"Fear is the mind killer, fear is the little death that brings total obliteration"

From the first line of the first track (a quote from dune) we see the thesis clearly: escape the mental prison! With styles reminiscent of Saul Williams or even Gil Scott Heron, veteran west Philly activist, DJ, and Poet brings his first collection of work "Infinite Tenacity" to us with the help of producer Tremain Fisher. whose eclectic styles help frame the diverse yet vibrant visions of Mshinda.

Mshinda, who many of you probably know from events like Poems not Prisons at the A-space or the bi-monthly open mic at Queen of Sheba (succinctly titled "Inspiration"). The album covers a lot of ground - it is as diverse as life itself - one of the primary focal points however is social justice, specifically issues surrounding the prison industrial complex. This shadows Mshinda's own personal struggles from the shackles of this very injustice system. One of my favorite tracks, "Red Pill" was partially written during an impromptu studio session at my house when Mshinda had just gotten released from State custody. Other tracks such as "Cough Syrup" and "County Blues" expose the hipocrisy of the prison system, showing that it is incapable of reforming criminal mentality but actually has a hardening effect on many detainees and drives them to further acts of illegal behavior. "406", one of the strongest tracks, features an amazing performance by Alex Smith on the second verse (who coincidentally introduced Mshinda to Tremain). The number refers to the amount of confirmed homicides during 2006, when the piece was recorded. This obscene murder rate was just a prominent symptom in an otherwise diseased Philadelphian social landscape. It firmly illustrates the desperate need for drastic change in the local and national policies of Law enforcement, especially in the urban residential community. As if all that wasn't enough, Mshinda brings the effort home with track 13, featuring the renowned slam poet and former Poems not Prisons organizer Walidah Imarisha in a sobering look at domestic violence, an issue too often ignored. All in all, this is a well put together package, even featuring cover art done by Mshinda himself. A definite crowd pleaser...

 Available directly from Mshinda @ www.myspace.com/mshinda 
www.myspace.com/wujo44