#theocroker

Theo Croker - TO BE WE ft. Jill Scott

Theo Croker shared his new video with Chronixx. Song called “Understand Yourself” is the closing track from trumpeter last record "Star People Nation". The album received Grammy Award nomination in category Best Contemporary Instrumental Music. With “Understand Yourself,” the album’s closing track, Croker joins forces with Chronixx, a Jamaican singer whose wide-ranging approach to music and innovative sound (what he calls “black experimental music”) made him the perfect choice for the record. The song notably samples Jamaican-born political leader Marcus Garvey’s “Know Yourself” speech. Garvey’s iconic words become the raw material for Croker and Chronixx’s sonic explorations, remixing Garvey’s message of nation-building and taking it into uncharted musical territory. “Understand Yourself” is a culmination of much of the album’s themes, carrying a message of death and rebirth – a powerful missive to let your old self die so that you can move on to be your higher self. Theo Croker first introduced his singular style in 2014 on the Dee Dee Bridgewater-assisted "Afro Physicist". His 2016 follow-up "Escape Velocity" marked a watershed moment for the artist. Returning to the studio in late 2016, he took the reins as sole producer. Playing not only trumpet, but keys, drums, synths, percussion and kalimba in addition to handling background vocals, Croker constructed the album narrative as its auteur, often sampling and re-sampling both live and in-studio performances.   “I managed to foster a new community of creatives in my life since living here. To see how artists from other genres operated really inspired me not to put myself in any type of box,” says artist. “I opened myself up to all sorts of opportunities. I began really understanding and coming to a higher purpose in music. It made me realize how much farther I can go. You can feel that boundlessness on Star People Nation. How everything and everyone affected me is in the new music.” Theo Croker "Star People Nation" tracklist: Have You Come to Stay Getaway Gold (Feat. Rose Gold) Subconscious Flirtations and Titillations Wide Open Portrait of William Just Let It Ride Crestfallen The Messenger (feat. ELEW) Alkebulan (feat. Eric Harland and Kassa Overall) Understand Yourself (feat. Chronixx)   Buy it here: