AS family and friends gather at the Bob Marley Museum in St Andrew today to bid farewell to singer Jo Mersa Marley, his long-time friend Abebe Lewis said the family has lost the leader of the next generation.

“Jo was a leader for the next generation of Marleys. If Jo said go, everybody went; if he said stay, nobody moved. He was a good person. He knew what he wanted and wanted to keep the vibe up all the time. I’m so glad that I had his cell number. I’m so glad that I got the opportunity to book him…He knew what bloodline I came from and I knew what bloodline he came from,” Lewis, marketing director for Inner Circle, told the Jamaica Observer yesterday.

Jo Mersa, son of Stephen Marley, died on December 27 in Miami-Dade County of a suspected asthma attack. He was 31.

He will be interred at Nine Miles, St Ann, like his legendary grandfather, Bob Marley.

Lewis disclosed that he last spoke to Jo Mersa in November. He often booked him for live performances.

“I was trying to book him for the ‘Art Basel’ show because I did a reggae concert during last year’s show. We kept missing each other but I ended up using Ky-Mani instead and Julian also came and performed so it worked out, although Jo would’ve made it complete. I had also reached out to him for the Jamaica 60 performance in Miami over the summer. Babsy Grange [Jamaica’s entertainment and culture minister] was there and I was the one who arranged for Jo to be part of the celebrations,” he said.

With decades of memories shared between the Marleys and his family, Lewis regarded Jo Mersa as a brother.

“Marleys and Inner Circle are like family. Sometimes I was sad and I’d call Jo and he’d just put me right into a good headspace. You also never see him without his brother Yohan,” he said.

On January 10 a private, all-white vigil was held for Jo Mersa at Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens on Old Cutler Road in Coral Gables, South Florida. Lewis was among the guests.

“Everybody was in great spirits; it was just amazing to see such a wonderful thing. As you looked around you saw his influence on everybody. Shaggy was there, Tarrus Riley, Inner Circle, Cham, the Marleys, Lauryn Hill. It was such a wonderful event. It was a special moment that I will never forget,” he said.

Jo Mersa — whose mother is Kerry-Ann Smith, younger sister of former Dancehall Queen Carlene Smith — was known for songs such as Burn it Down, Made It, and No Way Out.

He made his recording debut in 2010 with My Girl, which features his cousin Daniel Bambaata Marley, son of his uncle, Ziggy Marley. He was featured on his father’s album Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life in 2016.

Jo Mersa leaves behind his wife Qiara, six-year-old daughter Sunshine, and 12 siblings.