K'NAAN

"With respects to the rules of the game, they don't apply cuz I came this far," K'Naan announces on Troubadour's "If Rap Gets Jealous," right after Metallica's Kirk Hammett tears off a scene stealer that's pretty unusual in rap circles: the guitar solo. "If Rap Gets Jealous" first appeared on The Dusty Foot Philosopher, the excellent debut that finally found its way to America last year. The celebrity cameo and sonic steroids that characterize the version on Troubadour give an indication of how much has changed for the Somalian refugee who fled his country with his family in 1991–on the very last commercial flight as the government crumbled and the country descended deeper into chaos.

K'Naan's backstory makes for more than just a compelling bio sheet; his personal narrative is a central thread through his music, leading to gripping tales about young love interrupted by bloodshed and his mother forced into a Sophie's Choice between her son and a beloved cousin ("My cousin got left in the war–and that's just hard to record," he raps softly). But for all the tragedy, Troubadour is more triumph than sob story. "I don't want you to shed a tear, cuz this here, it's a celebration," K'Naan says after telling you about gunmen stealing away his first crush ("Fatima")–and the music follows suit, with a poppy vocal melody and a flare of horn fanfare. That’s the attitude he takes throughout, counting his blessings and paying respects to those who weren’t as fortunate.

He explains his philosophy on the funk-influenced "Dreamer," tipping his hat to John Lennon in the chorus, and a number of prominent rappers in the verses. But before he gets into the optimism, he makes it clear that he isn't impressed by modern-day gangsta rappers, offering to take them on a field trip through real hell on "T.I.A." (This Is Africa). He belabors the point a bit over a few tracks, and he’s so likable and charismatic that self-aggrandizing doesn’t really become him–although "T.I.A." is still a gripping opener.

Getting back to the rules of the game, K'Naan willfully ignores them. He's a genre-hopper who's well-versed in America and African musical traditions, handy with universal pop hooks but also with cadences and time signatures that may be exotic to Western ears. There's an Afro-Caribbean feel to "Fire in Freetown," a chilled out track that's one of the highlights and sounds utterly unlike anything around it. The only outright failure is "Bang Bang," a calculated play at crossover appeal featuring a guest vocal from the reliably unbearable Adam Levine of Maroon 5. K'Naan otherwise did a fine job with his guest line, finding easy and satisfying interplay with the long-lost Chubb Rock, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5 and Mos Def.

—Adam McKibbin
03.18.09

Rapping like he was Q-Tip, singing like he was Bob Marley, and ambitiously taking on the global sound like he was Wyclef Jean, K'Naan is not only a ridiculously talented man but one who comes with a story of survival so big it can't help but top most other tales of inner city pressure. Moving from a ghetto in war torn Somalia to Harlem and then on to Toronto where the sometimes poet's debut album wins the Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year, the lyrically gifted rapper just can't help being a one-upper. What's missing, then, from his sophomore effort Troubadour is some kind of "I did, you can too" message that could help make him a more approachable, Marley-like figure. You lose your girlfriend for whatever reason, K'Naan loses his to war. After pointing out the gangsters in his hood are bazooka carrying pirates who jack tankers for ransom, it becomes obvious that Troubadour is an album to marvel at from afar, but that doesn't keep it from being a rewarding, often eye-opening spectacle. Key track "ABCs" presents Africa as a land of different priorities, where survival trumps education and "nobody fat enough for lipo." The long lost Chubb Rock appearance is just one of the stunning choices for guests with Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine providing the hooky chorus for "Bang Bang" while Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett brings the rock & roll thunder to "If Rap Gets Jealous." Mos Def and Chali Tuna roll around just in time to keep this genre-jumping album filed under "hip-hop," but here, the multi-lingual K'Naan has taken to rapping in his native tongue. One track later in this epic tale and his first crush ends up kidnapped by soldiers, but when "Fatima" remembers that teenage feeling with "After school we studied the lessons/I asked God to slow down the seconds/He does the opposite, that's what I'm guessin'" it's strangely satisfying that K'Naan is one of us, at least when it comes to puppy love. Describing the elation of picking up that much-need wired money transfer on "15 Minutes Away" to dropping ancient history on "People Like Me" are the kind of long-jumps that make Troubadour a bit dizzying. Still, with such skill and ability on display, this is highly recommended for anyone intrigued by a will.i.am version of Slumdog Millionaire or a Charles Dickens novel reimagined by Arrested Development. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide