Hip-hop fans can get ready for a new album from Oahu-based collective Super Groupers. Core members Illis It, Navid Najafi and Ohtoro bring an authenticity to the genre with the backgrounds from which they come – Najafi is an ex-political refugee from Tehran, Illis It acknowledges he used to get into lots of trouble, and Ohtoro is an ex-high school math teacher. Turning things around, overcoming struggle and getting beyond the barriers that hold you back are the lynchpins of hip-hop, and there is plenty of that in the history of the Super Groupers. Add in a dash of “oceanic urbanism” and you have an interesting group, right out of the gate. But enough about that history. Let’s talk about the history of music delivery, and more specifically, Super Groupers. As we previewed tracks from Super Groupers album, we thought its warmth would shine on vinyl. There are layered instruments in songs and some of them are not typical hip-hop fare. “Over Undr” has a Middle Eastern vibe and “The What If's?” delves in that direction as well, in more of a sleek, pop way. The album also features guest production by Exile (Emanon, Blu & Exile, Dirty Science) and Cheapshot (Fort Minor, Styles of Beyond) and guest vocals by singer-songwriter Montclaire and NYC resident Kimmy V. “Learn To Swim” represents the struggle to re-discover self. The story of the Super Groupers basically starts with a grouper fish that decides he no longer wants to be a fish. He is over being a fish and feels he would be happier being human. He believes that working on Wall Street and striking it rich would solve all of his problems. He moves to NYC with determination and quickly adapts to human and city life. He ferociously pursues success and people around him eventually stop questioning why he seems so different. They all know something isn’t right with him, but are too intimidated to bring it up. The wealth and success infests his ego so much, he even forgets he was once a fish. After many years of living in this external world, a sense of longing for what was lost begins to brew inside him. He realizes he has forgotten his true self and even how to swim, hence the title of our album. Now the Grouper embarks on a journey back to self, learning once again how to swim. The main themes we address in our writing are personal and spiritual expansion, political and social awareness, self-discovery and empowerment, as well as self-motivation to uplift community. We promote unity through compassion and acceptance of diversity.