British-Ghanaian producer Juls releases Roots, a six-track project via TABOM Records that maps diaspora consciousness through rhythm. The release follows his October 2024 album Peace & Love and positions the producer's independent label as a platform for examining African cultural threads across continents.
Roots functions as musical cartography. "Jazz in the Air" opens with improvisation meeting structured rhythm, establishing freedom as the project's foundation. The title track "Roots" grounds this exploration in tradition, using heavy drums and forward momentum to connect revolution with continuity. "Kokrobite Blues" shifts to Ghana's coast, where highlife melodies and warm guitars create reflection through familiarity rather than nostalgia.
The project's second half expands geographically and thematically. "Mi Morena" incorporates salsa influences into Juls' fusion framework, celebrating Black beauty through rhythm that crosses cultural boundaries. "Capoeira Riddim" draws from Brazilian martial art and dance, translating physical movement into sonic energy. "3AM in Kaapstad" closes with late-night contemplation in Cape Town, capturing stillness within constant motion.
Juls built his reputation producing for Mr Eazi, Burna Boy, and Wizkid before establishing creative autonomy through TABOM Records. The label's name references the Tabom people, Afro-Brazilians who settled in Accra following the transatlantic slave trade. This historical positioning informs Roots' thematic approach, examining how African cultural expression evolved through diaspora while maintaining foundational connections.
The project operates as research through sound. Each track identifies a location, cultural practice, or emotional state, then explores how rhythm carries memory across geography. Juls doesn't present fusion as novelty but as documentation of existing connections, tracing how drums, guitars, and horns maintain cultural dialogue across oceans and generations.
Roots arrives as Juls launches the Tabom residency series at KOKO Electronic in London, extending the project's themes into live performance. The timing positions the producer's independent work alongside institutional validation, working within established platforms while maintaining creative control through his label structure.
The project demonstrates how producer-led releases can prioritize cultural examination over commercial positioning. Juls uses his production background to create space for analysis rather than simply showcasing technique, treating each track as investigation into how sound carries identity, resistance, and connection across the African diaspora.
Comments