Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) will continue its “Respect the Classics” tribute to many of hip-hop’s finest with the vinyl release of rap icon Talib Kweli’s four historic Rawkus Records albums, including the underground classic, Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star, in a limited edition two-tone black on black picture disc, on September 16, 2014.
Established in 1996, Rawkus Records jump-started the careers of legendary artists such as Talib Kweli, Mos Def and Pharoahe Monch, among many others. Rawkus Records was founded by Brian Brater and Jarret Myer.
“I think Rawkus was respected by the artists but it wasn’t necessarily the destination label for the artists ‘cause they still harbored dreams of being appreciated by the bigger labels like Sony, Warner Bros. and Universal,” says John Forte, the company’s first A&R. “I think in the beginning the dream of a major label contract was a lot sexier than an independent label contract.”
Released on August 18, 1998, to critical acclaim, the title is a reference to the Black Star Line, a shipping company founded by Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey. The album deals with modern-day issues, philosophies and life in Brooklyn. The two MCs had planned to release solo albums around the same time, but decided instead to collaborate on a full-length album.
“It was the beginning of the independent Hip Hop artists being taken seriously,” says Talib Kweli, whose Black Star album with Mos Def was among the projects. Brooklyn, New York rapper continues, “Now you have a situation where if you’re signed you’re almost a joke—you have to be independent. Rawkus was the start of that.”
The album peaked at No. 53 on the Billboard Top 200 and No. 13 on the Hip-Hop Albums chart, but has become considered a classic since then.
The other Talib Kweli titles to be reissued on vinyl include Quality, The Beautiful Struggle and Train of Thought, the collaboration between Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek dubbed Reflection Eternal. Quality, originally released in 2002, has not been available in vinyl since 2006, and includes the singles that Kanye West-produced “Get By” and “Waiting for the DJ.” The Beautiful Struggle, which came out in 2004, has been out of print on vinyl since 2006, and includes the singles “I Try” (featuring MJB) and “Never Been in Love.” Train of Thought, released in 2000, produced the singles “The Blast” and “Love Language,” and hasn’t been available on vinyl since 2003.
“They had a great ear for talent: Company Flow, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Shabaam Sahdeeq. The Rawkus legacy has continued with where the careers of those artists have gone.” Adds Pharoahe Monch
