Germany

Berlin rapper JuJu Rogers presents his highly anticipated sophomore LP „40 Acres N Sum Mula“ feat Sampa the Great and productions by Farhot (Isaiah Rashad, Talib Kweli), Like (the producer behind Kendrick Lamar’s „Sing About Me”), Crada (Drake, Kid Cudi) and more...Coming a long way - from his widely acclaimed debut (“Although we don’t usually bestow the ‘future classic’ title to an album (...) we are just ready to call it what it is!”; Music is my Sanctuary) „From The Life Of A Good For Nothing“, supporting DMV's veteran Oddisee on tour throughout Europe, being the 2nd artist to ever be featured on COLORS, the successful Bluestaeb collabo „LIT – Lost In Translation“ and his regular appearance at Splash Festival - JuJu Rogers teams up with Jakarta Records again to finally return to the big screen presenting his highly anticipated 2nd LP „40 Acres N Sum Mula“ providing nothing but bangers with an attitude and bringing back that ‘Real Shit’!The Schweinfurt born and bi-lingual & multi-culturally raised JuJu Rogers comes from an army family. His father, a GI who owns an extensive Soul and Jazz collection of records and a German mother with Austrian roots. After moving to Berlin in 2012 he soon set his mark in the local scene by joining the group Man of Booom. His solo debut „From The Life Of A Good-For-Nothing“ was released by Jakarta Records (The Berlin based label behind critically acclaimed releases by artists such as Anderson .Paak, Kaytranada, Mura Masa, Akua Naru or Ta-Ku) and displayed himself as a searching soul & Eichendorff fan in the most lyrical sense. The Coming-Of-Age-Story behind it oscillates between capitalist bottom lines and free creativity as higher ground.JuJu has no problems telling it like it is: "After talking about depression, temptation, the craving for money in a capitalist world with all its possible consequences, after asking questions of identity with the clear answer: "Babylon" represents the outlook and possible perspective, the break away moment of the album. It's a song of strength and progress. It also creates a very positive vibration as the last song of the album which made a lot of sense to me as the whole album holds a more mystical vibe to it.“The new Album “40 Acres N Sum Mula” unifies the mind state of an Afro-German with the power of observation with German political landscape of Berlin. Heavy sampled beats from his debut album are replaced by contemporary musical landscapes, productions by outstanding musicians and producers from all over the world.JuJu Rogers about his album title: “»40 Acres N Sum Mula«! — Forty acres and a mule refers to Special Field Orders No. 15, a promise made by the United States government for agrarian reform to aid formerly enslaved black farmers. Approved by president Abraham Lincoln, the field orders were written 1865, and specifically allotted each family a plot of land no larger than 40 acres (16 ha) plus a mule for the agrarian reform effort. I changed »a mule« into »sum Mula« in order to place the legitimate struggle for equal rights and reparations into the context of our current capitalist world and underline the historic connection to the very beginning of today’s society.Sound, lyrics and vibrations on this album represent a mixture of ancestral spirit and contemporary characteristics and lead you through the self-reflecting and rebellious thoughts of a black man born and raised in Germoney.” - JuJu Rogers.

After being blown away by a few tunes - probably just as you will be after listening to this - Samy Ben Redjeb travelled to the infamous capital city of Somalia in November of 2016, making Analog Africa the first music label to set foot in Mogadishu.On his arrival in Somalia Samy began rifling through piles of cassettes and listening to reel-to-reel tapes in the dusty archives of Radio Mogadishu, looking for music that 'swam against the current'.The stars were aligned: an uncovered and unmarked pile of discarded recordings was discovered in a cluttered corner of the building. Colonel Abshir - the senior employee and protector of Radio Mogadishu's archives - clarified that the pile consisted mostly of music nobody had manage to identify, or music he described as being 'mainly instrumental and strange music'. At the words 'strange music' Samy was hooked, the return flight to Tunisia was cancelled.The pile turned out to be a cornucopia of different sounds: radio jingles, background music, interludes for radio programmes, television shows and theatre plays. There were also a good number of disco tunes, some had been stripped of their lyrics, the interesting parts had been recorded multiple times then cut, taped together and spliced into a long groovy instrumental loop. Over the next three weeks, often in watermelon-, grapefruit-juice and shisha-fuelled night-time sessions behind the fortified walls of Radio Mogadishu, Samy and the archive staff put together Mogadisco: Dancing Mogadishu, 1974-1991.Like everywhere in Africa during the 1970s, both men and women sported huge afros, bell-bottom trousers and platform shoes. James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and The Temptations' funk were the talk of the town.In 1977, Iftin Band were invited to perform at the Festac festival in Lagos where they represented Somalia at the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture. Not only did they come back with an award but they also returned with Afrobeat. At the same time Bob Marley was busy kick-starting reggae-mania in Somalia, which became such a phenomenon that even the police and military bands began playing it. Some say that it was adopted so quickly because of the strong similarities with the traditional beat from the western region of Somalia, called Dhaanto.But then suddenly the trousers got tighter as the disco tsunami hit the country. Michael Jackson appeared with a new sound that would revolutionise Somalia's live music scene. You couldn't walk the streets of Mogadishu without seeing kids trying to moonwalk.'Somalia had several nightclubs and although most use DJs to play records, some hotels like Jubba, Al-Uruba and Al Jazeera showcased live bands such as Iftin and Shareero' - so ran a quote from a 1981 article about the explosion of Mogadishu's live music scene. The venues mentioned in that article were the luxury hotels that had been built to cover the growing demands of the tourist industry.Mogadisco was not Analog Africa's easiest project. Tracking down the musicians - often in exile in the diaspora - to interview them and gather anecdotes of golden-era Mogadishu has been an undertaking that took three years. Tales of Dur-Dur Band's kidnapping, movie soundtracks recorded in the basements of hotels, musicians getting electrocuted on stage, others jumping from one band to another under dramatic circumstances, and soul singers competing against each other, are all stories included in the massive booklet that accompanies the compilation - adorned with no less then 50 pictures from the '70s and '80s.As Colonel Abshir Hashi Ali, chief don at the Radio Mogadishu archive - someone who once wrestled a bomber wielding an unpinned hand-grenade to the floor - put it: 'I have dedicated my life to this place. I'm doing this so it can get to the next generation; so that the culture, the heritage and the songs of Somalia don't disappear.'

The official re-release of this mystic slow motion synth pop tune by Ghia – a little known small home recording/studio project from Bielefeld, Germany. Limited to only 300 copies.Ghia only released two singles while they existed and was originally founded in 1983 by old friends Lutz Boberg and Frank Simon. Around 1985 they started to work with singer Lisa Ohm, who they met through a former teacher that was working as an engineer at the local Cottage studio. Boberg and Simon were composing the songs together and also wrote the lyrics. Lutz Boberg, who was trained on classical piano, played the keyboards, including bass. Frank Simon was more about the technical aspects as well as being a proficient guitarist. Their home studio consisted of a Yamaha DX7, a Roland synthesizer, a sampler and a drum machine. Simon was also trying to create a new sound by building his own effect processors. “The analogue effects already had turned mainstream and sounded boring while the newer digital effects sounded aweful to me.”, he recalls. Hence, Simon invested about half a year to develop his own signal processing system to create the FX sounds he had in mind.The keyboards and guitars on “What’s Your Voodoo?” were passed through that unique processor of course. Combined with a deep synth bassline and the exceptional haunting vocals by Lisa Ohm it gives the track all the magic the title implies. The exclusive B-side track of the single is “Keep Your House In Disorder” which previously could only be found on a few handmade demo cassettes as as well as a scarce CD compilation. It effortlessly brings together pop and modern soul vibes.Almost completely overlooked at the time when it was released, we are happy to shed new light on the long forgotten Ghia project. Both tracks should appeal to cosmic and synth pop lovers as well as late soul collectors

Amsterdam-based Altın Gün are essential interpreters of the Anatolian rock and folk legacy and a leading voice in the emergent global psych-rock scene. Following on from their hugely successful album “Gece,” Altın Gün returns with a new 7” single: “Gelin Halayı” b/w “Dıv Dıv” “Gelin Halayı” is the ultimate wedding party song. There's a specific dance called "halay" which is done at special occasions, such as weddings. “Gelin Halayı” means “the bride's dance/halay” “Dıv Dıv” is more of a love song, the singer telling how sweeter than honey their lover is

Matasuna Records is thrilled to reissue another musical jewel from Peru on vinyl for the first time. The songs were recorded by the band Bossa 70 and released on a 7inch EP and the self-titled album in 1970. Both are much sought-after collector's items and impossible to find. The songs were transferred from the original master tapes and got a new mastering.Nilo Espinoza Vascones or better known under his artist name Nilo Espinosa is without doubt a Peruvian saxophone and flute legend. After a classical musical education he entered the music scene in the early 1960s. In 1966 he founded the band Los Hilton's with some of the best Peruvian musicians including the gifted piano player Otto de Rojas. In 1967 they recorded the first and only LP of the group, which was released in a small edition in Peru.Their concerts were more and more influenced by Jazz and Bossa Nova, so in 1968 they changed the band's name to Bossa 70. In the record label's office Nilo met the Afro-Peruvian Carmen Rosa Basurco, who also loved Bossa Nova and could sing in Portuguese and English. From then on she was the main singer of the band.Bossa 70 recorded four songs for a 7-inch EP in an edition of only 100 copies, which was given away for promotional purposes at concerts and to friends & family. In 1970 they recorded their self-titled LP which reflected a mixture of Bossa Nova, Latin Jazz and Funk. The label pressed only 300 copies, which were sold out very quickly. This LP was the band's only album and is a rare piece of Peruvian music history.Si Voce Pensa on the A-side is a great cover version of the same named song by famous Brazilian musician Roberto Carlos from 1968. Bossa 70 adapted the song for the dancefloor, which is driven by an uplifting rhythm and the expressive voice of the singer. Of course, the great interplay of the other musicians must not go unmentioned. A fantastic track that will heat up everywhere!Birimbao on the flipside is another fantastic Brazilian cover version. The song was written in the 1960s by Baden Powell, one of the most important Brazilian guitarists and one of the pioneers of Bossa Nova. Bossa 70 set their own stamp with a new instrumentation with brass, wah wah guitars, piano, flute parts and trumpet solos. The percussion section is also a brilliant backup for this one. Another winner!

Koralle is the new moniker of Lorenzo Nada, a musician, beatmaker and producer from Bologna, Italy. Nada is best known for his project Godblesscomputers, which kicked off a couple of years ago while he was living in Berlin. After releasing four albums / EPs and touring Europe with a four piece band Nada is heading into a new direction as Koralle. Firmly rooted in hip-hop Koralle is taking his jazz crates and field recordings to the studio. Equipped with an array of synths, rhodes and bass he creates deeply textures tracks that touch mind, body and soul. Early 2019 Koralle signed with Melting Pot Music where he released his first first project “Collecting Vol.1”. The 6-track EP was an instant success amongst beatlovers worldwide and has accumulated more than 2 million streams to date. “Collecting Vol.2” Koralle is a seamless continuation of Vol.1 only better! “Collecting Vol.2” will be available on all digital platforms. We are also releasing a limited edition LP, simply titled “Collecting” which summarizes both EP's on one record.„Collecting it’s an eyes closed journey throughout memories, a collection of some everyday little stories, still paying a tribute to my hip hop musical background. Every beat is like an object found at the bottom of the sea, every sample emerges from my record collection, turning into something new, like corals of the Ocean.“ as Koralle writes in the linernotes.

Louisville’s finest, Beatmaker Dr. Dundiff presents his very first band project called SGJAZZ… After last year’s very successful collaboration “Cool” with Otis Jr. and his standalone project “Muneybeats”, Dr. Dundiff and Jakarta Records team up once more for the beatmaker’s next project called SGJAZZ, a supergroup formed and crafted by Louisville’s finest musicians.Dr. Dundiff (done different) is a Hip-Hop/Neo-Soul producer based out of Louisville, KY. Producing music since 2010, Dundiff has released a lot of music. Most known for his ongoing collaboration with Otis Junior and their their debut EP “1moment2another” on Jakarta Records receiving wide daytime airplay and recognition from French tastemaker Radio NOVA, as well as 1.500.000 Mio. Streams via Spotify.SGJAZZ however is a Neo-Soul/Jazz project: All single members and particpants play together as well as they have their own projects. The group spent off days at Dr. Dundiff’s studio in Louisville, KY, playing around and creating the first foundations of the record. Idris Frederick laid down multiple chord progressions over a course of a few days. Dundiff then chopped and arranged these progressions and played drums over them. From there on everyone else wrote their parts to rest of the music. This process was quite quick and efficient and the album was recorded within a few months already. Dundiff then reached out to up and coming vocalists J.Lamotta and longtime collaborator K.Raydio to each write to a song. Though this album is primarily instrumental, these two features further establish the vibe SGJAZZ effortlessly creates.