Jesse Royal Recruits Vybz Kartel For ‘Rich Forever’ From Upcoming Album ‘Royal’
Reggae revivalist Jesse Royal has released the third single off his upcoming sophomore album today, titled Rich Forever which features Dancehall heavyweight Vybz Kartel.
Jesse’s anticipated sophomore album, Royal is slated to launch this summer through Easy Star Records. The project follows his debut album Lily Of Da Valley in 2017. The Reggae crooner has been steadfast in promoting Royal over the last two years; in 2019 he released his single LionOrder featuring Protoje followed by Natty Pablo last year as part of the rollout for the album’s official release in June.
Today, we see his third profile-raising track, a cross-genre collaboration with the Worl’ Boss as both artists attempt to unify people’s differences by supporting a common goal – to be “forever royal.” It serves as a reminder of the internal strength and mental fortitude human beings possess, which prepares them for success in a society designed for their failure.
“Rich Forever is a divergence from identifying with the degradation dispersed for generations by them and those who oppose reality and simply put, it is a conversation about restoration of our royalty and reclaiming dignity,” states Jesse Royal.
The song opens with the beat drifting right into eerie keyboard playing then introduces percussion drums to set the acoustics for Jesse’s influential verses.
“Ah Jah Jah blessing, this ain’t no luck, world follow suit when your mind’s made up. I seen pauper spend to kings and kings return to mud, when we neglect the truth or forget. But we good over yasso cause Selassie I we hail, sump’n like Judah in a di belly of the whale. The whole world know this yah sound ain’t for sale, Haile Selassie can never yet fail – Rich forever, rich with a loving family…” he sings in his Rastafarian-style tones.
The powerful message of the song and rhythm, which was produced by Jamaican upstart iotosh, (who is responsible for Protoje’s Deliverance and Self Defense and also Jaz Elise’s After 3 that features Mortimer), is a classic representation of the current movement in Jamaican music, a melting pot of genres while still innately blending in the native sounds of the island.
As Protoje and Vybz Kartel kick off Jesse’s exciting features on the upcoming LP, he also tapped Ghanaian Afrobeats artiste Stonebwoy, and local Reggae singers Kumar and Runkus as well as rising singer Samory I for other appearances. The album is expected to explore Jesse’s musical chops, offering his vocals on a manifold of genres, ranging from Reggae, Dancehall, Afrobeats, and Trap to smoother kinds of Soul and Jazz songs
As his sound evolves, so does his subject matter. Whether it is an open letter to his daughter on Home, empowerment on Rich Forever and Black, corrupted politics on Dirty Money, love dilemmas on Like Dat and Differences, or Rasta social commentary on Natty Pablo and LionOrder, the singer explores a combination of varying themes in the new collection.
In his other recent musical ventures, Jesse was featured on Sean Paul’s latest album, Live N’ Living that dropped last month. He appears on the single Guns of Navarone that also includes Stonebwoy and Mutabaruka; the official music video released in late March.