This review was first published in September 2025 (RIDDIM 04/2025).
Label: Keznamdi Music
Text: Volker Barsch
After ”Bloodline” (2020) comes ”Blxxd & Fyah.” An apt expansion of the title, for while his debut long-player was largely devoted to personal themes, Keznamdi’s new album is far more strongly shaped by social critique and political statements. More Fyah, indeed. The opening track, ”I Am,” begins with acoustic guitar, percussion, and touches of violin and flute before the striking voice of Keznamdi’s sister Kelissa enters. In recent years, she has otherwise largely withdrawn from the public eye, focusing on private life alongside Chronixx. Keznamdi then immediately casts a wide arc, moving from the miracle of birth through Adam and Eve, ancient Egypt, and the crucifixion of Jesus, all the way to Haile Selassie. Kelissa’s recurring vocals and the song’s rhythmic structures lend it a distinctly African vibe.
For the McDonald siblings, this sensibility is neither abstract nor affectation; it is rooted in the fact that they spent part of their youth in Tanzania and Ethiopia. The opener concludes with original audio from a forceful speech by Arikana Chihombori-Quao, former African Union Ambassador to the United States, in which she sharply criticizes France’s neocolonial policies and speaks of a secret ”pact for the continuation of colonization” between France and fourteen African states. (Shortly thereafter, she would lose her post.)
The theme of ”Colonial Bondage” also shapes the second track, this time with reference to Jamaica’s present condition and its historical foundations. This calm roots piece, tinged with dubby, jazz-inflected textures, is followed by ”River Jordan,” in which the singer revisits the history of slavery in Jamaica, including the absence of reparations, accompanied by Nyahbinghi drums and a background choir evoking traditional slave songs. Appended to the track is a reasoning recorded at Skyline Levels by Keznamdi’s father, Errol ”Chakula” McDonald, in which he calls on the Rasta movement to embrace greater unity and more purposeful organization.
On the subsequent ”Natty,” Keznamdi criticizes the fact that some schools in Jamaica still refuse to admit children with dreadlocks into their classrooms, framing this as an expression of an enduring ”colonial rule.” After four thematically interconnected tracks, the Toots cover ”Pomps and Pride” provides a cheerful interlude, before the beautiful ballad ”Identity Crisis” returns to more critical territory. In the Riff-Raff production, Keznamdi confronts the destructive effects of the social media world: screen addiction, constant self-presentation, cosmetic surgery, depression… He does not shy away from reminding us of the Covid pandemic with ”Serious Times,” a single that was released three years ago.
Relief comes with the spectacular herb tune ”Bun Di Ganja,” produced by VAS and Major Seven, in which Keznamdi blends effortlessly with Gully God Mavado. Marlon Asher also gets a brief moment to contribute as a ”Ganja Farmer.” Another prominent featured artist appears with Masicka on the Traphall track ”Forever Grateful.” There is also a love song, ”Somebody New,” alongside three outstanding reality tunes – ”Pressure,” ”Bread & Butter,” and ”Time” – set to Afrobeats and trap riddims. In terms of vocal tone and style, Keznamdi still bears a strong resemblance to Damian Marley, but in terms of maturity, thematic range, and lyrical substance, he has made a noticeable leap on the largely self-produced ”Blxxd & Fyah.”
