Samory I teams up with Kabaka Pyramid, Capleton for ‘Wrath’
First ‘solo debut album’ post ‘Black Gold’ coming November
Published:Tuesday | August 22, 2023 | 11:47 AMYasmine Peru/Senior Gleaner Writer
Roots reggae singer on a mission, Samory I, has teamed up with Grammy Award winner Kabaka Pyramid and the Prophet Capleton for a single titled Wrath, which is spitting ton loads of reality mixed with anger.
“The youth dem not taking no form of foolishness from the Government, and dem ready to rebel,” was Samory I’s summation of the track during an interview in which he was his usual calm, collected self.
Sharing how the collab came about, Samory said that he and Kabaka have known each other for a long time, so doing a song with him was just a natural flow “and Capleton a di general”.
Wrath opens with Kabaka Pyramid’s perceptive, rapid-fire exposé on everything, from corruption to the state of the nation, family life and even girls’ desire to dress up in ‘batty riders’. “ Why yuh think dem orderless because the youth dem fatherless. Nah have nuh discipline dem more unruly dan Popcaan. I guess the system getting harder, yes issues whe dem nah address.”
Wrath received 10 thousand streams in the first hours of its release on August 18, a testament to the power of the three heavy-hitting artistes on one track produced by Winta James.
James, in a press release, discussed the making of the song, noting, “The aggressive energy of this track definitely called for a similarly aggressive vocal and lyrical delivery. Kabaka heard the beat and immediately did his verse in one take. That set the tone for Samory’s chorus, which adds a melodic kinda menace that is equal parts defiant and ominous. And it was an easy choice to reach out to Capleton for a verse on a song that was inspired, in part, by an album he did for Def Jam in the ‘90s, which put some of his greatest tunes on some equally great hip-hop beats.”
Hard on the heels of the single was the announcement of Samory I’s newest album, Strength, which will be released on November 3 via Overstand Entertainment/Easy Star Records. Wrath is one of the songs on the new album.
A press release stated that Strength – which, by the way, is named after Samory’s three-year-old son – is the singer “solo debut album”. And this is where things get interesting.
Samory I referred to Strength as his sophomore album, adding that his debut was Black Gold, which was released in 2017 and produced by RoryStoneLove.
A quick Google search showed that Black Gold was just as much about the producer as it was about the artiste. The title on the album is RoryStoneLove Presents Samory I – Black Gold, and there is a picture of Samory on the cover. However, even on streaming services, it is the producer who gets the props, rather than the artiste. On Amazon Music, for example, the title says Black Gold Rorystonelove feat. Samory I. A former sound system selector on Stone Love, Rory Gilligan goes by the name RoryStoneLove and has made his mark as a noteworthy producer.
“We are sorting that out,” Samory I’s manager, Bridgett Anderson, said when contacted for clarification about whether Strength is Samory’s first or second album.
The completion of the 11-track Strength, Samory shared, was his focus this year and he was happy that the project is now at the mixing stage. The album features guest appearances by Lila Iké, Jesse Royal, and Mortimer.
“Right now, life is amazing. No more late nights in the studio. Sometimes you in studio and you lose all track of time ... and I even had my son with me some of the sessions,” he said.
He cited that as one of the reasons why he was absent from the European festival circuit this year, but already, there is a winter tour lined up, starting in February 2024.