(1888PressRelease)
October 21, 2007 - The “Phaze 2” release will also be the debut for Oakland, California-based spoken word/hip hop group Sound Of Urban Life Soldiers or S.O.U.L.S., the group’s acronym and what their bulging fan base refers to them as. The group members and songwriters consist of poets Raquel Ramsey, Keith Thompson, President L. Davis and rap/hip hop artist Keldamuzik along with songstress Shavone, and they have a unique blend that’s “upbeat funk with jazz, hip hop, R&B, and Caribbean influences”.
According to label owner and producer Bill Jackson regarding Phaze 2, he says “just as the genesis of the original CD was my pilgrimage to Senegal’s Goree Island in Africa, this music is born from the “compelling social concerns that continue in America.”
The lead single “Squash It!” featuring Keldamuzik with guest hip hop artist D. La Brie and guest vocalist Rufus Wonder certainly supports that theme as it addresses the grave problem of violence in America’s urban cities, and from early indications this seems to be the song that makes S.O.U.L.S. a major player in education music and the song a part of the solution!
While there are lighter more playful moments on the CD as with All The Above that again features Keldamuzik and guest hip hop artist Lingo Starr at the mic running down a love and relationship theme, there is the Caribbean-flavored (reggae) I Can with vocalist Shavone delivering a very tender love song with an almost dancehall track. The jazz lover isn’t forgotten here with the contemporary track The Man Upstairs with its hip hop /trip hop feeling and a scorching tenor sax solo from guest artist Ben Ball.
All three poets are full of fire and earth moving emotion here addressing issues from fatherhood to the piece about men’s rites of passage from President Davis and the role of men addressed by Keith Thompson, while Raquel Ramsey delivers supremely and passionately with a piece titled Connections.
Jazz Funk Hip HoPoetry Phaze 2 is a well-balanced, well-crafted, and cleverly-written collection of urban life experiences and feelings delivered with the often pulsating bass line that locks everything in place and drives it home. This will no doubt be a radio, retail and down loading favorite!!
