— Brooklyn rapper Masta Ace and the Canadian producer Marco Polo announce their upcoming collaborative album, Richmond Hill, coming in January 2024.
Acclaimed rap veterans Masta Ace & Marco Polo transform personal stories into universal sentiments using just their beats and rhymes. The Brooklyn rapper and the Canadian producer have now announced Richmond Hill, their upcoming collaborative album. Coming to you via Fat Beats, Richmond Hill is available on vinyl and all digital platforms on January 26th, and is currently available for pre-order.
The follow-up to their acclaimed 2018 album A Bruekelen Story, which focused on Marco Polo’s life in the big city and his attempts to get into the rap game, Richmond Hill is inspired by Marco’s childhood in the titular neighborhood, a small town in Ontario, just outside of Toronto. Between interstitials about Marco’s passion for hip-hop and cartoons, his struggle with addiction, and the support of his parents, Marco Polo and Masta Ace tackle the issues of the day head-on with clarity, the rapper using his decades-worth of rapping experience to slice through the producer’s warm soul samples and crisp percussion. A cinematic journey that explores how the past echoes through the present, the album welcomes guest appearances from notable names from all eras of rap history, including Inspectah Deck, Coast Contra, Blu, Che Noir, Speech of Arrested Development, Masta Ace’s longtime collaborators Stricklin and Wordsworth, and many more.
Along with the official announcement of Richmond Hill, Masta Ace and Marco Polo share “Life Music” ft. Speech (of Arrested Development), Stricklin, and E Smitty, the new single and music video from the project. Riding a propulsive groove defined by warm electric piano, vibrant organs, and heavenly vocal harmonies, “Life Music” is a direct response to the negativity that permeates the endless scroll, as Ace attempts to switch the energy and emphasize life’s preciousness: “There’s only one choice, that’s life, hope you pickin’ it,” he spits. In his own verse, Masta Ace’s longtime collaborator Stricklin speaks of a near-death experience while on tour, and his long road to recovery.
Directed by Parris Stewart, the “Life Music” video follows a young man as he runs through New York City, urged forward by the music as he passes all walks of life.
“I wrote ‘Life Music’ while riding on a local bus to town in Barbados. Listening to that beat and looking at the masked faces of the working class passengers sitting around me combined with seeing the many impoverished residents in the neighborhoods the bus rolled through, I was inspired to write a song that celebrated life. There are so many songs on the charts that glorify and celebrate death, I felt it was important to rail against those themes which we have somewhat normalized in our culture. I’m challenging the listener to embrace life and reject the negative messages we are constantly being fed in music.” — Masta Ace.
“Life Music” and the Richmond Hill pre-order arrive as Ace and Polo prepare to embark on their European Richmond Hill Tour. Starting in Berlin last week on November 29th, the tour makes its way through the continent until mid-December, stopping in Paris, Milan, Zurich, Cologne, Hamburg, and more. Tickets for the Richmond Hill Tour are available at Masta Ace’s official website.
Stay tuned for Richmond Hill, coming January 26th, and keep an eye out for more announcements from Marco Polo and Masta Ace.
Richmond Hill tracklist:
- December 26th (skit)
- Brooklyn Heights
- Certified ft. Coast Contra
- Cartunes (skit)
- Hero ft. Inspectah Deck
- Life Music ft. Stricklin, E Smitty & Speech (Arrested Development)
- Below The Clouds ft. Blu
- St. Roberts (skit)
- Heat Of The Moment ft. Pav Bundy
- Jordan Theory
- Money Problems ft. Che Noir
- Scarborough (skit)
- P.P.E.
- Outside In ft. C-Red & E Smitty
- Connections
- Plant Based
- December 25th (skit)
- All I Want ft. Wordsworth