Okay so, I definitely meant to get around to this one much sooner than I did but because I had bit of catching up to do (and I'm old as hell), it took me so long that what started out as a preview is now a mini-review. Today we take a look at a very special project, pulled together by the Naya Rockers collective, "Higher Education". The album, which brings together many different artists from varying walks of life and places (like Iceland); and does so in the name of benefitting the famed Alpha School of Music in Kingston. WHAT AN AMAZING IDEA [!] one which certainly is deserving of our support and yours as well. Today we take a look at a beautiful album for an even beautiful[er] cause, "Higher Education" from the Naya Rockers, Floki Studios and Friends. BOOM!
1. 'Come With Us' by Clinton Fearon
BOOM! When I first heard the riddim on 'Come With Us' it made me smile and probably made me tear up a little as well. IT IS STUNNING (and wouldn't it make for a nice instrumental/dub????)! So nice and light and jovial with an old school HEART given to it courtesy of the legendary Clinton Fearon. 'Come With Us' is a musical celebration. It is a standing ALTERNATIVE TO NEGATIVITY ["Leave them guns and bombs outside"] and, REALLY, how can you possibly feel like doing something bad after hearing this tune. It's literally impossible!
2. 'Higher Education' by Ivan Neville
I do know who Ivan Neville is, by name, but I couldn't name a single piece of work of his until he contributed the title track to the "Higher Education" project. This tune kind of combines a Jazzy feel to Reggae with Neville being from New Orleans in the US and it definitely makes it stands apart from the pack here, because of its sound. It's direction, however, is right in line with balance of the album as Neville puts forth the typical uplifting and inspirational messages that you've come to expect from the genre. A lovely song!
3. 'Teach The Youths' by Sister Nancy
We all have to come together and do a better job in setting a proper example for the youth of the world is the sentiment behind Sister Nancy's offering to "Higher Education", 'Teach The Youths'. When I first heard this one (and still now) what I initially felt about it is that 'Teach The Youths' is very EASY. What I mean is that, while you will find other tunes here which maybe are more free and 'risky' (not literally, of course), Nancy keeps it very level-headed and consistent. She also introduces ideas such as humility and respect (of oneself and others)
4. 'Thanks' by Hector Roots Lewis
Impressing St. Catherine native, Hector Roots Lewis, is one of a few here who can lay a significant claim to having the single strongest tune on the whole of "Higher Education" with 'Thanks'. This thing is GORGEOUS! It also fits in quite nicely with the theme, at least in my opinion as, along with the knowledge and education to be found within books, it's also important to be rewarding and fulfilling to YOURSELF on an emotional level and Lewis well wraps that within giving praise. A BEAUTIFUL SONG!
5. 'The Right Path' by Stephen Marley
Definitely the biggest name to leap out at you, on paper, is that of the great Stephen Marley who blesses the album with another of its genuine highlights, 'The Right Path'. Like the song it follows, 'The Right Path' (as its title suggests) is one more concerned with your spiritual health and morals over what you might pick up out of sitting in a more traditional and ACTUAL classroom.
"I say we learn from the past
Make our futures last
CHOOSE THE EARTH FIRST"
Although the vibe here is a SWEET one with an infectious bounce, it is the vocalist who takes the brigihtest of spotlights on 'The Right Path' as Mr. Marley delivers information in heaps and heaps which is not to be ignored.
6. 'Dub With Us' by Mad Professor & Clinton Fearon
What a shock! I mentioned how well the riddim to the opener, Clinton Fearon's 'Come With Us', might translate to an instrumental or a dub and look what we have here! The equally venerable, Mad Professor takes his hands to the tune and comes up with 'Dub With Us'. The Professor, as expected, doesn't take things in a straight course but what the dub lacks in that kind of 'wholesome' simplicity as the original song, it makes up for with a heavier but still fairly LOOSE vibe and it's the first from Mad Professor. He'll be back with us in a minute.
7. 'Long Way Down' by Mike Love
Despite the nature of his song, I'm going to make the assumption that, when he recorded 'Long Way Down', Mike Love was in a pretty good mood! He sounds like he is THOROUGHLY pleased with the material that he's singing and he's feeling the music behind him... and he has no reason not to feel good based on what I'm hearing. He's also trying to simplify things in his life and turn away from not all things modern but things that are contemporary and far from healthy.... downright poisonous at times:
"They'll make you ill then sell you pills
Call it medicine"
'Long Way Down' is a tune whose VIBE threatens to overwhelm its direction -- you can HAPPILY lose yourself in it and not hear a word Mike Love says, but a special gifts awaits those who take the time and do a bit more digging because the writer hits his notes as well.
8. 'The Brotherhood' by Angelo Moore & The Tamlins
While I am familiar with his band, Fishbone, the name Angelo Moore was one commpletely unknown to me prior to "Higher Education", on which he gives us the delightful 'The Brotherhood', alongside the mighty Tamlins. There's a hint of old[er] school R&B (I guess that's what it's called. You know that song 'YMCA'? This one sounds NOTHING like it but something about it gives me that same genre for some reason... and maybe only me) here, mixed with Reggae, definitively, of a passed era. What results is a very unique vibe in support of theme of a pure unity from Moore and The Tamlins.
9. 'Words of Wisdom' by Queen Omega
LOOK WHO IT IS! Unsurprisingly, the tune that had me THE most excited to hear on "Higher Education" was definitely 'Words of Wisdom' as it is the handiwork of one of my absolute favourites EVER, the incomparable Queen Omega. Sitting as the album's longest track (clearly everyone involved knew with whom they were dealing), the Queen puts on an INFORMED display which builds up to a downright dazzling crescendo in its latter portion.
10. 'Same Lessons to Learn' by Micah Shemaiah
The well gifted Micah Shemaiah doesn't miss a beat following the Queen with his LOVELY effort, 'Same Lessons'. There is a well infectious BOUNCE to the riddim here and Shemaiah makes the most of the track with message of unity - in bringing up oneself, you also turn around and bring along others with you as well. That, INHERENTLY, applies to knowledge as it doesn't do much good taking it to the grave with you . PASS IT ON!
"No man is an island, no man stands alone
Even the wickedest one will give their dog a bone"
11. 'Thanks Dub' by Mad Professor
The maddest of all mad professors, Mad Professor, returns to send us on our way in closing shop on "Higher Education" with his second creation, a dub of 'Thanks' which Hector Roots Lewis provided the original vocals for. I actually prefer 'Thanks Dub' to the previous 'Dub With Us', probably because it's a bit more straight forward. As I said (or at least I think I did), 'Dub With Us' takes the original sound in several different directions, that isn't the case with 'Thanks Dub', which is far closer to a straight instrumental (it isn't though, don't worry). The Professor's additives are more subtle but are sterling and, for me, delightfully go to accentuate what was already a HUGE creation.
Signatures. I'm currently working on the latest installment of our running series, 'Signatures', which is a feature we started to highlight some of my personal favourite songs from various artists. It's gotten a pretty solid response thus far and, after a break, we will continue it with the legendary Cocoa Tea, probably sometime later this month. I bring it up (because I absolutely love it) to lead into the fact that you can definitely take that same concept and apply it not only to a particular, individual artist but an entire label as well. It can be a little bit more difficult (and interesting to write) because you may not normally associate a certain piece of work with a label in terms of release and the choices you have to choose from may be incredibly vast but it can also be a very fruitful and satisfying experience as well. I'll bring up an example of a label that not only fits the concept of what we're doing today (they've worked with some of these artists) but one which has done PRECISELY what I think we're looking at here as well. Of course, I'm referring to I Grade Records and, by extension, the Zion I Kings. What're the signature releases of I Grade Records??? Were you to put together a list, surely it would be full of pieces from Akae Beka -- having the biggest Virgin Islands artist alongside the biggest VI label -- but I'd also include, off the top of my head, a pair of albums from Lutan Fyah and you might also come across works from the likes of Dezarie, Tuff Lion ["Ten Strings"], Pressure Busspipe and maybe even one or two others as well. Another set that I think would HAVE to be included (....and, of course, I'm now thinking about doing such a list) would be an album that we've well discusses around these parts so I won' take up too much of your time by beating it down again but, way back in 2009, IGR would release what is my opinion one of the greatest compilations of the modern era of Roots Reggae music, "Joyful Noise". Similarly, the other components of the Zion I Kings, Zion High Productions & Lustre Kings Productions, have also released compilations which are, easily, amongst some of their greatest productions. I could go on a more well known scale and start mentioning things such as "Reggae Gold" and "Strictly The Best" also - people who make Reggae music love making compilations and when they are very well done, the results can be some of the most memorable and most identifiable that they make, period.
So, were one of my favourite labels going today to release a compilation which, at least on paper, looked like pure FLAMES, they're probably going to have my full attention. That brings us back to the wonderful people at Trinity Farm Music who, once again, are doing something well worthy of a look. While I could already point to a signature release from the label (they did launch our favourite album of 2024, Akae Beka's "Living Testament"), TFM have CONSISTENTLY delivered solid work in very recent times courtesy of a very interesting batch of names (biggup Batch) and have done so at a fantastic rate. Clearly, they have no intent on slowing down AT ALL.
2018
So how do you take things even higher? Maybe [another] large compilation would do it. I can't go too far with this (well, I can (and I probably am eventually, but....), because Trinity Farm Music already has an outstanding compilation to their credit in 2018's LOVELY "Music Tree" which would have been one of their very first releases altogether. At least to my knowledge, there was never a second volume to "Music Tree" so, in its stead (kinda), 2025 now brings us "Heart Of One". The PACKED compilation checks in at nearly and hour and a half, spread over twenty-one tracks, featuring contributions by a VERY healthy variety of names. If you're following along with TFM's works, you'll see a number of their favourites building up the vocalist roster on "Heart Of One" and you'll also see some wonderful surprises as well (some of whom, I hope to see recording with the label more going forward) including some old personal favourites that we haven't seen much of it lately. For me, when it comes to compilations (especially on riddim albums which're far more rare these days than they used to be) one of the things that stand out most immediately is who is on board. I've actually made comments about that exact thing in the past and have had producers message me saying what happened or how certain things came about and it's all very fascinating (one was even apologetic) but when I laid eyes on what was happening here, even prior to hearing the actual music, I was mightily impressed, once again, by TFM. I failed to see how you could even put together such an array of talents and drop something subpar and "subpar" is not what I heard when I did get to hear "Heart Of One". Also, like pretty much everything that I've listened to from TFM, the music here is very heavily Roots Reggae, but I didn't find it very.... exclusive. While I don't see it being a very good starting point for listeners new to the genre entirely, if you've only recently come to know the greatest sound on the planet (congratulations), you're going to find something here entertaining and not just because there's so damn much of it. From beginning to end, "Heart Of One" shows itself to be stellar and a FINE potential introduction to one of the best labels going today. Let's get into it!
Did I mention that this album had twenty-one songs on it?? It's been a minute since I've done a review on an album so damn long and I don't know how I'm going to break it down and segment it but let's just get to it anyway. Getting things up and going on Trinity Farm Music's BIG compilation is a very familiar name to our eyes and ears as the Arkaingelle puts both his and one of the album's best foot forward with the outstanding 'Yaddin by the Rivers'. By the slimmest of margins (with respect to maybe two or three others (but one in particular)) The album's opener is also my single favourite that it has to offer. Arkaingelle has a song called 'Manifess Joy' which is one of the top fifty or so best songs that I have EVER heard, so it's no surprise that he takes top honours here for me, as 'Yaddin by the Rivers' is simply flooring.
"It is time now for repatriation
Gather yourself, yow, let's get it together
We've got to organize, and centralize and mobilize
We haffi dispell all their falicies and all their lies
Do you know The King Of Kings was crowned, Haile Selassie I?
Rastafari, Head Creator over I & I
Lord Of Lords, Conquering Lion Of Judah
Prince Of Peace, I wonderful Counsellor
Yes, He's the Alpha & Omega and with Menen, there's no other
The King & Queen, dem hold the ancient order
Mek I an ah yad a Mama land, lef outta babylon
No matta where you come from, Africa Fi Africans"
The Arkaingelle gives a MASSIVE grounded praise to The Almighty with this shot and it, instantly, became a favourite of mine (would have to think, but it COULD be the second finest tune that I've heard from him thus far) and were it at all possible, suddenly I was even more intrigued by "Heart Of One". Also want to give a quick credit to the music here: The impeccable aforementioned Tuff Lion is credited as being amongst the musicians on this album and I don't know if he plays on 'Yaddin by the Rivers', but I would not be surprise if it does feature his handiwork. This sound, as EASY as it is, is GORIOUS and I would well recommend that you pay a closer attention to the riddim as it develops because it does move ever so slightly and becomes even stronger to my opinion. Next up (spent all that time talking about one tune, time to get moving!) is someone whose name I have come across but, clearly, don't know as much about as I should because Dre Z Melodi DELIGHTS on his effort, 'Faith'. Just last year, Melodi dropped an album which I heard a bit of by the name of "Victory". Such release was damn difficult as it featured, amongst others, Akae Beka (twice) (and the first of the pair, 'Loving Jah' was fantastic), Fred Locks and Perfect Giddimani. It may be time to give "Victory" a closer listen because 'Faith' is damn impressive. DZM has somewhat of an unusual delivery. To my ears... he's almost sounds a bit like Ras Army but no matter a point of comparison you may want to come up with, check the golden 'Faith', another praiser but one which definitely finds its home with a VIBE. Listening to this song makes me feel good! Also, again, note the lovely musical conclusion here as well. Veteran Haile Maskel comes through for Trinity Farm Music with 'Wadada Today', which I'm going to allow my wonderful Wife to review:
"This song sounds like a cool old man singing a song"
There you go! From my point of view.... 'Wadada Today' is so DAMN BASIC but I don't mean that in a derogatory way. There is something compelling about it (beyond the great music, which I'm going to stop mentioning so much because it's the case on pretty much every song on this album, so I can save it for closing), especially in its latter stages as Maskel puts forth a very solid unification tune. Underrated and overlooked Belize born, Jah Myhrakle, has a new album out of his own by the name of "Worthy 2 B" (about six weeks old at the time of writing this), which is pretty good and I should probably review it at some point in the future. Until then, however, check his contribution to "Heart Of One", 'Take Frontline'. This GORGEOUS selection deals with ideas such as loyalty and the importance of surrounding yourself with positivity and positive, forward thinking people. EASILY one of the strongest pieces on "Heart Of One", Jah Myhrakle SHINES and does so in a very entertaining and melodic way as well. Hikari Zion, unfortunately, offers up the sole and solitary misstep on the whole of "Heart Of One". Try as I might, I could not get into his 'Luv Yu' at all. Both the pacing and what is are rather unusual and neither worked for me, ultimately (I, seriously, have no clue what is going on with that song). Righting the ship, the final two names from the opening third of the album came as total shocks and really helped to up my curiosity here. The first is Ickarus. Former (and maybe still) member of the famed Star Lion Family (which also produced both Pressure Busspipe & NiyoRah) from out of St. Thomas, Ickarus may not have had the road that some of his peers have enjoyed but OBVIOUSLY that isn't a matter of talent as he displays throughout his 'Everything Irie'.
"You've gotta nice smile, now put it on display
Do it real fast, arriba, andale
Wi no inna negative, wi no waan today
Tell dem mi serious and now mi no come to play
Put di knife down, youth, put di gun away
And hold a Bluetooth speaker from today
UPLOAD SOME AKAE BEKA POSITIVE SONG TO PLAY
And watch di moon enlight di night and sun bright di day
When you walk with a positive, it's like a spiritual armor
Some people say bad deeds does return
Some people a just does ah call it a karma"
As you would expect, a song by the name of 'Everything Irie' goes in every possible direction and I'm thinking it was just something that he Ickarus vibed for that riddim. Regardless of its origins, however, it is a big winner for the album. Whether you realize it or not, THE most identifiable name on the whole of "Heart Of One" is that of Ras Elijah Tafari. Best known for his visual artwork in album covers -- such as this one, this one, that one over there, this one and that one too and even THIS ONE HERE -- (I HAVE NOTHING IN MIND WHILE I AM WRITING THAT. I'm going to go through and fill them in later. That shows you how prolific he's been and continues to be) but here, he turns his talents to actually inside the recording studio (as far as I can tell, he's been doing it for a decade or so at this point) and offers a pair of tunes for "Heart Of One"... along with the cover, of course. The first of them, 'Same Family' MIGHT be my favourite of the two but it's very, very close. Tafari's style is fairly straight forward chanting, for the most part, though he will press it and back off from time to time and he has a pretty good command of melody as well. That is well apparent here, 'Same Family' is pleasing to listen to and it makes sense. The same could be said when Tafari returns for 'Hot Hot Hot', later on. For its part, this song has more of a HEAVY vibes to it (there's something really cool about 'Hot Hot Hot'... despite its title) as the artiste turns up the heat on those in serious need of cleansing. I give a massive credit to Ras Elijah Tafari, in general. He's one of those people who'll likely not get his full credit for it but the man has made a MASSIVE contribution to this generation of Reggae music, again, whether you know it or not.
The next third of "Heart Of One" keeps the wonderful surprises coming in the form of who's on board and the quality of their output is also high. We also get a couple of names back from the first batch with their second songs on the album: Jah Myhrakle & Dre Z Melodi. Myhrakle's song, the very catchy 'By His Words' sits comfortably amongst the album's finest in my opinion, combining exactly what you're thinking of for a theme with a very clever method. DZM, on the other hand, takes a somewhat unique route on 'Keep My Health'. Although this one doesn't quite reach the heights of 'Faith' and (it's going to take a few spins to grow on you) it's fairly skeletal at times, 'Keep My Health' wins by virtue of a uniqueness and a VIBE. Staying away from it for now - musically, something very interesting happens on the tune and, again, if you have a little patience, 'Keep My Health' will glow for you. We also get a pair of CANNONS courtesy of two unexpected names for "Heart Of One" as both 'Rastafari Guide the Way' and 'Moralist' are EXCELLENT. The very simple former is by an Isayah, who I'm not entirely sure that I've come across at any point ahead of this album but it the big praising piece comes as a very welcomed introduction and, as usual, I'll immediately head off and find out what else Isayah has been up to (he'll come back and show us what he's been working on, later). The ULTRA impressive Kali Wale is the man behind 'Moralist' and though I thought I'd also have to do some background work for him, a name change actually saved me some time. Wale has a very nice singing voice (it's very LOUD and clear) and he's an even better writer.... somewhat reminiscent of an artist by the name of YahKali, with whom I am familiar, largely due to a review I wrote over a dozen years ago for an album by the name of "Powerlink" by the Amandla collective. I was impressed with YahKali's abilities back then and he and Kali Wale just so happen to be one of the same and, nothing has changed: 'Moralist' is downright MASSIVE and I could really go for a full album of this.
"System of the serial
Some win, some losers
Use language just to confuse us
Ripped from nature so dem can abuse us
Entertainment just to amuse us
And nation rise unlike no other
Giving honours to the child and the mother
Protect the innocent and respect each other
Equal rights, justice forever
System backward: Sit down - get reward
Identify the I as civally morbid
Reject your place of birth, inheritance forfeit
Another generation sorted
And nation rise, not bound to no colour
Just to pedigree, tradition and to culture
DECLARE your allegiance and start to unocover the true source of all your power
Moral, say we loyal and we noble
Royal cause we cup full, yet we joyful
Healthful, sipping sorrell, smelling floral
Inna the spiral, message viral, with we hearts full
Moral, say we loyal and we noble
Royal cause we cup full, yet we joyful
Healthful, sipping sorrell, smelling floral
Inna the spiral, message viral, with we hearts full"
Original Nine Fingers, Xkaliba, WONDERFULLY also makes an appearance here with a big piece of intelligence in 'Want More'. Though not to the same degree as the aforementioned (and soon to be mentioned again) Ickarus, we'd definitely like to hear more from Xkaliba. His style is SUPER SIMPLE. It is very basic and straight-forward but it works for him, far MORE often than not. I do enjoy 'Want More' (don't love the spelling but everything else is just fine) as the Cruzan chanter touches on the thin line between thriving and seeking the best for yourself ["Get good loving. You still want more"] versus just being DAMN GREEDY. The musically motivating 'You Can Be' comes from someone who I almost certainly have not mentioned for at least a decade, King Hopeton. Several hundreds of years ago, Hopeton released a FINE album by the name of "King Of Kings". It was a thundering introduction to the singer and although he didn't really follow up on it (he did, but none of Hopeton's subsequent work has been on the level of his debut, in my opinion), it made a fan out of me and I've at least made an attempt to keep an ear out for what King Hopeton's been up to. 'You Can Be' is another one which required some time to grow on me but it has greatly from the first time I heard it. King Hopeton also has a new collection out, "Time", which will probably be just about a week old by the time you read this. About a year ago, veteran Rob Symeonn pushed "Manners & Depression", an album, for Trinity Farm Music. He's also had other work on the label, including since the album, so it should come to no surprise - his presence on "Heart Of One", with 'Depression' (...probably would have been a surprise if he weren't on board). This song is what you're thinking it is as Symeonn warns all about the various stresses of everyday life and how to not get caught up in so many things piling up on you at once and losing your happiness. The topic is, obviously, quite crucial to him lately as the artist also pushed the similarly concentrated 'Sunshine', another single for TFM, earlier this year. 'Depression' is even stronger and a major attraction for "Heart Of One".... more on that later.
Another kinda/sorta familiar name shines during the final chunk of "Heart Of One" as both of the songs that Noble Culture contributes are found here. About twenty years ago, a Black Culture launched the Bambu Station produced well-received "Lion's Den Adversity" and, like Kali Wale, he, too, has undergone a name change and is now Noble Culture. Between his 'Refugee' & 'Not in The Mood', it is former which REALLY stands out as BC puts forth a very nice and specific social commentary about how people can feel like outsiders in their very own homes. Apart from the sake of comparison, 'Refugee' is just really strong as well. Though it doesn't quite hit those levels, 'Not in The Mood' also goes well, especially lyrically. The shortest selection here by more than twenty seconds, you do wish it were lenthier but 'Not in The Mood' does manage to make an impact in its short time. It's also very simple and nice to the ears. Our old friend, Messenjah Selah also makes an appearance with this fun time, 'Natural'. In the early days of this blog, we did a kind of running project with one of Selah's albums, "Breaking Babylon Curse", so he's had a special place on my players even since. 'Natural' is EASILY the best song that I've heard from Selah in some time and it features him dealing with how he's come to be who he is, musically, a 'sufferer' of intense, infectious Reggaemylitis.
"It's written in my blood
REGGAE YOU DO ME LIKE NOBODY DOES, NOBODY DOES"
It does all of us like that, Messenjah Selah. Take Haile Maskel, for example. He loves it so much that he comes back again to the album with 'Negust is Ruler', which is even stronger than his first effort here, 'Wadada'. I'm going to tell that though I don't feel the song needs any time to grow on you, it does take a bit to develop and, as the only over five minute piece here, 'Negust is Ruler' gets all the time it requires on that front. When it does get where it's going, it is a creepingly LOVELY praise which fits its creator (and THE Creator) perfectly as a vibe which is the best way I feel it is enjoyed. Ickarus also makes a return before ending things here with his second go on "Heart Of One" with the familiar 'To Africa'. This song actually taps the same riddim as 'Who Will Go For Us', the initial single from what turned out to be our favourite album of 2024, "Living Testament" by Akae Beka. Here, we find the chanter outlining some personal goals as he plans to visit the continent before the end of his days. This one is FUN and you can really here the passion coming through Ickarus and HOPEFULLY he makes it home! Lastly, check the ABSOLUTELY MAMMOTH 'StrucJah' from Isayah who returns to the project gloriously. Isayah beats us all down to the cellular level (the man literally talks about things like DNA and photosynthesis) (somewhere, Vaughn Benjamin approves) and you get to a place where, in its later stages, Isayah is SOARING all over 'StrucJah'.
"HIS Haile temple is the willingness of royalty
JAH GIVE US EVERYTHING WE NEED IN RIGHTEOUS ENERGY
The DNA, double helix, highest complexity
YOUR BODY IS A NATURAL ORGANISM, KEEP IT CLEAN"
DAMN! If you were, at all, unfamiliar with and unaware of Isayah's level of skill prior to "Heart Of One", you, like me, have just been placed on notice as he gives a giant word to honour the power of The Orchestrator.
I've alluded to it (and flat out said it) a few times throughout this review, so I'll make this brief: The music all over "Heart Of One" is kinda SPECTACULAR. It's really, really strong. In particular, I'd point you in the direction of Haile Maskel's 'Negust is Ruler'. The guitar (which may or may not be played by Tuff Lion) on that thing is GORGEOUS and it truly levels up near its conclusion. Big credit goes to Trinity Farm for making an album which sounds like this because, even if you aren't as fond of the actual songs as I am, anyone even remotely a fan of Reggae music will thoroughly be impressed by what they hear by the players of instruments here.
Overall, while I definitely set some mighty shoes for it to fill and a big path for it to follow, "Heart Of One" does just fine with it. It is excellent and it is such in a way that is very understated, for the most part. I don't think ANY vocalist on this album is going to leap out at a more casual fan. Again, THE most recognizable name here would be that of Ras Tafari Elijah and that's because of his visual art. Musically??? PROBABLY who stands out the most is Arkaingelle (Rob Symeonn and Messenjah Selah would also be in that conversation) but, as a collective, for someone like myself (and probably Yourself) this lineup is delicious and rarely is there a wrong direction taken. So, perhaps if you haven't been paying attention to the fine work Trinity Farm Music (and Go A Chant Productions) has been pushing over the past few years, "Heart Of One" represents a brilliant point to become acquainted, especially for more constant fans of the genre. One of the finest Reggae compilations of 2025 - and it ain't even close!
I'm going to PRESUME that Ras Attitude and Akae Beka have appeared together on the same song at some point prior to now... but I'm not completely sure about that. I am certain, however, that their combination for Partii Animalz Global, 'Light Up', is one GORGEOUS ganja tune. I'm also going to predict that an album from Ras Attitude (from someone) is forthcoming. Just thought you should know... now perhaps you can listen a little keener. BOOM!
It's just been too damn long. It's been nearly ELEVEN YEARS since the last time we did a Modern Classics feature (it is the morning of the 25th of August as I start to write this, HOPEFULLY I can finish this in the next two and half months, otherwise I'll have to remove the word "nearly"). Originally (and still) designed to celebrate albums, specifically, of the modern era (I defined the modern era as everything after the year 2000) which I felt were just of a supreme quality; the series ran all the way to #42 in in nearly six years and, FINALLY, we're bringing it back to take a look at a release which, shockingly, has gone somewhat forgotten in recent times.
In 2002, Sizzla Kalonji released "Da Real Thing". That album (also a Modern Classic) was and remains universally revered. It would be hailed as a return to the vintage form he had displayed on undeniable greats such as "Praise Ye Jah" and "Black Woman & Child" (the latter produced by the great Bobby Digital, just like "Da Real Thing"). Perhaps it is due to that epic set that we forget that, just the year prior, Sizzla would also produce a magical display in the form of the Xterminator helmed "Taking Over". Marked by a very cool explosiveness, "Taking Over" carried a pair of Sizzla's most well known songs to date but it was also CONSISTENTLY EXCELLENT, a quality which maybe we haven't done the best job of observing in the near quarter-century since its launch....
Let's do something about that. Today we give our greatest honour to yet another album from an artist who, when at his absolute best, may've been without an equal: "Taking Over" by Sizzla Kalonji.
1. 'Thought For Today'
One perfect love. Though the case could successfully be made that it was done in a very broad way, 'Thought For Today' was kinda brilliant, if you really think about it (let's think about it!). Blessed with a most curious BOUNCE behind him, Kalonji turned in a social commentary of an unusual type (and class), aimed at the youths, specifically.
"Before you trod di badness, hail The King first"
'Thought For Today' was an adventure. It was an action movie. It was two hours long and it was as exhausting as exciting. What stand out these days is how we take the punchline/title of the tune, address it is LOVE and then spread it around in a way.... damn near vicious! You will act appropriately. You will love yourself and others. You will do several things to improve yourself tangibly and spiritually and it will be "perfect". It was.
2. 'Brand New'
Trample everything. Hip-Hop has never and will never be 'my thing' but I had less of a problem with 'Brand New' than I typically do with such tunes ("problem" is probably too strong of a term, I usually just don't pay them much attention) because of what it eventually turns into. While the vibe is there, it doesn't go anywhere, and it is respected; 'Brand New' goes on to, like many of the songs on "Taking Over" to enter a place where Kalonji locks in and what we get is this kind of heavily stylized track not entirely bereft of typical genre ideology. Yes it's fractured (which is one reason Hip-Hop doesn't appeal to me much) but 'Brand New' was all sorts of interesting as well.
3. 'Somewhere Oh Oh'
Most delighted. Despite its rather odd title, 'Somewhere Oh Oh' is and has always been an undeniably FANTASTIC song (and you could even go as far as to call it this album's third best altogether, in my opinion). It's also a very fun one to analyze. What I take from it these days is that 'SOMEWHERE Oh Oh' is about finding your 'happy place'. It is about find places and things and PEOPLE who make you happy and surrounding yourself with them as much as you possibly can. Something that REALLY stand out, lyrically, is how there doesn't really appear to be any strife or opposition in 'Somewhere Oh Oh'. Where in Sizzla's music (or in Roots, in general) there is this oppressor somewhere out there - IT DOES NOT EXIST HERE. You'll find it back on the next track but 'Somewhere Oh Oh' not only made a plea for us to find things that brought us joy, completely absent of conflict, it also presented itself as such an item. You find somewhere you want to be, find something you want to do when you get there, someone who you want to do it with and play this song while you're doing it.
4. 'Taking Over'
NOTHING TO FEAR! 'Taking Over' belongs to a very select group of songs that Sizzla has done in my opinion. It takes a seat at the table of any conversation regarding his absolute single best work and... if you wanted to call it his best, that case could be made. Why, exactly? I noted the "cool explosiveness" of the album named after it and that is a quality best demonstrated here. While 'Taking Over' never settles down fully, it does display increasing and decreasing levels of intensity where, at its heights, it reaches downright euphoric levels (he's agitated, clearly, but Sizzla was in a great mood when he voiced this song, I'm convinced).
On top of that, the riddim behind it was gorgeous, made perfect for it and 'Taking Over' does not a put a lyrical foot wrong, it is absolute genius and one of the single greatest musical revolutions that a genre, known for revolution, has ever produced.
5. 'Fare'
Wear a crown.
"Never belittle her strength
Or else you'll be missing her strength"
I've never been the biggest fan of Sizzla's love songs but "Taking Over" featured a few of them which would rank very highly in the category in my opinion. The first of them was somewhat unusual and I actually hesitate to call 'Fare' a "love song" (even though it clearly is) (I have issues) because it gets more into areas such as empowering love and women, in particular (using the reference to MAKEDA), and relationships, in general.
"Remember: Your friends and foe may talk
No evil force can tear us apart"
The song also has an infectious and interesting almost Jazzy sound to it and Sizzla made the most of it with an offering fitting snugly into this album.
6. 'Higher Heights'
Be able and be willing. For WHERE it is situated on this album, you can look at 'Higher Heights' as warming the vibes up for what is to come after what it follows but it is SO MUCH more than an 'undercard'.
"How about caring and giving?
People working hard these days just to make a little living
Prophecy fulfilling
Righteousness, just be able and be willing
Getting nowhere with this ruthless killing
Hot like a fire when some a dem chilling
BABYLON A DESTROY, CONGOMAN KEEP BUILDING"
'Higher Heights' is HUGE! Like several of the efforts on 'Taking Over', it heads in many different directions but as its core was a wide-reaching spiritually braced statement that brought the HEAT that would fully ignite on the next track.
7. 'To The Point'
START A FIRE! Along with the title track here, 'To The Point' is what I was referring to when I said that this album contained a pair of Sizzla's most popular songs. Where 'Taking Over' is this soaringly brilliant and brooding trip, 'To The Point' is The Matrix. Shit explodes, there is controversy and there are casualties and no one is safe. In the midst of the madness, 'To The Point' was a dazzling statement of several ideas, so there was SUBSTANCE to be found here and such material would be best highlighted in-person as, if you've ever been so fortunate to actually see Kalonji perform 'To The Point' then you may share my opinion that it may be his single best song EVER in that format. CJ handed him his Tixx Riddim and Sizzla returned a shredded... mess.
{Note: Apparently this tune is no longer included on the digital version of "Taking Over", however, the disc remains readily available.... and it's all over YouTube as well}
8. 'Reach'
Must reign. Despite the fact that it takes several different routes to show it, what is at the heart of 'Reach' is quite clear. This tune is an inspirational one. It's about giving people that bit of POP they need to push further to go after the things that're important to them and, in that alone (and everything else it tries to do), it is well successful. With that being said, however, 'Reach' is also a praise. It's a social commentary. It's a celebration of music. It is solidly all of these things and you can pick either one out (and probably a few others) and it thrives, again, on that specific front.
There's also the issue of the music on this one which is somewhat complex and damn near melancholy but, ultimately, LOVELY! Fully, it makes for one of the single greatest experiences on "Taking Over", whether we realize it or not.
9. 'Whirlwind'
Keep the fire burning. Sizzla channels the great Marcus Garvey via 'Whirlwind' and pays him tremendous homage in the process. This tune has always had an almost primal vibes to it to my opinion. What I mean is that, as you progess through it, 'Whirlwind' becomes CLEARLY less situated and rehearsed and what we hear are flames from the core of Kalonji. The pattern is disrupted (though never quite grounded in the first place) and what we get is straight-forward, grimey, toiling Sizzla Kalonji and with a purpose and intent. One of the best songs on this album whether we realized it or not.
10. 'Profile'
Immaculate. Unlike 'Fare', the next track and that monster four songs on, 'Profile' isn't a love song at all, really. This is the woman-buttressing piece which exists only to uplift women of African descent. What really strikes me about 'Profile' is that it doesn't play things entirely safe. Things get a little edgy at times but such things happen in everyday conversation and approaches. You talk to people like they're people; so, to that extent, the song comes well rooted in reality. Furthermore, the song also takes the next step of speaking to men (and other women, and whoever is listening) about the importance of treating women right and showing respect where it is due.
"Yow she want one of Jah Rastaman fi keep her up
No teach her no fuckery and later on, you beat her up"
11. 'Kebra Negas'
Alpha & Omega. Extending on 'Profile' from right before it, 'Kebra Negas' also sets a course and drops anchor on uplifting women and the relationships we ("we" being WHOEVER and "relationships" being of all types) have with them. The change here, however, is that 'Kebra Negas' is FAR more broad than what comes just ahead of it. This one has a much more general take and, delightfully, attempts to construct a NATURAL bridge that in supporting women is also supporting positivity and good works - as His Majesty intends.
12. 'Naw Shield Corruption'
Open up your eyes! Somewhat reminiscent of 'Higher Heights' in terms of its pacing (and only in its pacing) and WHOLLY emblematic of Sizzla's more Dancehall centered style around the turn of the century, for me at least, 'Naw Shield Corruption' may just be the most overlooked and underrated song on the whole of "Taking Over". It wouldn't do much outside of its presence here but.... DAMN! If you were living a positive and productive life and doing what you were supposed to do - you were just fine. If not - 'Naw Shield Corruption' was damn near lethal as Sizzla turned up every stone in every corner of the planet to look for corruption and those who aided in it going forward. BOOM!
13. 'King Taco'
Incient king.
"Yuh seh you a di nail
Seh you a di sledge
Seh you a di hammer
Seh you a di wedge
Seh you tough like seal when you did melt like lead"
'King Taco' was lyrically PERFECT. I hadn't heard this tune in quite some time but when I started putting this together, I remembered the melody in my head and started singing a b i of what I remembered of the words and it started to come back to me. When you dig into the body of the actual song... I don't want to overrate it but, strictly as a praise, 'King Taco' has to sit amongst the best put together of them all. It also comes off SO DAMN EFFORTLESSLY (more on that in closing) and, as the joint second longest tune on "Taking Over", 'King Taco' is nearly as EXHAUSTIVE (and I mean that in a great way) as it is brilliant as Kalonji puts forth an effort fit for The King.
14. 'Hold Her In My Arms'
Precious jewel. Don't take this literally but 'Hold Her In My Arms' is kinda filthy. There is something almost guiltily intoxicating about this song and there always has been. It is the definitive love-ish song on "Taking Over" and, without question, one of the finest of Sizzla's entire career. It is surprisingly DARK and HEAVY as well - vibes you just do not encounter on or associate with love songs ever. Melodic, lyrically top tier (if you REALLY pay attention) and just a stunning track, 'Hold Her In My Arms' was and remains IMMACULATE.... in a grungy kind of way.
15. 'Streetside Knowledge'
GROW! On one hand is the knowledge you gain out of studying and going to school, being educated and then there's what you gain from a more general life-experience. Though I'm certain Kalonji is a supporter of the greater importance of both, it is the latter that is focused upon on the scathing 'Streetside Knowledge'. One of the most interesting aspects of this tune is the fact that it sits as one of the most tangible on the album and, perhaps, one of the most tangible that he's done to date. There isn't a ton of spirituality involved with the building of 'Streetside Knowledge' which is what you would hope and expect to be the case. Such a background makes it entirely more transferable and relatable to by the masses as Professor Collins delivers a lesson on everyday for You, Me, Him and Her.
Synopsis
I want to take a quick look at the 'state of the times' around "Taking Over", at least in the form of some of its immediate 'siblings'. If you go a year or two in either direction, you'll run into other similarly vibed Xterminator produced sets such as 'Words Of Truth", "Royal Son Of Ethiopia", "Bobo Ashanti" and a personal favourite of mine, "Rastafari Teach I Everything" (which was also released in 2001). While you could well make the case that none of them rise to the level of "Praise Ye Jah" (and they don't. That's fair) -- generally regarded as THE best album produced by the duo and no worst than Sizzla's second best album overall --given the sheer amount of work done and its quality, you could also point to that stretch being the PRIME of Sizzla's work alongside Fatis and Xterminator. It was heavier on the Dancehall side, it was decidedly modern and, for the most part, it was absolutely gorgeous. The level of writing and the delivery of the material was SO high and I'm not going to name any names, but if you listen to what SOME of Sizzla's peers were doing at the same time in terms of combining Roots messaging with Dancehall sound.... there is no comparison. At that point, Sizzla was miles ahead of them.
In terms of "Taking Over" specifically, while you could rank it in any place you like in terms of the aforementioned other albums of its day, for me "Taking Over" was spectacular and has aged incredibly well. From its packaged presentation (courtesy of Chris Chin and VP Records. In my opinion it is very subtly one of the best album displays they've ever created (various spellings of Fatis notwithstanding)) being this ultra-cool and understated cover, ahead of the explosions that the listener was in store for - "Taking Over" hit all of the notes that it needed to in order to cross the bridge from being just a GOOD album, to being a GREAT one. Again, I'd like to pay respect to the general quality of Sizzla's work at the time and just how damn fortunate we are that he was as [overly] prolific as he was because we have such powerful examples of, in my opinion, THE single most talented voice Reggae music has ever produced when at his best. "Taking Over" was both a thundering and downright FROSTY example of this. It was also a BONA FIDE, MODERN REGGAE CLASSIC!
Okay so, we have a couple of ANVILS this week and the first up is from someone who many would already deem a legend, the great Dezarie (who is, apparently, going by Dezarie Phoenix these days), who has struck with her first video clip EVER for the song 'Hold On'. The songs ranks as one of the biggest winners from her 2025 set, "Guardian". I actually remember a couple of other VI standouts, Vaughn Benjamin & Ras Batch, going fairly deep into their careers as well before doing a music video, so perhaps this comes as no surprise. Regardless of the circumstances surrounding its creation, the visual side of 'Hold On', unsurprisingly, matches the beauty of its audio. It's an amazing song with an amazing video from a very powerful human being.
'We Are One' by Arkaingelle & Fyahstone [Saj Moor Dub]
Next in is another big winner, courtesy a pair of old favourites of ours. The next [regular] review you'll read on these pages (there's an irregular one coming ahead of that) features work by Guyanese chanter, Arkaingelle who, as I have mentioned in the past, once made one of the greatest songs I have ever heard in my entire life (I'll remind you of that in the review). Now, Arkaingelle links up with a producer that we're well familiar with from out of Morocco by the name of Saj Moor Dub. You may recall his work on a label by the name of West Coast Studios, specifically (PROBABLY), with Ras Attitude. Back in 2014, WCS would set out the LOVELY Kif Kaf Riddim which would include offerings from the likes of Attitude, Perfect Giddimani and even Ras Indio. Also on the Kif Kaf was a tune called 'Rastaman Ah Chant' ["Kill dem wid di love, light shine so bright. Nyabinghi, no time fi no rewrite"].... from Arkaingelle, so this isn't the first time artist and producer have worked together and it doesn't sound like it from the level of musical chemistry we hear on 'We Are One'. Also present is gifted Trini veteran Fyahstone, with whom you are probably most likely to be familiar via his fairly recent work with Lion's Flow Productions, however (small world), about a decade ago, Fyahstone and the Arkaingelle made a song together by the name of 'Lion Can't Cool' so, again, to the surprise of absolutely no one given how well they sound together, the two vocalists on 'We Are One' also have some history with one another. Hopefully all three have some future together as well as 'We Are One' is excellent.
"We are all children of The Most High
Put away your sadness, don't cry
So stand up tall, be wise and use your third eye
Rastafari go before I"
The song is a unity piece and I do these things and attempt to place meaning into words but, delightfully, that is done for us here. Watch the video to the end and you will see the lovely message at its end. Hopefully there is much more activity from Saj Moor Dub as the maestro has relocated to California and placing himself amongst all of the seemingly never-ending Reggae activity in the area.
'Fling It Up' featuring Davido by Machel Montano [Monk Music]
Didn't take very long to get into the visuals for Machel Montano's 'Fling It Up' (which are exactly what you would expect them to be) before I... suddenly had no problem with it, despite it seeming quite random.The tune is probably coming up on completing its first year in existence and here's a video! Why? Who cares! The actual song, which features Davido, is CANDY, it is GORGEOUS Groovy Soca with a little KICK to it (check the surge about two minutes in) and from, arguably, still the biggest single name in the genre and on his own Monk Music label.
'Ginger' by Sean Paul [Dutty Rock Production]
Dancehall superstar, Sean Paul, may have a legit hit on his hands courtesy of his new tune, 'Ginger', which is outstanding and very OPEN as is Paul's tendency (at his absolute best, he's capable of making songs which fit entirely in Dancehall but are as accessible as anything that you will hear). 'Ginger' isn't quite there but I do expect it do some real damage. The video? The video for 'Ginger' is Ai'd to the gills and make no mistake about it: This video is creepy as hell.
'We Da Do It' by Boyzie [Wetty Beatz]
And lastly this week is a tune that is, easily, amongst the finest that I've heard from Soca in all of 2025, the delightfully over-chaotic 'We Da Do It' by Grenadian supernova, Boyzie. I've said it many times before, Boyzie is one of the 'best kept secrets' in all of Soca and that isn't true from the standpoint of actual fans of the genre but if you're more on the casual side, it's fairly likely, in my opinion, that you probably don't know who he is at all. Be that the case, now is a PERFECT time to become acquainted as he drops one of his finest efforts in years with 'We Da Do It'. Great workout song.
{Note: I don't know which label actually released this song. I know WB was involved, so I gave them the credit. Thank you and have a nice day}
