Toronto MC K’naan and Brooklyn producer J. Period have teamed up on an odd little remix/mixtape project called The Messengers.
Using beats borrowed from Fela Kuti, Bob Marley and Bob Dylan, the project takes inspiration from the three musician’s politically charged discographies as a bed for K’naan’s own conscious rap musings.
The full album won’t be released until September 22, but three tracks have already been leaked on J. Period’s website, and a new song will be released every Tuesday in September leading up to the full release.
As you can hear from the leaked tracks, this isn’t exactly straight-up hip-hop, but fans of K’naan’s previous work will likely agree that it fits well with his vibe. At times it’s a little overly earnest, but then again, what would we expect given the source material? Surprisingly, it’s the Bob Dylan tribute that stands out the most – who knew country rock and hip-hop would mix this well?
The timing of this project is probably going to be a good thing for K’naan, as it’ll help keep his name on the mind of the Polaris Prize Grand Jury, who’ll be deciding if he deserves the $20 000 prize on September 21.
Also, just announced, K’naan will plays the Phoenix on September 18.[rssbreak]
