Reggae artists KALI GRN, Blvk H3ro, and 5 Star Celestial lent their vocals to the remix of popular Ras-I song “Know Herb” for a special 4/20 commemoration.
April 20 is universally recognized as National Weed Day and cannabis users everywhere blissfully toast with bongs, blunts, and chalices. Music artists like Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa are regular participants in the annual cannabis holiday festivities while their music catalog also offers a wide selection of tunes to honor the hemp plant.
In Jamaica, which is home to an annual Cannabis Fest, reggae fans and marijuana enthusiasts are no stranger to the 4/20 celebration. Reggae artist Ras-I added to the 4/20 selection when he released his popular smoke anthem “Know Herb” in 2018. Following the superb reception to the song, the reggae singer decided to revive the track in the form of a remix for this 4/20. The “Know Herb” remix and accompanying visuals feature a host of budding artists who have all in some way garnered major attention through their musical performances.
Similarly to the original song, Ras-I kicks off the track before KALI GRN enters the scene on the first verse of the remix with a kind of dub-poetry-old-school-reggae-fused delivery that keeps listeners clinging to every word and change to his flow. KALI’s popular “Recreational Herbs” mixtape is still lauded as one of the best weed song compilations to date so he was without a doubt a perfect fit for this project. Who better than “KALI GRN [who] cut di kali clean” like Bounty Killer once said.
Fast-rising reggae vocalist Blvk H3ro blesses the track with his incredible pipes next. The “Herb” hitmaker joins his collaborators on the second verse of the song after his signature tone introduces him before he could. H3ro penned the second verse to be just as fire as the rest with impeccable vocal runs, versatile flows, and potent lyrics.
Ras-I returns with the hook and his verse delivering tantalizing vocals that as usual are as smooth as butter. The original song maker and talented musician who has producer credits together with Drew Keys(Haze St. Dub) basically grew up in the studio watching some of our time’s most revered reggae artists like Stephen Marley lay one on the beat. This brilliant remix was largely in part to his creative genius and ear for musicality. The music video for the song which was shot by Duane Phillips and edited by Maya Wilkinson was also directed by Ras-I as clearly, there is nothing this man cannot do.
Ras-I created a smooth transition to calm down the track a bit before 5 Star Celestial takes it away with his insane word-play and politically conscious lyrics.
“From knee height I been a light green/Never wait pon nuh government tell me light green/Now me and my queen a hol’ di night steam ina di quarantine/I don’t trust these leaders/Dem repping Rome/Comin’ like some real Caesars/That’s why dem seize di trees – police seizures/When dem know di trees dem seize can cease seizures/Please believe,” 5 Star Celestial expresses on the track.
Whether you’re celebrating 4/20 or not, I highly recommend that you add this easy to love song to your playlist. Listen to “Know Herb” take two on all platforms and check out the official music video on Ras-I Musique’s YouTube channel today.
