Rihanna, Bruno Mars Paid Tribute to Bob Marley

Pop Singer Bruno Mars began the Bob Marley tribute Sunday night at the Grammys with a reggae-infused performance of "Locked Out of Heaven" featuring an appearance by Sting, who went on to sing "Walking on the Moon" with Mars. After that Rihanna took the stage with the late singer's sons, Ziggy and Damian, who are also musicians. They performed Marley's "Could You Be Loved," bringing the crowd including a dancing Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban to their feet. Rihanna tweeted a photo of herself with Ziggy and Damian on Thursday, writing "Marleys and I #BackstageLife." Marley would have turned 68 last week. A genre-spanning collection of artists, including Bruno Mars, Sting and Rihanna, all of whose music was influenced by Bob Marley, gathered together on the Grammy stage Sunday night to pay tribute to the late reggae icon. The musicians performed original songs influenced by Marley as well as a group cover of his classic number "Could You Be Loved." Mars, wearing a signature fedora, kicked off the performance with a high-energy take on his hit single "Locked Out of Heaven," from his latest album, Unorthodox Jukebox which won many awards after its release. With Mars's song drawing clear inspiration from the Police, it was rather fitting that Sting emerged to join the pop star, crooning the second verse of the song with his bass in tow. The roles were then swapped: Sting launched into the reggae-tinged 1979 Police classic "Walking on the Moon" as Mars provided both vocal and guitar support. "None of this would be possible without Bob Marley," Mars exclaimed before introducing Rihanna and Ziggy Marley. The two arrived onstage, swapping vocal turns on a harmonically precise cover of "Could You Be Loved. " Ziggy's younger sibling, Damian, arrived onstage next. The rapper/singer added a wild rap verse to the rock-steady cut, rounding out what was undeniably one of the highlight performances of the evening.
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