds for the rebel soldiers fighting apartheid in South Africa. Aside from covering travel expenses, the band played for free to support the cause.
Local and Global
In addition to raising funds to help fight apartheid in South Africa, the event organizers wanted to shine a light on racial tensions that were prevalent across the city of Boston.
Press Conference
Prior to their performance, Bob and the band sat for a press conference with event host and comedian Dick Gregory to discuss the mission of the festival with the media. Watch footage from the press conference below.
Bob Marley at the Amandla Festival press conference at harvard Stadium, Boston (1979-07-21)Bob Marley: Legend
Comedian and activist Dick Gregory introduced Bob Marley & The Wailers just before their set.
An Iconic Performance
The show is known as one of his most legendary concerts for a few important reasons...
First, it was one of only a handful of Bob's concerts that was professionally captured in full on video.
Second, while Bob usually lets his music do the talking, here he made a few small speeches before some of his songs.
And third, as this occurred while the band was recording Survival, it features the first live performances of "Zimbabwe" and "Wake Up And Live," which no one had ever heard before.
“The performance was just magic. People in Boston come up to me even today and tell me that witnessing that performance was life-changing for them. This is not a joke. It was just magical. The people around him knew it, and we knew it.” - Reebee Garofalo, Event Organizer
