Rap legend Masta Ace is well over 30 years in the hip-hop game, but he’s still finding new wells of inspiration to tap into. The latest is the production of Canadian hip-hop beat maker Marco Polo, with whom Ace has linked up to form a new group and produce a full collaborative album, A Breukelen Story. The first release from the upcoming project is aptly titled “Brooklyn” and pays homage to the storied New York borough that birthed and nurtured the careers of Ace and dozens of other hip-hop icons.
The video is shot in a simple, documentary style, following Masta Ace as he tours Brooklyn’s streets with his teenage daughter and posts up at some of the borough’s classic landmarks to trade bars with longtime friends and collaborators Smif-N-Wessun. Marco tags along the whole way, popping up as a diner cook and Ace’s exuberant hype man. Photos of Brooklyn rap legends from Foxy Brown and Lil Kim to Fabolous and Maino get shout-outs, as well as the late, great Biggie and Sean Price.
The 14-track A Breukelen Story is due November 9 on Fat Beats Records and features appearances from Pharoahe Monch, Styles P, Lil Fame of MOP, and Marlon Craft.
