Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Sample & Example: Mulatu Astatke, Nas & Damian Marley


I've been excited about this Nas/Damian Marley album for a minute and the first leak, a snippet of a song called "Afro Beat", sounds really promising. Nas and Mr. Tuff Gong have an obvious chemistry and the beat is really dope. As I was listening to "Afro Beat", I could swear that the sample sounded really familiar. I listened to it a few more times before I recognized it - I'd been listening to the original song earlier in the day.

It's a song by Ethiopian jazz artist Mulatu Astatke entitled "Yegelle Tzeta". The original song is excellent, check it out below. And school yourself on Mulatu here.

SAMPLE:
Mulatu Astatke - "Yegelle Tzeta"

EXAMPLE:
Nas & Damian Marley - "As We Enter"