MH-207 Labtekwon - Song Of The Sovereign Mush, in conjunction with Ankh Ba Records, has collected seventeen tracks from Labtekwon's extensive catalog for the career retrospective, Song Of The Sovereign. From his debut, Ghetto Gospel through The Future's Now... What's Next, Da Dawn, Da Helpless Won, Balti-Moorish Science, and Nile Child, to his lo-fi live recording Proverbs of Passion, and his most recent full-length, The Last Emcee/The Art of Love, Labtek's releases have been as innovative as they are impossible to find. Effortlessly shifting styles and content, running from hundreds-of-words-in-a-breath stream-of-consciousness channeling to take-no-prisoner battle raps, Song Of The Sovereign is the perfect introduction to one of the underground's most respected and influential emcees.

Tracklist 01. ATEN (The God Is Love) 02. Culture 03. Speak On It 04. My Crew 05. Perversion 06. Big Kid 07. CSD 08. The Last Emcee 09. Darkside Of The Sun 10. Perspective 11. Overlord 12. King Of Kings 13. No Time To Chill 14. Modern Day Messenger 15. The Art Of Love 16. Bubble Bath 17. I Am Here

Release Details Release Date: 01/15/2002   Running Time: 71:38   Download/Available/$7.00 2XLP/Out Of Print CD/Available/$10.00 Territory: World

Reviews Summary

An impressive album from an MC whose time has come. - Vibe / Labtekwon is the revitalization of Brand Nubian, KRS-One, and A Tribe Called Quest all in one. - Ghetto Blaster / The most unjustly slept-on rapper in underground hip-hop - CMJ / This is a great collection - Mixer / Raises the rhyme bar with brain-expanding efficiency - Pulse

Reviews

50 Megs / Aiding & Abetting / All Music Guide / Blue Divide / Boston's Weekly Dig / City Paper / CMJ / Download / Exclaim! / Ghetto Blaster / Impact Press / Ink 19 / Mixer / Muzik / Pop Matters / Pulse / Sidewalk / Splendid / Strength / Synthesis / The Wire / Vibe / Zero / 'Sup /

Every once and a while a cat drops a release that embodies thought provoking lyrics about life, love, struggle, culture and spiritualism. Using eight different albums to make up the essence of this release, the compilation becomes a source to know the prowess of Labtekwon for old and new listeners. From the 7:29 minute "Perversion" to the head bopping "Big Kid" Labtekwon is the revitalization of Brand Nubian, KRS-One, and A Tribe Called Quest all in one. Another pleasant addition to the album is the inlay card, which contains a quick summary of each track's innovation. The Baltimore born emcee has been holding it down for a minute now; this release should play as the introduction and expansion of his career to the masses. Containing seventeen tracks you are more than blessed. Word. - Ghetto Blaster