A year after dropping his debut on the underground Hip Hop stage, Ali and Ant returned with a 9-song EP (a full length album by today’s standards) built around a Dancehall-driven remix to Shadows On The Sun’s “Champion”. The project expands Ali’s lyrical onslaught (Bad Ma Fucka, Self Taught) as well as his budding social commentary (Chain Link).
The highlight of this project is the painful but hope-inspiring “Rain Water”. As Ali’s career began to take off in the year following the release of “Shadows”, he spent countless months on the road building his fanbase while his mother, grandfather, and high school friend died unexpectedly and his marriage began to crumble. As part of his nightly live set, Ali freestyled about all of this over the Ant-produced beat that became Rain Water. As the tour came to a close, the best parts of the nightly freestyles were compiled into what we hear in the song.
Written by Brother Ali
Produced by ANT
Released in 2004
