Here is the track-by-track album review for Distant Relatives. If you haven’t gotten it already, go pick it up. It is definitely one that is needed in the hip hop community.

As We Enter: While the intro to the album is nice, it definitely lacks the depth that the rest of the songs on the album hold. With that said, it is understood why this was chosen as the first official single for the album. Nas and Damien Marley tag team throughout the entire track, setting up the listener for what is sure to be a powerful and impactful album. The two blend nicely and although it may not be the deepest track on the album, there are still a few jewels to be found in the lines. To start off, it gets a 4.

Tribes at War (feat. K’Naan): This is a great track in which each artists takes a different perspective in this war of tribes. Nas, whom has the first verse, takes the historical route and explains why we came to this point; explaining that we were forced out of Africa and a people that used to be happy and had a sense of community now go to war with each other, whether it be Africans with Arabs or a black man in America against his own kind of monetary and material values. K’Naan holds down the second verse describing how the five steps of war lead to even brothers and comrades killing one another; 1) nation vs. the world, 2) clan vs. the nation, 3) family vs. the clan, 4) brothers vs. the family, 5) brother vs. one another. Finally, Damien handles the last verse by listing off a number of specific reasons people go to war, including money, land, oil, God, food, gang colors, and more. By covering all of the aspects, it is the hope of the artists that people will start to realize how unnecessary the senseless violence really is. This song deserves a 5.

Strong Will Continue: While Jr. Gong is the one that shines throughout the first three verses (there are four), Nas steals the show with his final verse. Although in almost in any other case making this type of song more personal than a general message would take away from the song, it seems like Nas just let go off all his stress and frustrations surrounding his domestic disputes with Kelis and it is undeniable how crazy the verse is. That verse aside, the song serves as a real inspiration and should be the theme for almost anybody that needs the extra push to get by. A great concept and great verses from both artists earn this a 5.

Leaders (feat. Stephen Marley): This is another great song that salutes those whom aren’t necessarily leaders in the eyes of America or the mainstream, but those who appeal to “the conscious…the martyrs/the hell on Earth pompous.” In the first verse, Nas explains who his “leader” was growing up; the street-smart hustler whom not only had all of the flashy material items, but also had the smarts and instinct to survive on the street. That is who he learned from and who kids on the block could idolize. Not only does Nas surprise the listener with the description of whom the leader is, but in the third verse he also describes all of the people that a leaders appeals to and the characteristics they possess. Marley, in second verse, speaks from the viewpoint of somebody looking for and up to a leader. By doing this, hopefully people will begin to realize that they do have the impact on those that look to and chose to follow. Marley talks about how every move the leader makes is made by the follower and how every opinion held by the leader is now the opinion of the follower. With this in mind, we need to ensure that we are doing the right things so that those that are looking up to us and following us will do the right things, as well. This song will receive another 5.

Friends: This song serves as a warning in the dual sense; the first being a warning to everybody to take heed to who is in their circle and separate true friends from those who are only there to reap the benefits of success. The second is warning of those who aren’t good friends to change their ways. Jr. Gong really shows out on this track and delivers the message in a great way. Nas takes another personal approach, but uses his situation as an example of what good and bad friendships look like. Falling just short of a 5, it gets a 4.75.

Count Your Blessings: This has to be my favorite song from the album. Nas holds down all three verses while Marley does an incredible job on the hook. Each time the hook comes on, the lyrics are altered slightly, so it actually gives him a greater presence although he is only heard during the chorus. Either way, the track is amazing and it is a great message. So often people want to focus only on the negative and negate all of the things they have to be thankful for. If we could start focusing on the things that we do have, our spirits will be uplifted and we will be better off in the end. My only fear is that people will hear this and feel as though it doesn’t relate to them because they do have it hard and will in turn miss the point of the song. I can only hope that is not the case and that his reaches the people. This has to receive a 5.

Dispear: This is a deep and powerful song once analyzed and broken down. Not only is there a lot of knowledge in the hook, but the versus also break down the difference between the “masters” and the “masses,” suggesting that the masters use despair to rule over the masses while the masses need to use the spear to fight back (which is the reason the title of the song is spelled the way it is). It may not be the most sonically pleasing on the album, but it has much to offer. It will take a while to get everything out of the song it has to offer (I had to refer to the lyrics from the album artwork a few times), but once you do the song will represent even more than it does after the first listen. Very powerful song, it just may not as pleasing to the ear as the rest of them, so it gets a 4.5.

Promise Land (feat. Dennis Brown): This song finds Damien Marley, in the first verse, imaging Africa (the Promise Land) as if it were comparable to the United States. He imagines “California with Sunset Boulevard/Johannesburg would be Miami/Somalia like New York.” He gives these comparisons until he the end of the verse where he states that he could see everybody in Africa riding around just like they do here in the states and enjoying the Promise Land. His verse is a great one and really sets the tone for the rest of the track. In Nas’s verse, he pictures all of the these beautiful things as well, but also goes back to the historical perspective when Africa had many kingdoms and “the world was run by black men.” He also mentions the apocalypse and, I would assume, suggests that it is coming if we don’t do some work to restore the order we once had when Africa was the most powerful nation on Earth. Although everybody may not agree with the “back to Africa” mentality, there is no denying that its statement and sentiment is one that could give a lot of people the hope and courage they need. For this reason, it gets a 5.

In His Own Words (feat. Stephen Marley): This song is aimed at praising God (or in this case Jah) and to encourage those that are going through tough times to seek his guidance. It is informing people that Jah/God has told his people “in His own words” that he will show them the way and will lead them in the right direction. Nas and Marley both talk about hard times that they themselves or others have faced in the first two verses, but in the third verse, Nas does two things; 1) give warnings to “know-it all rappers” and tells them that they need to show many sides in their music (“pain, joy, fear, and love’) and 2) talks to God and questions why it is that Africans are faced with the horrible situations they are in. It is a very uplifting song that, at least for those that believe, should serve as another form of strength when they are feeling down. This is a 4.75.

Nah Mean: While the song starts off a little slow (at least in terms of content given everything that has presented to this point), it picks ups around the last two or three lines of Nas’s verse (which comes second). From that point on (there are two more; one from each artist), the song becomes more political and starts taking aim at the government’s lack of care and urgency for the places of despair and turmoil, the disconnect between the police and the community, and other issues surrounding inner-cities everywhere that need to be fixed. While not as deep as the most of the other songs, it is still a good fit on the album. It gets a 4.25.

Patience: If “Count Your Blessings” is my favorite song, this is an extremely close second. You will simply have to listen to the song to really grasp all of the potent statements and questions posed on the track, but basically the statement here is all of the contradictions and falsehoods that we have been told by scientists, doctors, theologians, philosophers, etc. for hundreds of years. Jr. Gong has the first two of three verses on the track and they are phenomenal. He challenges what we are learning (or even if we are learning as we grow), if we would now be able to survive all of what people survived back in the day (the example he gives is Africans fixing broken arms with dry mud), and why the greatest of minds still can’t figure out how the pyramids were built. This track should really make you think and open your mind to how advanced the African people were (and are) before they were stripped away from their homes and land. In his sole verse, Nas questions who wrote the Bible and Qur’an, who created words and numbers, and why we are being so detrimental to the Earth that we inhabit. His verse coupled with Marley’s first two make for an eye-opening song. The track gets a 5.

My Generation (feat. Lil Wayne & Joss Stone): This is a great song with hope for the future. Every artist attempts to uplift and try to spark inspiration into the listener. Damien Marley looks to encourage those going to school and getting an education and Nas defends the hip hop generation by attempting to explain what they are doing with the music as well as asks people to start making bold statements similar to Muhammad Ali. Finally, although I am very critical of him, I have to say that Lil Wayne had a very nice verse on this track. He didn’t focus on the punch lines and instead looked show the listeners that there is hope, using Obama as his prime example of change. The hook has kids (backed up by Joss Stone) singing that their generation will make a change. This song should truly inspire not only the current generation, but those coming up behind it. It gets another 5.

Africa Must Wake Up (feat. K’Naan): This is a direct attempt to not only get Africa the continent to wake up, but the people and descendants of Africa to wake up. The song mentions that we once were kings, but then asks what we are now. It is a great song to end the album with and it is my hope that people will start to realize the power they possess. Once we realize they greatness that we come from and how historically rich we and Africa are, we will begin to attempt to make some changes. It is a great sentiment and a great choice to put an end to an incredible album. A final 5.

I have to say that this album is amazing! The concept alone was great, but often times the material gets lost in the concept and the potential never really comes out in the music. That was not the case here and I am so glad that Nas and Damien made this happen. This is an album that should really open up people’s eyes and start to expose some truth. While you may not agree with every statement made on the album (that is not true for any album), there is no denying that the message they are trying to deliver is much needed. They touch on many different topics which we rarely see in hip hop (at least not this direct) and it was much needed. The production is also very nice throughout the album and it really gives an African feel and vibe to the entire project. Although this may not be a classic in the sense that we think of Illmatic or All Eyez On Me, the linking of these two great minds and the content that was placed inside this album is above much more than what we see on most albums. I don’t know if and when we will see another album of this nature, and given that, I would say that this album is  of classic nature and it does receive a 5!

What did you think about the album? Was it what you thought it would be? Did they not do enough for you? Is going to be too much for the masses? Let me hear it. Leave a comment and as always, you can e-mail at straightouttahiphop@gmail.com

Peace.