Welcome To Polynesia! Savage Presents: The Tribal Council Out Today
Today I’m toasting to another historic moment for Down Under hip-hop. New Zealand’s most successful hip-hop artist of all time, Savage, releases his second album Savage Presents: The Tribal Council, a two-disc set of 32 songs showcasing the best R&B, hip-hop and reggae artists from the South Pacific region alongside a who’s who of stars including Akon, Pitbull, Talib Kweli and Bobby V.
Savage has enjoyed a tremendous amount of success (his debut US single, 2008′s “Swing,” has currently sold over two million copies on iTunes) but his life wasn’t always so glamorous. Like many of his American counterparts, the Samoan-born rapper’s early years were mired in poverty, gangs and crime. In Part One of a six-part mini-documentary series, Savage talks about those early days and how music changed his life:
For this album, Savage showcases his strong industry relationships and especially shines a light on his Dawn Raid/SMC labelmate Monsta, a Long Beach, CA-born former bodyguard to the stars who’s now making hits and readying his own debut album, Long Beach Raised Me, for February 2011. Check out his video for the title track below:
In support of Savage Presents: The Tribal Council, several of Dawn Raid’s artists will embark on a West Coast, multi-city promo tour starting October 13, making stops in Portland, Salem, Seattle, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles—cities where the majority of Polynesians live here in the States. For more information, visit Dawn Raid’s official site.
