If you're late and you didn't know it's going DOWN in Egypt… it's going DOWN.  Citizens are challenging the despotic rule of President Hosni Mubarak.  Since the 25th of January, unrest has engulfed the city of Cairo as protesters demonstrate for freedom, civil rights, and relief from poverty.  You can get the official journalist rundown on the state of affairs at the Huffignton Post , but the scenario is unprecedented with events such as internet & phone service being shut down throughout Egypt as the drama continues to unfold. 

Fela, John, Paul, George & Ringo, The AfroBeatles, come together once again; this time to pay homage to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the celebration of his life and work.

Fela offers "Beasts of No Nation" as the groove; a perfect sonic backdrop for the 1963 March on Washington where King delivers his iconic "I Have A Dream" speech. 

"We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Ironically "Come Together" was the last song The Beatles cut in the studio together.

"Come Together" Lyrics

The afroBeatles concept came out of an IM conversation between myself and my good writer-firend, Kris Ex (50 Cent Book, Rolling Stone, XXL, The Source, Deus Machina Ex).  Kris popped up one morning in the last week of 2010 and said, "I'd really love to hear Beatles melodies over Fela grooves". Despite my own many wranglings with remixes, reinterpretations, and mashups of Fela's works (Fela! The Musical Zombie Remix, Michael Jackson vs. Fela Kuti: The King Meets The President In Africa), I was surprised that I hadn't at least thought of the idea of a Beatles and Fela pairing.

But how could I not have?  After all, the classic "with the beatles" cover had been "comped" early in hip-hop via Public Enemy / The Bomb Squad's release of Young Teenagers featuring my Marksmen brother, Kamron.  And the MJFELA.com project had me considering the juxtaposition of genre Kings.  In any case, I hadn't but, given Kris' point of inspiration, the cover concept for afroBeatles fell into place.

Exo, big ups for the idea homie.  

Perfect for your interactive afrobeatle experience.  Cop that!  only $6.95 (in 1960!)