Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Congo Natty Meetz Fikir Amlak (2020)

Fikir Amlak
Although I have known Fikir Amlak for years, I only know part of his story. With Caribbean and Latin-American heritage, his early years were split between the Caribbean and the USA. He came into contact with the Rastafari order at a young age and the resonance was immediate. He rapidly embraced Rastafari culture, philosophy and music which has regulated his life since. After moving to Santa Cruz, California he took part in a series of solo and collective musical works from 2002 to 2006. Growing disillusioned with the music business, he took a 7 year sabbatical from recording. During this period he lived a severely reclusive life, studying and training with Rastafari in the hills of California and Jamaica. He continued to release previously recorded music but did not record again until 2013, when various producers encouraged him to return to the music world. Since then, he has recorded extensively but only a small portion of this music has been released. The roots – reggae - dub - sound system world has embraced him, and his rise has been meteoric. Promoting a balance of mental, spiritual and physical fitness, his message has arrived on the scene like a breath of fresh air. While he remains in the public eye, look for more releases, live performances, and insight from Fikir Amlak.

Congo Natty
The '80s popster turned proto-jungle revolutionary was born Michael West in 1965 in London. He formed Double Trouble in the early '80s with Michael Menson and Leigh Guest, releasing the ska-pop hit "Street Tuff." Rebel MC later gained fame in England as a pop-rapper, but by 1991 he had released Black Meaning Good, an album that presaged jungle with hardcore techno married to dub basslines and ragga toasters such as Barrington Levy and P.P. Arnold. His 1992 singles "Rich Ah Getting Richer" and "Humanity" also showed the new direction. "Code Red" — released as Conquering Lion — became an outright jungle smash in 1994, bringing the jungle movement to the British masses. He would disappear off the record shelves until 2004 when he dropped the single "Junglist" under the name Rebel MC, with the Congo Natty album Born Again following in 2005. His remix of the Nas and Damian Marley single "Land of Promise" landed in 2010, then the Jungle Revolution album appeared in 2013. A dub version, simply titled Jungle Revolution in Dub followed two years later with remixes from Adrian Sherwood, Mungo's Hi-Fi, DJ Madd, and others.

Tracklisting:
01. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak, Addis Pablo - Lalebela Almaz (5:09)
02. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Tekle Haymanot (3:50)
03. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak, Shaz Rahman - Emaye (Muma) (2:59)
04. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Yared (6:45)
05. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Abba Bruce Lee (6:50)
06. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Netsanet (3:43)
07. Congo Natty, Fikir Amlak - Chereka Berhane (6:23)