04.19.17
In just a couple of weeks, Brother Ali's new album All The Beauty In This Whole Life will be here. Check out the detailed packaging before its May 5th release, featuring cover art by eL Seed!
Physical and digital pre-order options are available NOW through your outlet of choice: https://rse.lnk.to/AllTheBeauty
PLUS - If you pre-order from Fifth Element, you can bundle your order with exclusive merch, get an instant download of "Own Light (What Hearts Are For)", and receive an autographed screen print!
Brother Ali discusses the concept of All The Beauty In This Whole Life, what the album means to him, where he found inspiration, and the talented people involved in bringing this beautiful project together. Read his story below:
"One of Rhymesayers' greatest strengths as a label is the intention and thought they put into every detail of the physical presentation of records and cd's. They honor the music that we make by ensuring that it's preserved on beautiful pieces of art, fit to be saved as collector's items. The visual artistic accompaniment to my new album is particularly meaningful to me.
The cover is a painting by world famous French Tunisian graffiti artist, eL Seed. He's known for marrying the profound beauty and meaning of Islamic Arabic Calligraphy with the raw power of Hip Hop era street art in a way that's extremely electric. The title All The Beauty in This Whole Life was inspired by a poem by my favorite living poet and dear friend, Amir Sulaiman. It was translated into Arabic by another of my teachers and friends, Usama Canon to be Al Jamaal Al Mutlaq, which literally means The Breathtaking Beauty of The Entire Creation.
The colors throughout the packaging are inspired by those of the Alhambra fortress in Granada, Spain where my wife and I studied "Beauty is The Splendor of Truth" with Dr Umar Faruq Abd Allah. The photos inside the packaging were taken by Ismael Romero Sanchez in the hills outside of Granada in a place called Rosalles.
You'll also notice classical Islamic geometry throughout the packaging, adorned with arabesque ornamentation. This was crafted exclusively for this project by my brother Daud Sutton, a British convert to Islam who's a tremendous Hip Hop head.
The english lettering was done by Qasim Arif, and Rhymesayers in-house design master, Alex Everson, pulled the entire package together incredibly. I'm extremely grateful for the fact that this presentation conveys the spirit, beauty and meaning of not only the music Ant and I made, but the community of people who inspired it.
My deep hope is that this project brings you as much joy as it's brought us to craft it."
-Brother Ali
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