Igmar Thomas’ Revive Big Band honors rap and jazz innovators J.Dilla and Thelonius Monk with “Thelonius,” featuring Talib Kweli.  The two-part suite is a reimagining of Dilla’s instrumental “Thelonius” from Common’s Like Water For Chocolate and Monk’s bebop standard “Thelonius.” Summerstage commissioned Thomas in 2016 for A Journey Through The Legacy Of Black Culture, and he debuted “Thelonius” at Rumsey Field in Central Park. Thomas, who is the music director of Lauryn Hill’s touring band, guides the Revive Big Band and Talib Kweli through a lazy swinging beat and a commanding brass section on the second single from the band’s forthcoming album. Thomas explained “Thelonius” in a press release:

“‘Thelonius’ demonstrates exactly how closely related jazz and hip-hop are and how they can once again easily evolve into one another. It brings together the best of two musical worlds… To take the energy even further, I composed an original final section of the song that explodes into a high-octane hip-hop Big Band shout chorus.”

“Thelonius” will appear on Igmar Thomas’ Revive Big Band’s Like A Tree It Grows album, due to drop on October 25th. The album is a tribute to Megan Stabile, the founder of the Revive Music Group, whose vision of connecting younger rap fans and traditional jazz snobs helped create the Revive Big Band. 

Talib Kweli and producer J. Rawls have released their album The Confidence Of Knowing, and they performed “Native Sons” on The Tonight Show. Fans remember J. Rawls producing “Brown Skin Lady” from Kweli and Yasiin Bey’s 1998 Black Star debut album. Kweli salutes the Native Tongue Movement, advocates for social justice, celebrates the culture, and gets reflective about romantic relationships on TCOK.  They have plenty of company with a roster of guests, including Jimetta Rose, Buckshot, Blu, Rass Kass, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Coast Contra, Skyzoo, and Planet Asia. J. Rawls’ boom bap soul wraps Kweli’s words in future nostalgia. It’s been more than two decades, and Kweli is still concerned with the beauty of the Black underclass, as evidenced in the lyricism of “To the Ghetto.” The critiques of the masses don’t end there, and he calls out performative media activists and the shaming of those who seek social justice on “We Outside.”

Rawls keeps things moving with the bending of soul samples, quaint pianos, and swampy blues licks. The duo unapologetically claim ’90s energy in “Turnstyle,” with remembrances of New York City subways, vinyl scratches, a Biggie sample, and a flatlined vibraphone. The legacy of that era is passed down through Coast Contra on “SWAT.” The group, which is partly comprised of Rass Kass’s twin sons, joins Kweli on the pure bragging fest. The support for the future of hip-hop is also present on the slinky “Steve Austin,” which has a feature from Kweli’s daughter Diani. The Confidence Of Knowing reveals a harmonious musical bond between Rawls and Kweli and the sentiment of “Sing Into The Sky” that they intend to plan to do hip-hop “until they die.” 

Talib Kweli’s “One For Biz” video featuring Wildchild and Q-Tip looks like a warm vacation getaway. Madlib produced the tribute to the late Biz Markie, and he appears in the video with Talib and Wildchild. The trio takes in the sun and a little bit of the stage as they mug for the camera under the direction of Edgar Hudson. Kweli gives the late rap pioneer credit for showing him how to give a live show. “One For Biz” is from Kweli’s Liberation 2 album, which is exclusively available on the Luminary platform. The Biz Markie documentary, All Up In The Biz, is streaming on various services. 

Jessica Care Moore and Steffanie Christi’an have joined to become We Are Scorpio, a powerful Black woman rock duo. The poet, who was the first to win amateur night at The Apollo, and the singer most recently heard on Inner City’s last album, decided to revel in their astrological sun sign to make music together. “Supa Dupa Star” featuring Talib Kweli is the second single from their forthcoming album. They filmed the video in Puerto Rico and are seen having a good time as they tell the story of a rock star they knew before he became successful. Kweli’s verses recant the rocker’s lifestyle from his perspective and all the fun he’s had being in the spotlight, and he even gives a shout-out to A Band Called Death, who is from Detroit like Moore and Christi’an. The album comes out next year and is also the 20th anniversary of Moore’s Black Women Rock showcase.  “Supa Dupa Star” is fun but has an edge to let you know how serious they are about reclaiming the work of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Big Mama Thorton, Tina Turner, Betty Davis, Nona Hendryx, Poly Styrene, and Tina Marie Bell. The duo will join Talib Kweli on his West Coast tour next week; tickets are on sale now.