"To Feel Humanity And To Feel Love": Preview Fantastic Negrito's 'Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?'

[Cover photo credit to Lyle Owerko]

We've been watching out for the single and video releases for Grammy Award-winner Fantastic Negrito's new album, Have You Lost Your Mind?, and now we have both the CD and the vinyl release in our Tower shop via Cooking Vinyl and the artist’s own Blackball Universe.

In addition to the release of his third LP, Fantastic Negrito is celebrating being featured in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Social Justice Exhibit. His cover and docu-narrative, “In The Pines,” and the Gibson guitar he played in the video are currently on display "alongside other musical trailblazers speaking up for the cause of equality".

The following video preview for the new album has also been released:

Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? fuses elements of Hip-Hop, R&B, Funk, Soul, and Rock ‘n Roll.

Reputedly inspired by and reminiscent of the socio-political albums coming from Black America in the late 1960s and into the 70s, the album explores the struggle and complexities of mental health issues while continuing a "long running lyrical examination of America’s increasingly broken social and political state of affairs".

Fantastic Negrito comments:

“On the first two albums I wrote about broad topics. The proliferations of gun violence, the evil NRA, gentrification and homelessness, pharmaceutical companies that prey upon the people. On this album I wanted to write about people I knew, people I grew up with, people whose lives I could personally affect, and whose lives have impacted me. It was the hardest album I’ve ever written.

What do I want to say to these people, and to the world? If I had the chance, I would tell them the pain they are feeling, the darkness they are going through is temporary – especially if you consider the span of a human life. I would tell them we can’t fight these obstacles alone. We need each other. Get offline. Talk to people. I would tell them I am here for you. We can’t hide from the pain. We need to look right at it. To really look into someone’s eyes is to feel their power and their vulnerability, to feel humanity, and to feel love.”