Cindy Breakspeare

Cynthia Jean Cameron Breakspeare (born October 24, 1954) is a Canadian-Jamaican jazz singer, musician and beauty queen. Breakspeare was crowned Miss World 1976. Breakspeare is the mother of reggae musician Damian Marley, through her relationship with Bob Marley, who remained married to Rita Marley until his death. Marley is said to have written the songs "Turn Your Lights Down Low" and "Waiting in Vain" about her.[1][2]

Cindy Breakspeare
Born
Cynthia Jean Cameron Breakspeare

(1954-10-24) 24 October 1954
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
EducationImmaculate Conception High School
Occupations
  • Singer
  • musician
  • model
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1981; div. 1994)​
    Rupert Bent II
    ​
    (m. 1999)​
    Children3; including Damian Marley
    Beauty pageant titleholder
    TitleMiss World 1976
    Years active1972–present
    Musical career
    Genres

    Life and career

    Breakspeare was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to a Jamaican father, Louis Breakspeare, who was a British-Jamaican of multiracial ancestry, and a white Canadian mother of British origin, Marguerite Cochrane. She has three brothers and one sister.[3] Breakspeare moved to Jamaica when she was four years old, and attended the Immaculate Conception High School, graduating in 1973. As a teenager, Breakspeare participated in beauty pageants, including Miss Jamaica Body Beautiful and Miss Universe Bikini. She was invited to participate in the Miss World competition in 1976 held in London. Despite Jamaica's anti-apartheid protest of the pageant,[4] Breakspeare accepted the invitation and won the title on November 19, 1976,[5] becoming the second Jamaican to do so.[6]

    Personal life

    Despite being married to Rita Marley, Breakspeare had a relationship with reggae musician Bob Marley beginning in 1976, lasting until his death in 1981. Marley was in relationships with several other women around this time, including Pascaline Bongo and Yvette Crichton who gave birth to his child in 1981. From Cindy's relationship with Bob she birthed a son, Damian Marley (aka Jr. Gong), in 1978.[7] Three years later, Breakspeare married senator Tom Tavares-Finson in 1981, with whom she has a son, Christian (b. 1983), and a daughter, Leah (b. 1986). Breakspeare and Tavares-Finson later divorced in 1994. Breakspeare married musician Rupert Bent II in 1999. Breakspeare has been pursuing her career as a recording artist and entrepreneur. She founded a Rastafarian craft store called Ital Craf in Jamaica. Breakspeare has four grandsons from her three children.[8] Breakspeare remains a personality in Jamaica, occasionally featuring in local media.[9]

    Filmography

    References
    1. "Jamaican Hall of Fame: Cindy Breakspeare". Jamaicans.com. 24 August 2005. Retrieved 2010-12-13.
    2. "When Bob Marley Came To Britain". BBC. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
    3. "10 Things You Didn't Know About Cindy Breakspeare-Bent". Jamaica Gleaner. 2012-09-30. Retrieved 2012-09-30.
    4. Fanfair, Ron. "Canadian-born Jamaican reflects on Miss World title and life with Bob Marley". Ron Fanfair. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
    5. Meredith Dixon. "Lovers and Children of the Natural Mystic: The Story of Bob Marley, Women and their Children". The Dread Librarypublisher=Uvm.edu. Retrieved 2010-12-13.
    6. "Social - Cindy Breakspeare makes the big 5-O!". Jamaica Gleaner. 2004-10-31. Archived from the original on September 1, 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-13.
    7. Robert Roskind, Rasta Heart: A Journey Into One Love, One Love Press, 2008, p. 71
    8. "10 Things You Didn't Know About Cindy Breakspeare-Bent". Jamaica Gleaner. 2012-09-30. Retrieved 2012-09-30.
    9. Jamaica Observer article, 2014
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