photo by steed media service

MABILI Kregg Ajamu is a man with a message. As the front man and founder of the funk/soul outfit Rhythm Republik, the Brooklyn native has been using his music to deliver his message of consciousness to the African American community for over a decade. And to MABILI, there’s no better way to deliver it than through the power of music.

“There’s no point in me doing what I’m doing if it’s not about something progressive. There are five billion love songs,” he says. “But if there’s so much love in the world, then we would see more evidence of it. You and I both know that somebody’s gonna go hungry tonight and somebody’s gonna get evicted tonight. Who speaks for them?” Since its inception, MABILI has positioned Rhythm Republik to be that voice. The group has shared the stage with acts such as The Last Poets, Julie Dexter, Fertile Ground and more. They’ve also helped raise $10,000 towards the legal defense fund for current death row inmate and former Black Panther member Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Although MABILI knew that being an independent artist would be challenging at times, he knew it was best route for the sake of his message. “The more I learned about what I like to call ‘The Matrix,’ the less I liked about it. I didn’t want to be a part of that. I take pride in pushing forth with who I am with the Republik,” he explains.

With that in mind, MABILI draws inspiration from the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire’s Maurice White. “He wanted to do music that spoke to his generation with depth. That’s [the legacy] we leave behind,” MABILI says. “If we don’t do that, then in my opinion, we’re not doing our job.” –ivory m. jones

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