Nattali Rize ADD

Nattali Rize - The 'Liberate' Interview

03/07/2025 by Munchy

Conscious music is timeless, yet in light of our current global political situation, it feels like we need it now more than ever. Nattali Rize is a conscious rebel who masterfully weaves themes like freedom, unity, and questioning the world order into powerful words and songs. With Liberate, she presents her latest album on March 7^th – a record that is deeply moving, inspiring, and empowering, both lyrically and musically. Uplifted by the sonic experience, Munchy caught up with her in Kingston to talk about the “soundtrack of the Brave Hearts”.

Nattali, you have a brand-new album coming up, ready to be released on March 7^th. It bears the inspiring title Liberate, in relation to the song of the same name you have with Judy Mowatt in which you sing “The time it has come for all those who seek the truth (…) You know they'd say anything they can to trick we (…) No real authority, controlling with fear. Violence, intimidation, their war on us is clear”. Even though these lines are already years old, they seem even more relevant and urgent right now in 2025. Is that why you chose Liberate for the album title because the spirit is timeless or why did you pick this one out of all the meaningful and evocative track titles that are on the album?

That is definitely one of the reasons that I chose that. There are kind of several reasons for me choosing that song to be the title and that is one of them because I grew up listening to Judy from a little, little girl. Having listened to songs like that and then being a big woman and coming and creating a song with Judy in the conscious Roots Reggae vibration is really a big part of what I was influenced by, what sent me down on my journey, what gave me momentum on my journey to be the evolving artist that I am today. So, there’s definitely a clear link to Judy in this and the lyrical content. And also, because “liberate” and “liberation” is a thread throughout the entire album. It’s like my default mode on how I proceed the world and what we’re doing, how we’re doing it, how we’re living, thinking, breathing, talking to each other, and how all of that can manifest and shift in ways that amplify our own liberation and our collective liberation. And as today is today these songs are relevant as they were in previous times.

It’s important that there is representation of the times in music. To me that’s part of what I do. My songs are like a reflection of the times, obviously. Not just a reflection of the things that we don’t love that are happening or the conflicts and the wars and the struggles. We know about them and we sing about them but we’re also trying to highlight pathways to get out of that reality, and really to empower people to create and co-create a reality that they really choose and that they really want. What I always say is that and with Liberate especially, I am asking myself and the people the question: What does real liberation look and feel like to us? As an individual on a physical level but also on an emotional, spiritual, even cellular level. What does that real, full freedom feel and look like? As a community, as a family, and then as an entire human family. What does that look and feel like? And one thing that we know for sure is that that type of freedom is not going to be given to us by anything in our current paradigm. It’s something that we must individually take back piece by piece by piece. And every time we open our eyes and our minds a little further, every time we even have a critical thought or sovereign thought or every time, we question something that’s put before us, we start to slowly grow that sense of liberation and it starts to come forward into our reality. I could talk all day on this, sorry (laughs).

Yes, I would love to dive deeper into that because you say “liberate your mind and free yourself from all this slavery” - what to you is this mental slavery, this modern-day slavery that we or a lot of us are trapped in and what are – even the little – things we can do on a day to day to free ourselves from it?

Definitely. Today there is a very, very effective and thorough indoctrination system in place. We grow up thinking that the current reality is the only option that we have and that we must participate in this set of rules and that we must obey by this set of laws or authority, so-called authority has a right to do what they will with us whether that’s violence, whether that’s prejudice, racism, all of it. When we start to realize that the reality that we’ve been shown is not the only reality available to us, that is when we start to perceive beyond the illusion of the current world systems. Right now, you can see it so clearly and the veils are falling fast and even in the past five years, four years, three years, two years there’s just been this jump, I feel, in people’s awareness of how unjust and how the world systems will never serve the people in their current setting. Not even the United Nations. Supposed to be this great body of peace keeping, justice heralding representatives, not even they can stop a genocide happening in this world. Many of us have known this for a long time but now that it’s very obvious to people, they are starting to question “Well then, why are we even doing this?! Why are we giving these people our power by subscribing to their version of reality?”

So, one of the things that I do personally is… and it’s not like going to a protest is going to change the world and I’m not gonna tell you things like “go and do something like that”. I totally am there for that, but we must also do the inner work. And believe it or not, the outer revolution is only going to be as powerful and potent as the inner evolution and revolution. So, absolutely all of the inner work that people are doing that uncomfortable, awkward, sometimes difficult work that we all must do, it actually happens to be some of the most important and potent work we can do. Because the more we shift our inner reality that is exactly what we’re gonna see in our outer environment. Whether to you that might be meditation or yoga or reading or just doing the things that you say you want to do and you know you need to do, whether it’s for your physical health, your mental health, whether it’s a conversation with somebody. But trust me, it’s in the doing of these things that we open up the door to the next lesson and the next opportunity to rise up. 

Very inspiring words! As mentioned, you worked on this song with Judy Mowatt and also producer-wise with the musical genius that is Aston Barrett Jr. They both somewhat trace back to Bob Marley who was a rebel like you, a fellow freedom fighter, always also battling the mental slavery. In a previous interview we did at Summerjam we spoke about listening to Judy Mowatt from when you were a kid. Is this conscious spirit of Reggae music, this rebel spirit what fascinated you about this genre of music? To me that is what always made Reggae so special and powerful.

Yeah, definitely for me it’s interesting because Reggae is really a positive vibration. You’ll see little kids love, love, love Reggae. Some of my biggest fans are little girls. And you realize that they are not necessarily overstanding the lyrics but they’re feeling the content. They’re feeling the intention and that’s what it is about Reggae to me. I was little enough to connect and just resonate with the vibration of Reggae because of, yes, Bob, Jimmy Cliff, Judy Mowatt, this conscious music. And it wasn’t until I was a little bit older that I actually understood the lyrics, then I was like “Oh….”. I fell in love with it all over again. So, yeah, it was just natural for me. To be honest, conscious music in general, it’s my thing. Whether it’s Pop, Folk, Rock… I love Rage Against The Machine. I love a lot of different types of music, but I can definitely say without a doubt that Reggae music is the most consistent genre in the world to amplify and put out a message of One Love, of unity, of consciousness. I love it. I just love it!

I’m feeling you. So do I. We briefly touched the topic already: the current global political is increasingly alarming: Populists and fascists are gaining momentum, power structures are shifting in troubling ways, and division, discrimination, and oppression are on the rise. As a conscious rebel, do you observe these developments, and how do you navigate through them – not only as an artist, but also as a human being and as a woman?

Yes, I observe a certain level of things. Sometimes my energy will be shifted towards one thing more than others. I find myself really just relying on my intuition about those things and where my energy can best be guided in using my platform to be a voice or to just give strength, to show solidarity, to do what I can do with my platform. I will always be doing something. Obviously, I’m hearing and seeing a lot. There’s a lot of things going on, as you mentioned. All of these things are going on. For me, as somebody who moves around the world quite frequently, I really am geographically in a lot of places, in different environments with different community groups and in different communities experiencing similar and somewhat different struggles. For example, I was in the US very recently and one thing came to my attention. It stood out to me really strong. It was something I have known about for a long time and it’s MMIW, which is “Missing and murdered Indigenous Women”. There is a huge disparity in the statistics of indigenous women who go missing and who are murdered without any due course to bringing the perpetrators to justice. It’s like these women are forgotten. These women are twice as likely to be targeted. There is just so much grief. Very recently, like last week, there was a case of a 14-year-old girl being taken and killed and dismembered and them finding her body in different parts. That really hit me, because she is so young. It was just like: we can do better than this. This isn’t OK. When we start to raise our voices about these things. I actually spoke about it for the first time on stage two nights ago. I have been gifted some things. They said like your voice can be used for this one. So, I am doing it and you’ll see me speak more about that. As we amplify our voices and the momentum grows, things can change, things do change.

Like there’s massive boycott movement happening which I love. When we start to really boycott companies that support genocide and the manufacturers of ammunitions and arms. People are very clearly drawing the connection and the dots to who is who and who is doing what, that I love because I’m just so sick of this smiling face that wants to sell you everything and behind the curtain, they’re doing some horrendous things to the people and the planet. We’ve had enough of it! We’ve had more than enough of it. And long time I’ve had enough of it, that’s why you see me singing songs like this from jump. But it’s inspiring to see that there is such momentum and in the face of all of these struggles and all of these situations that you mentioned there is also a tide that is rising of voices and of community leadership. People are really starting to overstand that they can’t trust governments basically. So, then OK, coming to that realization what does that mean? For you and for your family and for your community? I will always break it down to the roots for me, for myself, it’s like growing our own food, having a sustainable water source. These things, small acts, actually are revolutionary in this paradigm. They don’t want us to even have seeds. They want to own the pattern on every seed. It’s like trees are a part of nature, they give us food. Nobody can own that. There are other things happening here in Jamaica as well with access to beaches and waters being disconnected and cut off from local communities.

I also follow a really amazing group called JaBBEM on the ground here who are doing a lot of work to try and do things to keep swimming areas open, Bob Marley beach to keep it accessible to the community. Where I am I try and support as much as possible. I rely on my peers and my international community to bring things to me and tell me what’s happening. People do that, they say “Hey, did you know this is happening?” and I said, “I didn’t know that!” and then I can find out more. We have to be aware that we are the ones in control of what we consume information wise, and we can’t just watch the news and think we know everything. We really have to go and seek what we’re searching and then rely on each other to share things and say “oh, you didn’t know that was happening” and then we’re able to form some sort of unity and solidarity around an issue.

Absolutely right! Coming back to the album… It starts with the powerful and confident This Sound that features Jo Mersa, sadly more than two years after his tragic transition. When was this piece actually created? How was working with Jo on it and how do you remember him in general?

We created this song maybe even four years ago, quite a while ago. Jo is somebody who I met through Kabaka Pyramid. Although we hadn’t spent a lot of time together when this song came up… Me and the producer, whose name is Stu Brooks, an amazing producer who also worked on a couple of tracks on the album as you’ll see, we got this song and we were like “Wow, this song is so bad ass! We need a guest!”. I had spoken with Jo about doing something a while back, the intention was set from a long time, and this just seemed to be the perfect tune. We actually recorded it remotely. He was recording his parts in his yard and then sending them over and then we listened and go over and sent back and go back and forth a little bit. But to be honest, we didn’t go back and forth very much because what he sent was sooooo killer. Was so fire! We were just like “Yo, this is perfect!”. When the song was done and finished, we were all genuinely really excited about it. So, I am really grateful that I am finally able to share that song because especially Jo’s contribution to it is phenomenal and a testament to how talented he was, the energy, his style and the quality, too. Because, you know, I am a bit of a studio geek. I like my gear, my mics and I like to know the vocal chains and all that, so I listen not just for the part and the content but for the quality and I loved what Jo brings to this track. As I said, I’m really honored to be able, with the permission and blessing of the family, to share this song.    

He was indeed so talented. Just the other day I looked through my archive to prepare some stuff for his upcoming birthday and I was blown away by his performances, how he had prepared them, the arrangements… a great talent! How does it feel to release this title with Jo now posthumously, even so close to his birthday?

To be honest I think the timing is perfect. With music it’s one of those things… it’s so hard to lose people but when their art and their music lives on, that’s the greatest thing. It’s the greatest gift that their work continues to do work even when their physical body is not here. That’s something we can see with all of the great artists that have left the physical realm and whose music continues to inspire us and mobilizes and generates some incredible energy on earth to this day. It feels right to release it at this moment. I have my album launch party happening on Thursday (March 6^th). We’re gonna premiere it there and let it play. And then I’m gonna perform a very special version of it at Jo Mersa’s birthday celebration concert on Saturday. Yeah, it’s the perfect time to share and celebrate Jo and his contribution to the musical world.

Sonically This Sound comes across very energetic. Industrial sound bits are sprinkled left and right, a hammering bassline pushes, triumphant synths sound carve a path straight to your soul. The soundscape was created by Stu Brooks, Canadian bassie and producer who has worked with stars like Lady Gaga, 50Cent, Lauryn Hill and is one of the founders of the band Dub Trio from New York. What do you appreciate about his works and how did you join forces for Liberate not just for one but even two tracks: This Sound and This World?

Stu was brought to my attention by Common Kings’ link as someone who is a great producer and has done a lot of work. We set up a time to meet and jam a tune and do some writing. You know, with all people that are meant to be in your circle you connect pretty fast and start creating good stuff pretty soon. That was the case with Stu. The thing with Stu that I love is that he’s so humble, he’s such a really sweet guy. His music is so tough and diverse. He really does a wide range of music, and I wouldn’t call him a Reggae musician at all. He is a bass player for different artists… Anyway, he’s just a really soulful and conscious guy as well. I loved that I think our energies matched in the studio and we were able to create. And another thing about Stu is that he is really good at what he does. He’s fast, he has great gear and a great ear, and he is also the type of producer who is very open to thoughts and suggestions from the artist and other people. That’s really important because I am a bit of a control freak to be honest. But part of my self-work is allowing the space for others to even lead in the studio and me just to contribute and balance. Stu is someone I could easily work with many, many times. And he is coming to Jamaica to celebrate the launch as well, which is exciting!

We spoke about This World featuring Kabaka Pyramid already in our interview at Summerjam – which the people can still watch on Reggaeville’s YouTube channel – and in the same interview you revealed that another collaboration with Kabaka will be on Liberate. Now, here is Brave Heart at last! “Brave hearts are coming with fresh energy” - the song is vibrant, forceful; the chords build up, making you want to jump up, and the lyrics paint a vivid picture of something like a superhero squad of “The Brave Hearts”. Tell me what it takes to become one? Can I join the team?

Yes, 100% yes, Munchy, you’re already all the way there! You are definitely a Brave Heart!

Whoo, yay!

Yes! And I love the imagery you drew there. I might put that forward to Kakaba to see if we can do some sort of video with superhero style. That’s not bad, I like that. Brave Heart was a song that – believe it or not – me and Kabaka wrote on the first night we met years ago.

Ok, WOW!

He is another person I can collaborate with very fluently and our energies are there. We met and we did Generations Will Rize from my first project and the same night we wrote Brave Heart. And since then, it’s been in the archives just waiting for its moment to shine and there were a couple of moments, where it might go on his album or go on my album or might go on a mixtape or might go here and then it was like “No, this is it! It’s time for the Brave Hearts to come forward!” The song is a whole like three minutes of energy straight and that’s what I love. I love that as well as more rootsy and laid-back stuff. Brave Heart definitely is more on the modern side of the Reggae spectrum, a very lyrical tune as you can expect from ones like Kabaka and myself I guess. It speaks to all the brave hearts, yeah, it’s our time!

If “Brave Hearts” was actually a movie, I think you’d already have the perfect soundtrack for the credits: Freedom. The third track on the album is not surprising in terms of its lyrical content but musically being very stripped down to only piano in the verses and then those rising strings, the wailing electric guitar, culminating into a deeply emotional, anthemic crescendo. Tell me how you created this hymn?

Yeah, thank you. It definitely has the anthemic vibe. This song is one of the songs, probably the hardest song I have ever come across to capture on a recording. Getting this song finished is one of the reasons the release has been delayed from when I wanted to release the whole album a year ago. That is because some songs don’t work by what you say you want. They have their own agenda and they’re ready when they’re ready. Thank you very much. After many versions and going back and forth and me playing with this song a lot in my solo acoustic sets, which I don’t do that much of but I do every now and then and I was performing it in those sets, just from that experience I could see the connection that that song was having with people. It was a special connection, like my song One People has. It’s a similar type of connection. I recognized how much I need to just be very not careful but be very conscious of how this song comes across in the recorded format because it has the potential, I believe, to really reach and connect with people on a similar wave link that One People has. So, bringing it together was, as I mentioned, several versions and it’s interesting how stripping it back to the simple things sometimes is the best and that piano and vocal can be such a powerful combination. But I also wanted to give how it feels so epic in this song, in this ballad, in this moment to have those strings and to have that full width of emotion expressed through the growing of the sound and the frequencies alongside the intensity of the vocal and everything. It took a while to capture it, but we got there and it’s another reason why that song is earlier up in the album because I really want people to hear it. Because I know that these days, we’re so like skimming, we’re skimming... So, if they get to Freedom and that’s all they get, I’ll be happy. Get to Freedom, because that’s a very special song!

Speaking of intriguing sonics… I love that you added Fear & Dread to the album even though it was already released in 2019. How it comes in with this real old school feel: this creaky clavinet, the subtle organ, and those delicate piano accents on that classic Reggae beat lead me to a general question about the album: which musicians did contribute to Liberate and what did you play yourself?

We had a number of musicians. Starting with Fear & Dread which is also one of my favorite tunes and sonically has been the song, as it was released first, that every other song has had to match up quality wise because we love the way this song has come out. When you listen to it, especially in headphones or in a big space you can just feel the width and the warmth of the sound. Honestly, every song has had to match at least the level of Fear & Dread to make it on the album. So, that is a very important song on the album even though it was released a while ago. The musicians on Fear & Dread are Yelluh Yute on the drums, Sparrow Nicholas Robinson on the bass, Andre Spyda Dennis on the keys, clavs, piano, Creata aka Carlo on guitars, myself on guitar, vocals obviously, maybe some percussion. Throughout the album I have played some guitar. Guitar is my instrument and percussion but mainly on this album I’d say it’s the vocals. I mainly have done vocals. I have to give a shoutout to my go-to backing vocalist. She is who I call every time. Since the very first song I did, Rebel Love, with her at my house in Australia, when she was on tour with Jimmy Cliff, and Notis they were all at my yard and we recorded Rebel Love the first night we met. Her name is Tammy T, Tammy T Moncrieffe, the queen! She’s so amazing! She does her solo shows as well. Watching her work in the studio over the years, and I’m talking like 12 years I’ve been working with her, if you listen to any of my music you are hearing her voice, guaranteed. It’s not just the tone and quality but she has some really good ideas in terms of parts. Sometimes backing vocalists don’t get the flowers they deserve, so I’m giving them to her now. Who else is on there? Lamont Monty Savory is my go-to guitsy in the studio. I love his work. I worked with Winta in productions on Roads and he played a lot. Another guitarist that he got in for that song named Kurt Ozan. And then of course Aston Barrett Jr who did a lot of work. He did most of the instrumentation for Liberate, also Javaughn Genius Bond on keys for that song as well… Stu Brooks… for Brave Heart we got live drums and bass guitar by Unga Barunga and Notis Heavyweight Rockaz and Ras Brass on the horns.  

Fear & Dread is one of my favorite tracks from long time because the lyrics and the harmonies offer comfort, give hope, especially now in these challenging times. The ascending chord progression feels like a pat on the back “It’s gonna be fine”. You seem so strong and confident but I’m sure everyone’s weak, fearful or dreadful at times. What brings you solace, Nattali?

Solace, what brings me solace? Lots of things… lots of things. The ocean. The ocean brings me great joy. And when I see people realizing their full potential. That’s exciting. I like that. That’s inspiring. I like seeing communities thrive, I like seeing people think outside of the square, outside of the box and creating new pathways for many things, including music. We have this industry. Music is not industrial, you know. It comes from such a sacred, beautiful source, a divine place that can’t really be quantified or even verbalized. We don’t even have a word to capture how magical music really is. At least that I know of in my experience. Just being able to honor that and having that as the most important piece of the puzzle, knowing that that is what will dictate everything else. I like seeing artists who are stepping away from their regular paradigm of the music industry and trying different things. Even me, myself. I am self-managed, I am now self-booked, I do all the road management and the tour management, and production, songwriting and the this and the that. Of course, I have help and I have some great partners in different parts of the world but a lot of that comes from not waiting around for other people. Taking my power back and just saying, well, if certain people are not gonna come to the table, I actually don’t care… I am in that phase too, I don’t care! I’m going to get my music to the people one way or another, and if I’m not gonna get booked on an event, I’m gonna make my own event, which I have done. That for me is one thing that is bringing me strength, it’s actually putting into practice things like that, that give power back to the artist. That is one thing that gives me strength other than the actual creation and witnessing and embracing music in general.  

You added a reprize of Fear & Dread, a touching piano only version to the end of the album. Did you enjoy expressing the amazement of music, the wonder of sound and emotion through the different forms of instrumentation, music’s multiple facets to one and the same song? And which version do you prefer?

Awwwww… (laughs) and you’re asking the impossible question to answer… So, yes, the reprize of Fear & Dread is a version that we also had in the archives. I was going through my files, heard it and was like “Yo, this is really nice”. Just given the response that I had for the song Fear & Dread in general I felt like this version was another face, an important part for people to see aka hear and feel. Because that song has got so much feeling in it and especially when we perform it live, it’s one of the tunes that the band loves! The band loves to play that song. It just sits. The groove is just nice. And vocally, if I’m not fully in the zone I have to be careful with that song because it demands a lot of me vocally and there is so much emotion in it. To have a version that is just the piano, just the vocal, it’s a very raw, I wanna say vulnerable moment on the album really. Even the day we recorded it, I was recovering from something like a cold, and I can hear it in there. I was just well enough, but I can hear the raspiness in my voice and that gives another color to the sonic experience of that song. It’s a special moment and I feel like it’s a nice way to close the album and give people that feeling of “Yeah, it’s alright”.
  

Speaking of the fascination of sound… one track that people have got to listen with good headphones on is Roads produced by Phillip “Winta” James. The instrumental is not the typical vibe you would expect from Jamaicans or “Reggae people” if I may say that. It sounds crossover and gentle, dreamy verses shift to the dense soundscape of the chorus, turning this into another powerful anthem of the album. Tell me how this song came about? How you and Winta created it and what inspired that?

Actually, one of my creative collaborators had sort of the riddim for a while and I had written on it. We really liked it, but we needed it to evolve. Winta is a really good friend of mine from long time. The song itself is, as you say, not a regular, typical Reggae people song at all, it is crossover. I don’t even know what you would call it but it’s not the usual song, not even for me to release it. Probably you haven’t heard anything like that from my catalogue before. Which is why it’s different and we wanted to approach it differently. Bringing it to Winta now, who is a master and just such an amazing producer who is very good at the detail, the detail of the sound. I know because he told me before, he would spend hours and hours just getting the right snare sound. That type of diligence, that type if thinking, I like it. You know that you’re getting into a zone when you start to zone in on the very small detail or however big or small it is. Putting together songs is not a joke! We listen to them all day, but they are a journey. Every song is a journey! To work with Winta on this one, because we are such good friends, it was really great to give him the reigns and say “What do you think?”. And he loved the song, so he was like “Yeah, let’s do it!”. I think it was something a bit different for him as well. He arranged and added some of the soundscapes you hear, as you know there are many different instrumentations and synths, and then vocally it’s very different for me as well. It’s also the only sort of love song on the album, I guess.       

The whole album was mixed by the truly amazing, rightfully 6 times Grammy award winning James “Bonzai” Caruso, who is a household name in Reggae for so many years now and who is not just an incredibly gifted engineer but also such a positive and kind soul. What do you appreciate about him as a person and his sound in particular that you always work with him?

He mixed actually a Blue King Brown project of my Australian band maybe 15 years ago. From then we’ve been working together pretty solidly. He is somebody who I admire and trust with my music. He is also a really good friend, as well. He is that kind of guy and that is what I love about working with certain people, you have to be able to connect with them on a level, because music is personal, and you are being vulnerable every time you release your art whatever that is. You want to share that with people who understand it and can bring their skills to the table to give it the best possible outcome. And that’s what Bonzai does. He’s very talented at what he does, and he is also somebody who is very open to feedback again. That’s what I find with Bonzai, it’s that we got to a point where I can send him songs from the road, and he can mix them pretty much close to completion before I will get the mixes back and give feedback. He is very open, and he wants me to be happy with the mixes. Some engineers can be hard to work with in that sense, like they don’t want to take too much feedback. But it’s my art, it’s not about you, it’s about the song… Bonzai is someone who I love because he always remains very loyal to the artist and the art. He wants you to be happy with it. I know I can trust him with my songs, and he has delivered time and time and time again. He actually tracked Fear & Dread as well in the studio live. He was a part of that song from the very start of the song all the way through to the end mix. Bonzai is a great guy and that is the reason why he’s a household name because he is truly great.
   

Speaking about the people that you worked with for Liberate. Many of them have been on this musical journey for many, many years and you described the process of songwriting with Kabaka Pyramid also vividly in the interview at Summerjam. Tell me in general, what leads you to collaborating with fellow musicians like Mike Love, Kumar, Unga and the likes? Is a spiritual connection mandatory for you? Is it a musical vibration? Or are there even any words that can describe this link?

Yes, everyone you mentioned, everyone who is on the album, definitely there was a connection and there is a connection there, a chemistry, a creative chemistry. I’m grateful that that chemistry is there, also with Judy even though the first time I met her was when she was coming to the studio to voice on my song. That’s a whole other story that I love to tell (click here to listen to the story). It’s a joy to remember! But the other people that you have mentioned, Unga who I have worked with for many years, Kumar, yes definitely… these are people who I’m a fan of. Mike Love is such a great human. Really, these are like my friend friends. I love that they are out there, doing so much positive work and then in the rare opportunities that we get to spend time together to be able to bring a song out of that is magic! Kumar and I have worked together for many years. We’ve done not just music but also collaborated on a fundraising campaign for his mum’s school here in Jamaica in the country. Kumar is community-minded as well, very much so. He is someone I love to just talk with and par with. We’re ideas people. We make things happen even on a shoestring budget. He is one of those people. To have him on the album made perfect sense.

And it’s not just the artists, it’s the producers as well and the mix engineer. Everyone on there is someone I have a relationship with. The way that we create can evolve and grow. For me it’s about creating songs that are going to serve all of us. It might be on my album, but I wanted to contribute to the progress of others and all of those involved. I want to share that energy. Any energy that comes from the album I want it to float to the people because we’re all branches of the same tree and we’re all a continuation of the mission. And as long as that is reaching far and wide, there’s no need for anybody to try and like hold on to their success. Let it out, let it go, let the music go as far as it can with whoever is able to carry it. For me, those people on the album are doing the works on their own and to be able to collaborate and team up I feel like it gives the songs the opportunity to even reach further.

I am sure that this spirit transports on the album! People can listen these collabs and all the songs we spoke about on your brand-new album Liberate, which is out Friday March 7^th. Nattali, is there anything you would like to add to this interview that I haven’t asked you about?

I have the US tour dates starting in April to launch the album. I’m still trying to get to Europe, hopefully in the summer, but I’m not sure at this moment. If not this year, definitely next year, but I am wanting to come over, even if it’s just to do some album parties. Like I said, if bookings don’t come through, I don’t care. I will come, I will come (laughs)! You’re gonna see me and we’re gonna hold a vibe one way or another!

Also, I don’t know if I mentioned, that “liberation” and one of the reasons it’s called Liberate is because that is a common thread throughout the entire album. The subtitle for me is almost “Sweet Liberation” and when you listen through the songs you might notice I do actually say that in several different songs throughout the album. That’s the thread that ties it together.

And of all the times that I have wanted this album to release, that it’s landing on the 7^th of March, in this month in particular being International Women’s Month as well, using that opportunity to give even more strength and more momentum to the positive side and the more powerful movement of females in the arts but also conscious music in general, to get some real conscious music out there to everyone who has been listening to my music and to everyone who has been waiting on some new music and the album, but also to really reach the ones that are yet to tune in to the project and into themselves; you know, music is a pathway to ourselves as much as it is to getting together and celebrating music.

Yeah, I hope everyone enjoys the album, listens to the album and feels some energetic shifts in themselves in a positive way upon receiving all of the energy and love that has been put into each and every song.

I genuinely love the album! Not saying it because we’re doing this interview, but I was really blown away when listening the project. That is why I mentioned a lot of the sonics because they were so amazing additionally to the lyrical content, of course. Thank you so much Nattali for sharing with me these insights and of course your inspiring and intriguing music in general. All the very best for the release of Liberate!

 

Check out the interview from Summerjam 2023 below, in which Nattali also gave some insights into the new album: