this intimate af ultra rare A-Alikes joint is so rare that I didn't even have a copy of this in any hard drive, no old stack of cds, nothing. Im right now in Miami for Basel 2016 and my homegirl Indo who live down here now,  pulls this little jewelry box, message in a bottle from the other side of this ocean that she had in her A-Alikes archive & been listening to for more than a decade. Some shit we recorded so long ago that I can't even remember where we lived at the time but I remember word for word cuz I meant every word extra real. S/O to the homie for holding' this one in the stash  for us. 

#citytrynaswallowme soon come

Album

WIC (Women in Crisis) by A-Alikes

To say “art imitates life” would be a cliché, but rightfully so. In these unprecedented times NE$$ x Baby J bring a new project “21st Century Blues” which paints a picture of the times we live in. Written and produced remotely during the COVID-19 lockdown, between the US and UK, the music is an expression of systematic oppression and institutionalized racism faced by Black people in America.
 
Unpacking themes of street life, police brutality, poverty, and more, rapper NE$$ (Weekend Money, A-Alikes) paints the harsh realities of life on the edge of society in America while Baby J (Amy Winehouse, Plan B, Mark Ronson, India Irie, Skinnyman, Dead Prez) sets a broken dystopian scene with his production. 
 
The music is not designed for the radio, the club or to fit with a current trend– it just is. 
 
The first two tracks ‘Rona’ and ‘Third World Poor’ are released with all proceeds donated to the campaign of Russell Maroon Shoats, a political prisoner who has been imprisoned for 50 years, 22 of those in solitary confinement. A former Black Panther whose life and opinions would have been in sync with today's sentiments, Russell is one of many forgotten political prisoners.

21st Century Blues

Third World Poor

Third World Poor by NE$$ x Baby J

To say “art imitates life” would be a cliché, but rightfully so. In these unprecedented times NE$$ x Baby J bring a new project “21st Century Blues” which paints a picture of the times we live in. Written and produced remotely during the COVID-19 lockdown, between the US and UK, the music is an expression of systematic oppression and institutionalized racism faced by Black people in America.
 
Unpacking themes of street life, police brutality, poverty, and more, rapper NE$$ (Weekend Money, A-Alikes) paints the harsh realities of life on the edge of society in America while Baby J (Amy Winehouse, Plan B, Mark Ronson, India Irie, Skinnyman, Dead Prez) sets a broken dystopian scene with his production. 
 

The music is not designed for the radio, the club or to fit with a current trend– it just is. 
 

The first two tracks ‘Rona’ and ‘Third World Poor’ are released with all proceeds donated to the campaign of Russell Maroon Shoats, a political prisoner who has been imprisoned for 50 years, 22 of those in solitary confinement. A former Black Panther whose life and opinions would have been in sync with today's sentiments, Russell is one of many forgotten political prisoners.

RONA by NE$$ x Baby J

On 9/11, as the world remembers the attacks on the World Trade Center by groups who resorted to extreme measures to lash out against the American capitalist system, NE$$ x baby J release new album '21st Century Blues'. This captivating body of work explores the nuances of life as a Black man navigating capitalism and oppression in the US. More than just a series of short stories about hustling and street life, the music exposes the viewpoint of a man that sees past the situation he faces and imagines a world that could be different. Refreshingly intimate and matter fact, NE$$ (Weekend Money, A-Alikes), a dynamic storyteller , muses, “how long am I gonna be duckin’ that long arm of the law / 3 in the morning peekin’ in peepholes / knock at the door / the trap, no better word no metaphor”.

In light of the ongoing global pandemic and 2020’s summer of protests followng the murder of George Floyd , this album is a much-needed release and speaks to current times. From songs like ‘Murder Porn’ that explores the police and state violence against the Black community, and the role social media plays into feeding graphic images into our conciousness , to ‘Black Love’ which explores the comradery and connection in relationships developed in a time of struggle and resistance, to ‘Buy My Mom A House’ which speaks of a street-level hustlers dream of changing the narrative of the oppression faced within his family and 'Ballad of A Broken Man’ which showcases some of the most heartbreaking lyrics seen in Hip-Hop since 2pacs ‘Brenda Had a Baby’.

Hip Hop has exposed to the world street life, the drug economy of America and the violence of the ghetto through Mobb Deep, NWA and Wu Tang it has also shown us the voice of resistance and change through Public Enemy, Dead Prez and Immortal Technique, and in a music scene swamped with sex, drugs and opulence '21st Century Blues' fills the space in the middle showing both struggles of the young Black man trapped in the system and the opportunities and hopes of the future that could be.

For all press considerations, please contact 
Mike Urbane diaspora.7.agency@gmail.com

21st Century Blues will be available for purchase & streaming on Sept 11th via Bandcamp & on all major streaming platforms the following week on September 18th. 
Pre Order Link for Limited Edition Colour Vinyl  www.thesystemdontwork.com

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