(Sec 1, bio.com). This community of poor Jamaicans was a violent place and Bob quickly learned to defend himself against the criminals of Trenchtown. His increasingly powerful street fighting skills earned him the nickname Tuff Gong, which originated from the name given to the founder of the Rastafarian movement Leonard "The Gong" Howell. (Sec 1, Gale). Bob Marley had previously dropped out of school to pursue his musical career full-time, much to the discontent of his mother. At the age of 16, Bob Marley met Desmond Dekker, a successful Jamaican singer. Through Desmond, Marley was introduced to another young singer, Jimmy Cliff, who had already recorded multiple hit songs in Jamaica by the age of 14. He was then noticed by a producer named Leslie Kong, with whom he recorded a few singles that failed to draw the attention of the public. (Sec 1, BobMarley.com). He was not very successful as a solo singer and was paid a mere 20 dollars for his song. Marley decided to find other people to make music with so as to be more successful. In the early 1960s, he met Peter Mcintosh, later known as Peter Tosh. He was also introduced to Neville Livingston, whose stage name was Bunny Wailer. Together, in 1963, the three of them formed a band, the name of this band changed many times, from The Teenagers, then the Wailing Rudeboys, finally to The Wailing Wailers, better known simply as The Wailers. Marley wrote the music and the lyrics for the songs, but the young men took turns as vocalists. Not long after the creation the band, a new member, Junior Braithwaite, joined the group and also contributed to the vocals. In their early days, The Wailers play music known as ska in Jamaica. This genre of music combined early-reggae sounds called mento with New Orleans style blues. (Sec 1, Gale). Certain ska tunes could also be described as being a Jamaican interpretation of American soul and R&B. (Sec 1, BobMarley.
