[youtube id=”vwjwKPXy4sg”]Slick Rick, one of the album’s few vocal collaborators and production from Mos Def and Madlib. Their rhymes about people’s hopes and everyday struggles were said alongside a dense beat and a shimmery symphony constructed from “Movie Finale” on Madlib’s Beat Conducta In India album. “Auditorium” was part of The Ecstatic’s overall theme of looking at the world’s social problems and reporting on them. Mos Def, Slick Rick and Madlib made the bleak scenarios of “Auditorium” feel like good news because of its sonic allure. The Ecstatic received two Grammy nominations, critical accolades and the support of his fanbase that questioned his musical choices after the 2006 True Magic album. In 2011, Mos Def legally changed his name to Yasiin Bey. He announced a Black Star album in February 2018 but did not give a release date. His voice can be heard on the Kanye West Kid Cudi 2018 Kids See Ghosts album. 

It’s been 20 years since Yasiin Bey and Talib Kweli emerged as Black Star and they are coming full circle to reunite and release a new album this year. Yasiin Bey made the announcement in Denver, Colorado this past weekend during a Madlib DJ set.  Reddit uploaded the audio from the show and Bey can be heard telling the audience that the new project is “coming soon.”