Ozomatli Reunite with Founding Members Chali 2na & Cut Chemist from for New Single "L I B E R T A D" (Directed By: Miguel "M.i.G." Martinez)
Ozomatli are a Los Angeles-based 6-piece "Latin/Funk/Hip-Hop and everything in-between" band, who are currently celebrating their 22nd year creating genre-eschewing music together. Ozomatli's current line-up consists of Wil-Dog Abers on bass guitar/background vocals, Ulises Bella on saxophone, clarinet, Requinto Jarocho, keyboard, melodica & background vocals, Raúl "El Bully" Pacheco on guitar, tres, Jarana & lead vocals, Justin "El Niño" Porée on percussion/Rap vocals, Asdru Sierra on trumpet, keyboard & lead vocals, and Jiro Yamaguchi on drums, tabla, percussion & background vocals. Although, at one point in time, Ozomalti's line-up famously included Chali 2na & Cut Chemist, who would later, go on to form one of my personal favorite Hip-Hop crews, Jurassic 5, together; both Chali 2na & Cut Chemist appeared throughout Ozomatli's 1998 self-titled debut and would later appear separately on Embrace The Chaos (2001) and Street Signs (2004.) Cut Chemist is likely, most well-known for his appearance on "Cut Chemist Suite" from Ozomatli, which was later, featured within the iconic 2001-02 in-game soundtrack for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3.
Chali 2na, on the other hand, was recently featured alongside Ozomatli on a string of re-released 2018 digital singles including "Donde se Fueron," "Aqui No Será," "Coming War," and "Chota." Today, however, Ozomatli have returned with their first proper release since 2017's Non-Stop: Mexico to Jamaica, which features none other than... Cut Chemist & Chali 2na! "LIBERTAD" (Spanish for "FREEDOM") is the first collaborative release from Ozomatli and founding members Chali 2na & Cut Chemist in some 21 years! Along with "LIBERTAD"'s world-wide digital release, a special music video directed by Miguel "M.i.G." Martinez was also, live premiered online today, as well. This weekend, in honor of "LIBERTAD"'s release, two special Release Events will be held: tonight, Friday 1.25.19, at Music Box in San Diego and tomorrow night, Saturday 1.26.19, at Zebulon in LA, both gigs being billed as "Ozomatli Featuring Cut Chemist + Chali 2na Live." Since its YouTube Premiere Friday afternoon, Ozomatli's "LIBERTAD" single is currently available to stream or download on all digital streaming platforms.
