原名Rita Anderson的Rita Marley最为世人所知的身份便是雷鬼乐宗师Bob Marley的妻子，而他在认识Bob之前便是一名歌手了。 Rita Marley出生于古巴，成长于牙买加首都金士顿，是女性SKA乐队Soulettes的一员，后在录制专辑的过程中，认识了Bob Marley。1965年，Rita Marley遂自荐来到Bob Marley的乐队。当乐队成员听过她的演唱后，大家一致把乐队另一位主唱的位置给了Rita并称她为"灵魂歌手"。一年后Bob Marley和Rita Marley相爱结婚。而后几年，由于三世界国家音乐的蔑视，发行的单曲没有得到相应的报酬，乐队成员因吸毒被捕入狱，Bob的事业陷入了最低谷，而Rita一直陪伴着自己的丈夫，鼓励并帮助着这个伟大的男人.1973年发行了惊天动地的Catch A Fire和Burnin后乐队中的2位超级大牌Peter Tosh 和 Bunny Wailer 离开了the Wailers。而Rita为组建起一个三人的合声乐队支持丈夫的录音和演出。1981年Bob Marley去世后Rita如遭晴天霹雳，经过心理治疗后发行了感动世人的单曲One Draw（也是第一支登上Billboard的雷鬼歌曲），即使她在当时的乐坛很成功，一些单曲也很受欢迎，但他还是毅然暂停演出专心抚养儿女并指导他们的音乐发展(而现在他的儿子们包括Ziggy,Stephen,Julian,Ky-Mani,Damian 都成为当今牙买加乐坛上的重要人物).在1988年她重回乐坛发行的Harambe和后来1991年的We Must Carry on都获得了格莱美提名，2003年又发行了纪念丈夫的Sings Bob Marley...and Friends.
by Steve Huey
Best known as Bob Marley's wife, Rita Marley was also a solo artist in her own right both before and after her marriage, and served as the caretaker of her husband's legacy following his premature death in 1981. Born Alpharita Anderson in Cuba, she grew up largely in the Trenchtown section of Kingston, and first sang with a female ska trio called the Soulettes. The Soulettes began recording for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Studio One label in 1964, and Dodd asked his emerging young star Bob Marley to mentor them; Marley and Anderson fell in love and married in 1966. Rita recorded with two different Soulettes lineups in the mid-'60s, cut a few hit solo singles of her own (including "Pied Piper"), and backed the Wailers on some of their '60s recordings. When Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer left the Wailers in 1974, Rita helped organize the I-Threes, a female vocal trio consisting of herself, Marcia Griffiths, and Judy Mowatt. The I-Threes backed Bob Marley in the studio and on tour for the remainder of his career, up until his death from melanoma in 1981. During that time, both Marleys narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in 1976, in which one bullet grazed Rita's head and another hit Bob's arm.In 1981, as Bob succumbed to cancer, Rita recorded the solo album Who Feels It Knows It. A spiritual, life-affirming statement, the album featured a lighthearted hit single in "One Draw," a blatantly pro-marijuana lesson in proper smoking technique. Banned by the BBC, "One Draw" became the first reggae single to top Billboard's disco singles chart, which was used to track dance-club play at the time. Another single, "Play Play," had a measure of success in the U.K. However, Marley found it difficult to pursue a full-time recording career; she spent much of the '80s handling the assorted legal and business interests associated with her husband's name and estate, and also mentored her children's musical venture, Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers. She finally returned to solo recording with 1988's Harambe (Working Together for Freedom), and followed it in 1991 with We Must Carry On, which garnered a Grammy nomination. Both albums continued her knack for danceable, rootsy reggae with spiritual messages and a definite sense of fun. Marley finally returned with a new album, Rita Marley Sings Bob Marley...and Friends, in 2003.