In her 1994 essay “All Together Now,” Texas political legend Barbara Jordan talks about “soul force” as an agent of change. The government can’t fix everything. Instead, small, local work in communities can add up to big, society-wide advances.
Third Root takes this to heart on “Soul Force,” and it’s a truly collaborative effort. The group is made up of three Central Texas hip-hop veterans, including San Antonio’s Easy Lee and Mexican StepGrandfather and Austin’s DJ Chicken George. They team up with fellow Austinites Da’Shade Moonbeam, Riders Against The Storm, Bavu Blakes, and Vocab, while Adrian Quesada (who else?) adds his production wizardry.
With this many team members, there’s a chance of a too-many-cooks situation, but “Soul Force” delivers. Each feature is a callback to Jordan’s words, propped up by some shapeshifting Quesada psychedelia. “If I can’t change the world I can change mine,” Blakes raps, making the song both a call-to-action and a call to start the party.
“Soul Force” appears on Libertad, out October 11.
–Art Levy // hosts, Sundays 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., producer, My KUTX