BioDefender of Roots, Protector of Soul
Toussaint’s vocal versatility will captivate any unsuspecting listener and deliver his proud message straight to the heart. His Indiana childhood spent singing gospel and performing in Mid-Western churches with his family laid a solid musical and spiritual foundation on which he continues to build. Toussaint is a dynamic independent artist with a powerful voice, a serious message, and undeniable talent. Whether performing on stage or working with youth groups, Toussaint is steady in his mission to build a community of music lovers ready for change.
Toussaint’s current projects draw on his commitment to activism and showcase not only his artistic and lyrical skills, but also his tireless drive. 2012 finds Toussaint bursting at the seams creatively with an onslaught of new material soon to be hitting the masses. “Where I Lead” is a throwback analog reggae album produced jointly between I Dwell and Gatorwood Productions and was recently released on 4/20/2012. It features cameos from reggae legends Mikey General and Kulcha Knox Dixon.
With Berklee College of Music professor Matt Jensen and timbalero Jose Clausell (Eddie Palmieri) Rebel Tumbao is an afro-cuban ensemble gearing up to move from the studio to the stage later on this year.
And in a different vein “Dear Mama Earth”, a modernly smooth soul-reggae sound with an environmental message created with young powerhouse producer Brian McKenna from NYC is also slated for release later this year. Toussaint has also joined forces with Amandla and has an album with them in the works called “Power Link” which will appear this year as well. And yes, yet another project is near completion with a group called SOL out of Maryland. Let this be a warning, the funk is back!
When Toussaint writes a song about a personal subject, his delivery will transform the personal into something that is universally human and easily accessible. However, the global African and the African American experience are the thematic underpinnings for all his lyrics. His 2011 mixtape produced by Relic Secure and Secure Dem Sound titled the African Soul Exchange coupled American soul classics made famous by Marvin Gaye, Donnie Hathaway, and Bill Withers with Jamaican roots rhythms to gel thousands of years of history into a single auditory treat, paying homage to a collective heritage while proving that it hasn’t all been done before. In 2010 he splashed onto the reggae scene with his first solo album “Black Gold” put out by St. Croix based I Grade Records. “Black Gold” stood out as unique , was called “soul-roots,” and quickly rose in the reggae charts catching the attention of reviewers and listeners worldwide.
“…Call it whatever the hell you want to, it’s very well done and while I have come across a few better albums in 2010, I haven’t come across many and I most certainly haven’t seen any more FASCINATING than the wonder which is ”Black Gold”. Very well done.”
Achis Reggae Blog August 2010
In 2006, after five years of making a name for himself and carving out his niche in the Boston, Massachusetts music scene, Toussaint joined forces with the band Soulive. As their lead singer Toussaint wrote and recorded the album “No Place Like Soul”. The album was released in 2007 on the Stax label and took Toussaint around the world to share the stage with the likes of Isaac Hayes, The Rolling Stones, The Dave Matthews Band, and John Mayer among others.
Message From Toussaint
NYE Celebration of Kindness and Compassion: Radical Generosity
A Radical generosity is the third in a triumvirate of philosophical principles that form the
foundation for all the work put forward by Toussaint Liberator in and through all of his
different projects. Radical generosity is something different than philanthropy.
Philanthropy can actually be seen as the antithesis of radical generosity. You see,
philanthropy is based on a look at me and look at what I am doing for these people
over here while I smash these people’s necks over there. It is the age old bandaid for
capitalistic cannibalism. Rockefeller and many others were champions of philanthropy.
Not to say there haven’t been those with good hearts throughout history. To be sure
there are a great many of us who have benefited from this institution within
capitalism. Radical generosity is different. It is the gamble we make that our kindness
and compassion has the power to change our surroundings for the better.
It is not based on social status. Nor is it another reason to have a
party. It is where you recognize your own blessings individually and you realize the
responsibility you have to others. Why is it radical? Because the majority of the people
affected by calamity in this world are affected because of their relationship to the
current power structure. In other words, it is those of us that exist on the margins of
society. The Zencis, the niggas, the spics, the blacks, the muslims, the
gays, the poor, the sufferers. We are the ones who endure the suffering. I was talking
with my friend Spence and he mentioned the parable in the Bible where Jesus is talking
to the people about judgment and says to them how can you call out the mote, or
speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye when you have a big ol two by four beam in
your own? If I might spin the meaning of this parable a bit, we all are walking around
here with a beam in our eye. We still have to overstand that our beam is different from
someone else’s and the parts of us unaffected by the beam are valuable to others
within the community. To take it even further, we are living as poor people in one of
the richest places in the world. We are more than blessed. And we have a job to do. We
cannot depend on government to save us. But we can depend on each other. Join us in
our pledge to be the change we want to see in the world.
Gatorwood Upreach and Zenci United are coming together with Spark of Love to bring art and radical generosity
together to make a lasting impact.
This new years eve, come to a different type of celebration. Come to a celebration of kindness and compassion. We are gathering at the
CORINTHIAN HALL @ 523 Franklin Street, Melrose, MA 02176
DECEMBER 31ST
you can find all the information you need at the link below.
We have teamed up with Direct Relief, a very transparent and well-vetted organization that does incredible work worldwide. Their efforts in helping the disadvantaged of the world is well documented on their website, www.directrelief.org. I am very excited about this opportunity because it is one thing to post things on Facebook about the terrible politics and foreign policy involved, which i have done to the dismay of a few fans, and quite another to mobilize an effort to help. I am so grateful that i have been presented with this opportunity to “Do My Job” as my song says, and stop complaining! I was approached after one of the regular shows at the Beehive with Scotch Bonnet by Professor Frank Ricardo and it was immediately apparent to me that he was a genuine individual with a real desire to help people. That was how this campaign was born. This event on NYE is the first in a series of events that we will be putting together over the next several months capitulating with a big event on MAY 24, 2015. Please join us in this effort. Despite what you may have been able to glean from news stories and the like, the real problem in the fight against Ebola and HIV is rudimentary medical supplies. If people stricken with the disease had access to simple IV equipment for fluid transfusions which is one of the main tools in fighting the diseases, then there would be a much greater survival rate. Even if you cannot attend the first event, we are asking that you still make donations where designated at the link below. ALL PROCEEDS GO TO DIRECT RELIEF! Tix are $50. If you make a donation on the page, your email will be shown to us and you will get your tix emailed to you. The nights music will be incredible with a beautiful reggae soul set by Toussaint Liberator and members of the Scotch Bonnet Crew. It will also feature the selections of one of Zimbabwe’s finest, DJ Bonte Conte, giving us a nice selection of Zouk, Hi-life and Reggae music to bring in the New Year correctly. Come Rock with us!
December 31st
Corinthian Hall @ 523 Franklin St. Melrose, MA 02176