Goya Gumbani by Charles Mensah (Download Hi-Res Assets HERE)
“FireFly" featuring Fatima WATCH: https://ghostly.lnk.to/GG-FireFly/youtube LISTEN: https://ghostly.lnk.to/GG-FireFly
Warlord of the Weejuns PRE–ORDER/PRE-SAVE: https://ghostly.lnk.to/GG-Warlord-Of-The-Weejuns
"Gumbani is helping to revive and reimagine the city’s boom-bap legacy" Crack Magazine
"Spoken word reminiscent of '90s hip-hop greats and South London’s vibrant music scene" NME's 100 List
(January 28th, 2025) - Today, Brooklyn-born, South East London-based rapper Goya Gumbani announces his new album Warlord of the Weejuns, out March 21st via Ghostly International. His first album on his new label, Goya brings a refined artistic vision to Warlord of the Weejuns, carving himself a space in between the two formative musical canons of his life: New York City hip-hop’s storytelling prowess and London’s exciting new Jazz generation, of which he’s a central figure.
Coinciding with the announcement of the album, Goya is also sharing his new single and video, “FireFly,” featuring London-based Swedish soul singer Fatima. The song marks the second offering from Warlord of the Weejuns, following the previously released “Chase The Sunrise”, which featured Yaya Bey, lojii, and Fatima. “FireFly” is a cosmic R&B groove that confronts the raw emotions of a recent breakup, soundtracked by a combination of production contributions from Swarvy, Omari Jazz, Les Lockheart, Zalente, and quickly, quickly.
The album’s title is an ode to Miles Davis, who Goya admires for his fervor for music and the ubiquitous style he brought to every aspect of his life. Goya channels that ambition on this new album, recorded with lush, full-band arrangements that utilize his own voice as part of the instrumentation. With Goya and his sharp, effortlessly smooth delivery leading the way as the album’s tone-setting conductor, he brings in a bevy of musical minds to lay a spacious, radiant collection of musical vignettes that invoke the wordless expressions of jazz and the meditative rhythms of reggae. Threads of affirmation, self-worth, and Black heritage — manifesting knowledge and power from within — run throughout Warlord of the Weejuns. Goya arranged his singular vision with production from Joe Armon-Jones, Swarvy, Franky Bones, Dan Diggers, Alejandro Śanchez, Maxwell Owin, Omari Jazz, Les Lockheart, Zalente and Ghostly labelmate quickly, quickly.
To celebrate the album’s release, Goya will also be hosting two album release shows in New York at MOCADA (Museum of Contemporary African Diasporic Art) on March 22nd and London, at Jazz Café on April 17th.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Goya Gumbani’s relocation to South London in his teens opened a new world of possibilities. Operating within various musical collectives throughout the city, Goya quickly enmeshed himself in London’s buoyant jazz scene as a tastemaker with his renowned NTS show Chicken Foot Soup and as a dynamic performer, having just played Pitchfork Music Fest London with billy woods this past Fall. Goya’s decade-long development as an artist and producer reached a breakthrough when he released his debut self-produced EP Morta & More Doves, dedicated to his sister who passed away in 2018. The release began a prolific period of EPs and mixtapes, with Goya frequently partnering with a single producer for a project. Most recently, Goya dropped Face in the Storm in 2022 and When the Past Bloomed in 2023, featuring contributions from Pink Siifu, John Glacier, Lex Amor, Lord Apex, and others.
Following a much-loved COLORS session, Goya has gained further recognition from industry makers at the intersection of music and fashion, working with the likes of the late designer Virgil Abloh for Louis Vuitton, Nicholas Daley, and Bianca Saunders. Despite his transatlantic upbringing, the flavor of Goya’s work is rooted in the decorated lineage of NYC Hip-Hop, and he stands out as an evocative and boldly vulnerable lyricist.
Listen to “FireFly” and pre-order Warlord of the Weejuns above, and stay tuned for more from Goya Gumbani coming soon. | 
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