Lauryn Hill rejects Rohan Marley cheating rumours in birthday tribute

Ms. Lauryn Hill has spoken up for Rohan Marley, using a birthday tribute on Instagram to challenge years of talk that he was unfaithful during their relationship.

The Fugees singer, who is 50, shared her message on Tuesday, May 19, as Marley marked his 54th birthday. In the post, Hill thanked the Jamaican businessman and son of reggae icon Bob Marley for the role he played in her life and in their family.

“Happy Birthday @romarley! We have been through a lot, but I will always be grateful to you and for you as my protector, my defender and Father to our beautiful children,” Hill wrote. “I hope you’re being celebrated and appreciated today and every day.”

Hill then dealt directly with one of the claims that has long followed the former couple. “For those who didn’t know better, @romarley never cheated on me!” she wrote. “I remember the beginning when we were young, majestic, and uniting our worlds. Have a blessed one, King.”

Marley answered in the comments with warm words for Hill. “Oh my word… you are the most amazing human being ever,” he wrote. “Thank you always Queen… We may not live under the same roof but still love same way… Jah love.” He followed with another comment: “When the lioness speaks…”

Hill and Marley were together from the mid-1990s before ending their relationship in 2009. The pair, who were seen together at the 1999 Essence Awards, share five children: Zion, Selah, Joshua, John and Sara.

Joshua, known musically as YG Marley, gained wider attention in 2023 with “Praise Jah in the Moonlight”. The song was co-written by Hill and is tied to the Marley family’s musical heritage.

Marley has at least 12 children in all. Speaking on Drink Champs in 2024, he said his approach to family was shaped by how he grew up. “I love them (my children) so much, all of them, and they love each other because I was raised this way,” he said. “I’m a product of my environment because, you know, growing up certain way, you’ll just have ‘this way’, but then when you get older, you realise maybe it’s time to be like Ziggy or Cedella where you just kinda settle down and live life where you don’t have to worry about things.”

Among Marley’s other children are two from his first marriage to Geraldine Khawly, which ended in divorce in 1996. He also has one child with Brazilian model Barbara Fialho; they married in 2019 and divorced the following year.

Bob Marley acknowledged 11 children. With his wife Rita Marley, he had Cedella, Ziggy and Stephen, and he adopted her daughters Sharon and Stephanie from earlier relationships. He also fathered Robbie, Rohan, Karen, Julian, Ky-Mani and Damian outside the marriage, each with different mothers.