K’Naan
Album: Troubadour
Release Date: February 24, 2009

review:
The name alone conjures up images of unbridled destruction, merciless warlords and ruthless terror. A place where nobody—children, the elderly, religious figures—is safe from the atrocities of war, and where the idea of "childhood," where 8-year olds handle AK-47s like toys, exists in chronological terms alone. When Forbes magazine recently unveiled their "Most Dangerous Destinations," Somalia, above Iraq and Afghanistan, topped the list.

But it’s also "The Nation of Poets," where a poem can both inspire peace and end wars. Where every weekend, regardless of the climate, one can find a play or concert at a local theatre.

Growing up, it was both of these Somalias that informed musician/emcee K’naan Warsame, whose sophomore album Troubadour is released this September. The grandson of Haji Mohamed, one of Somalia’s most famous poets, and nephew of famed Somali singer Magool, the emcee is creating his own musical path through reggae, funk, pop, soul and, above all, hip-hop.

Recorded primarily in Kingston, Jamaica at the legendary Tuff Gong studios and Bob Marley’s home studio, Troubadour is a hip-hop album like no other. With contributions by Damian Marley, Mos Def, Chubb Rock, Vernon Reid and Adam Levine (Maroon 5), K’naan successfully blends samples and live instrumentation for a sound that’s both rooted in traditional African melodies and the classic hip-hop tradition.

It would be easy to brand K’naan with the "political rapper" tag. But that’d be both easy and disingenuous. K’naan’s lyrics lie in stark contrast to emcees that use their medium as a pulpit to promote their beliefs. "My job is to write just what I see/So a visual stenographer is who I be," he rhymes in "I Come Prepared." Doubtless, K’naan is not without his opinions but songwriting always comes before sermons.

On Troubadour, events like these don’t need to be glorified or exaggerated for the sake of art. "I think there are some people that are struggling in hoods [in Canada and America], but it is so much harder and so much more violent [in Somalia]," says K’naan. "If you want to be like, `I’m from the hood. We got it rough. We got gats,’ I think you should know the alternative exists. I’m speaking in the same language of hip-hop which decidedly speaks about rough neighborhoods. So if there is a place for rough neighborhoods, then here comes the Mother of Rough Neighborhoods."

Troubadour represents the sum of these experiences and more. Having spent the better part of the last two years on the road, soaking in everything from Bob Dylan to Fela Kuti to Talib Kweli, Troubadour is the sonic document of an artist who has a lot to share, but clearly has a lot more in the coming years. For anyone who’s said that hip-hop has nothing left to say, Troubadour proves that it all depends on where you look.

Track listing

1. ABC’s
2. Dreamer
3. I Come Prepared
4. Take A Minute
5. Somalia
6. Bang Bang
7. Fire in Freetown
8. If Rap Gets Jealous
9. Does It Really Matter
10. 15 Minutes
11. People Like Me

No profanity, or inaproppriate remarks.