Vocalist Kara Mack gives an anthological review of Black music, ranging from traditional African themes to contemporary R&B in this ambitious project. She has a warm and attractive, quite earnest voice, not unlike the guileless Lizz Wright. When she sings, you believe her, and that’s what makes this wide ranging album work so well.
A piece like “Djarabi” is a Maliian piece dedicated to the Lion King of the Mali Empire, and with it Mack earnestly sings accompanied by the haunting kora. Across the ocean, “Black Man” is a hopping reggae piece, while modern hip hop is prevalent in the title track. You can feel Mack’s pulse on the vulnerable “Je Ne Sais Pas” as well as “Love Me” and while the instruments change through each song, the conviction never does.