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Sleepless In Soweto

by Asheru

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Asheru presents "Sleepless In Soweto"
    Released on Tuesday November 12th, 2013

    CD autographed by Asheru!

    Includes unlimited streaming of Sleepless In Soweto via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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Clay Davis 03:39
[Verse 1] A beautiful mind One of a kind being King Ash, baby boy of the All eye seeing And all I’m seeing Is a future so bright You gon' ask Teddy Pendergrass to turn off the light I am the general Soldiers know my position Quiet leadership style, when I speak it’s non-fiction Listen more than I talk & tell less than I know Cuz game is to be sold not told That’s how I go Its called Guerilla Arts for the tactic Not the animal "by any means necessary' Written on the manual Rough you off and and ride on through just like Hannibal And elephant stomp the shit outta you And ya mans if you Take it for a joke/get yolked Egg on your face Niggas going for broke with each quote No second place For anybody still asking if Ash can spit Hit ‘em with the Clay Davis like sheeeeeeeeiiiiittttt [Hook:] What you talking bout? Man, Get on Your Head! You should never ever doubt One Man, $100 and a One track mind... Man, Get on Your Head! For anybody still asking if Ash can spit Hit ‘em with the Clay Davis like sheeeeeeeeiiiiittttt [Verse 2] You know its funky funky funky cuz you heard it from hear say A jam that you love that don’t be getting no airplay As for my competition they ain’t playing the fair way Thinking they’ll catch me slipping, shit that’s on a rare day This is that boom bap for getting bent in the stairway To play where the real lions in the lair lay $200 from the door guess it wasn’t their day Too many in your crew and yall gotta share pay Ash vision is bigger No frame for this picture I use my signature to stamp me as the victor The champ, the head nigga in charge MC at large My constituents got all this love Like a Debarge Now that must be good for something You saying nothing Like the good book say There ain't no future in your frontin Word to MC Breed Do Ash give you what you need? Hit em with the Clay Davis like sheeeeeeeeeiit [Hook] [Verse 3] If there’s one thing you should know bout me I exercise my unlimited potential So when I run them streets & shout BMIG I don’t only mean over these instrumentals You talking to an entrepreneur on 1 million "New Ventures" is my middle name I bring Hip Hop to the schools, the juvie or public housing To give them youngins a little game Cuz out here, them people playing chess not checkers Be careful how you move around the board Have you thinking you a King when you only just a pawn Go to battle and die by the sword My OG sat me down and gave me a jewel To this day I never will forget He said for every 1 winner There has to be 10 losers Which one are you? Me? I said sheeeeeiiiiitttt [Hook x2] Man, Get on Your Head! "He said for every 1 winner There has to be 10 losers Which one are you?" "Me? "I said sheeeeeiiiiitttt"
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Make Magic 04:44
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[VerseAnnotate 1: Asheru] As we move closer to the end Many men pretend to know when Armageddon begins Warfare and terrorism Military slaughter Famine, disease, lack of clean drinking water Earthquakes, hurricanes, strange weather patterns Man-made disasters Past or hereafter All trying to capture The coming of the rapture But really, who's prepared Who's scared? Who's unaware of what awaits As we enter the gates 2010 black men still Enemy of the state And it's a state of emergency Code red Get on your deen with all urgency Go head_ And push harder go farther Spread wide and leave a legacy The hope is that tomorrow brings a Better you/ better me Man it better be Hope my loving ain't in vain Bad enough these politicians Got the whole world going insane Chorus: [Kanjia] This day might be the last day (Cuts) The last day, might be this day (Cuts) [Hip Hop Pantsula] We're living in that last world order That ice age bowl bout to be flooded by water That Wande Coal bumper to bumper disorder That Ghandi sole we walk in cannot afford to be taken for granted... Otherwise we'll be abandoned We don't want a better life We demand it! When it comes to reading dibuka You can't thet' But when it come to making lebotha you count it How Did?! You cannot Pantit You cannot live in a Khuti like Sadaam did You chant one thing Kamo o chuna annè ding You want one thing Kamo o dula mo lapeng O dilwe Keng? Get on your feet again This end is only the beginning monna breath again Be the better brother And plant the seed again With your knowledge I swear You're gonna win. You'll be insane... Chorus: [Kanjia] This day might be the last day (Cuts) The last day, might be this day (Cuts) In these last days Who is awake? In these last days Got no time to waste In these last days Don’t be afraid In these last days we will find our way… [Verse 2: Kingpen Slim] It’s hard feeling like a winner When summer’s feeling like winter Winter is feeling like summer It’s the eye of the storm Of the weather that I’m feeling right under People got AIDS, still look healthy People with low credit scores still look wealthy Politicians switch they pitch When they win elections Try to overthrow oppression threw an interception – Won’t nobody stand up Grown men dressed like girls won’t nobody man up Guess it’s hard being broke tryna pay attention So most people miss the message in the things they mention Watch for the sign saying “Yield” Slowing down tryna level out the playing field As the days grow, hearts grow colder Soon we just might see hell froze over – Last Dayz [Hook]
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about

Emcee, Artist, Educator, Youth Activist, and Pan-Africanist, are just some of the titles that describe the work of Asheru. After launching his career with the group Unspoken Heard in Hip-Hop’s golden age of the 1990’s, Asheru has continued as a solo artist for the past decade. While he has collaborated and recorded with the likes of Talib Kweli, Pete Rock and DJ Jazzy Jeff, he is best known for writing and performing The Boondocks TV show theme song.

Asheru has spent the last few years working closely with South African artists such as HHP (Hip-Hop Pantsula) and has performed and toured there regularly. Sleepless In Soweto is the culmination of years of work in South Africa and its hip hop community. The time spent in South Africa shows, not just on the track title, but also with the incorporation of live instrumentation hip hop, African house and afrobeat tracks featured on the album. Collaborating artists such as HHP also rap in South African languages like Zulu and Setswana. With the goal of highlighting the unique bond between African-Americans and Africans through hip hop music and culture, the result is a modern Pan-African hip-hop album filled with thoughtful lyrics, skillful delivery, and raw musicality.

The track Gauteng, which means “Land of Gold”, is dedicated to Johannesburg and features 2x Grammy nominated recording artist Raheem DeVaughn on additional vocals. Gauteng is the home province of Johannesburg, and the chorus reflects the people, the culture, and the love Asheru has received not only in Jo'burg, but all over SA as being "worth more gold". The opening track is Simphiwe's Theme, a Zulu name given to Asheru, which means “it/he is given to us.” Another Grammy nominee, the Ethiopian-born singer Wayna, can be heard on No Matter Where You Go, a track detailing the history and progress of African-Americans, and all of the work left undone. The album artwork was painted by acclaimed Nigerian-born visual artist, Aniekan Udofia.

Asheru is available for interviews and features. Media files, artwork, photos, and music provided upon request. Asheru will be touring in support of this album and has these key shows planned:

Saturday October 26th – Kennedy Center’s Millenium Stage – Washington, DC
Wednesday November 13th – Album Release Party at Tropicalia – Washington, DC
Saturday December 21st – Rock & Roll Hotel w/ Homeboy Sandman – Washington, DC

credits

released November 12, 2013

Sleepless in Soweto LP by Asheru
Release Date: 11/12/13
Released Worldwide on Tuesday November 12th, 2013
Guerilla Arts Ink

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about

Asheru Washington, D.C.

Peabody Award winning Hip Hop artist, veteran educator, and founder of Guerilla Arts Ink, an arts education organization specializing in bringing high quality arts and cultural programming to low income communities.

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