Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge have teamed up once again and have shared their latest single, a 4 minute orchestral jazz offering called “Black Beacon.” According to Ali & Adrian, “Black Beacon,” is a call to action for our brothers and sisters to unite against police brutality, inequality and social injustice. Like our jazz forefathers of the civil rights movement, we’re using our horns for unity.”
The two composers began working together in 2013 on the critically acclaimed Souls of Mischief album and they also worked together on the score for Marvel’s Luke Cage. They will be releasing their highly anticipated debut album called The Midnight Hour which showcases the duo’s masterful song writing capabilities.
The album has features from some of the most celebrated names in contemporary hip-hop and R&B including CeeLo Green, Raphael Saadiq, Marsha Ambrosius, Bilal, Eryn Allen Kane, Karolina, Questlove and more. Adrian and Ali began working on the album back in 2013, but they put the project aside as they started their work on Luke Cage. The Midnight Hour is a soul/jazz/hip-hop album which as an ode to jazz and funk creators of the past. The Midnight Hour features thoughtful hip hop, a full orchestra, a complete jazz rhythm sections and was all laid down on analog tape.
The albums lead single is called “Questions” and a portion of the song was sampled by Kendrick Lamar on his album To Pimp Butterfly. The song originally began as a demo with the duo partnering up with CeeLo Green. The 20 track double album will be released on Linear Labs and distributed digitally by INgrooves and vinyl will be distributed by Traffic Entertainment on June 8, 2018. For more information you can go here.
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