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Common Kings have been releasing music on their own Island Empire/Mensch House Records label for more than a decade, with their one and (until now only) full-length debut, 2017’s Lost in Paradise, nominated for a Grammy as Best Reggae Album, won that year by Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley. The long-awaited follow-up, aptly named CELEBRATION, follows a series of five songwriting camps around the country (Miami, Hawaii, Orange County, Nashville, L.A.), winnowing down 120 songs to 12 over the course of almost two years during and after the pandemic. From JR’s funky James Brown vocal moves on the dancehall/hip-hop/reggae beat of the opening “Do My Thing” (featuring Royal Blu) – “We wanted to capture the listeners right away,” insists the vocalist – through the vintage ska horns on “Raggamuffin” (with fellow 2017 Best Reggae Album nominee J. Boog making a cameo) – Common Kings’ island rhythms are as seductive as a lazy ocean breeze, with a narrative that is an All-American story with a tropical twist.

“We’ve got two albums’ worth of material, 24 songs in all, finished,” explains guitarist Mata about CELEBRATION, the first of two planned releases, explaining the decision to record in so many locations “was to explore different atmospheres and absorb diverse creative energies.”

“It’s a celebration of doing things our way,” adds Ivan “Uncle Lui,” whose backyard was where the band first met. “We’ve made a lot of things happen in an unconventional, unorthodox way.  It’s a celebration of where we are today.  We’re able to live in so many different musical worlds.”

The title track says it all, about taking that “one shot,” while the infectious “Came Up” (featuring Kabaka Pyramid and SpreadLof) is an autobiographical, hip-hop flavored joint that tells the band’s story (“We came up from Hawaii to the streets of L.A./To Miami where the Kings like to play… From the bottom to the top”).

Said Mata, “That song just came to us in Miami. It’s all about doubling down and betting on ourselves. We put in so much work, we created this lane that never existed. It’s not reggae, it’s not rock, it’s not R&B… It’s just feel-good music.”

Jr.’s keening falsetto characterizes the yearning “Stay with Me,” which offers to fly his lover “to the moon, Saturn and Venus,” while “Wild Out” (featuring Big Body Cisco) is a full-on, let’s get down and dirty party anthem (“If you wanna/You can take it back to my house”).

“That song always catches me off-guard,” says Uncle Liu. “I always think it’s someone else playing. It totally fits the theme of celebration. You can’t help but smile listening to it.”

“City of Champions,” an ode to the group’s adopted hometown of Los Angeles, was a product of a Miami session with Justin Bieber producer Poo Bear as it namechecks “red skies over Melrose and traffic lights on Sunset.”

“Poo Bear is a good friend of ours, just an amazing singer/songwriter/producer,” explains Mata. “We were just looking for something that represents who we are, where we come from. It shows the love we have for Southern California, a Common Kings signature vibe that’s all our own.”

The album ends with the glorious one-two punch of the old-school dancehall toasting of “Queen Majesty” (featuring longtime labelmate Sammy Johnson), probably best heard on one of those booming local Jamaican sound systems and the silky-smooth R&B soul of “Just One of Those Days” (featuring Demarco).

With musical influences that include Van Morrison, Stevie Wonder, George Benson, Jim Croce, Michael Jackson, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Gypsy Kings, Earth Wind and Fire, Bob Marley, Common Kings’ approach brings diverse people together for a good time. There’s also a strong connection with the post-punk ska scene that includes the likes of Sublime, Slightly Stoopid and OGs No Doubt.

It is Jr. King’s vocal range that truly distinguishes Common Kings. “He’s a master impersonator,” says Mata. “He can sing like anyone from Luther Vandross and Prince to Axl Rose and Mick Jagger.”

“We draw from many different kinds of music,” acknowledges Big Rome. “Growing up, I loved the rock-reggae feel.  When I was in high school, I used to love 311, the way they fused the two.”

“We all have diverse musical backgrounds, and bring different elements,” says Ivan aka Uncle Liu, “Which we then fuse together, because Jr. can sing just about anything and everything. Our music has an edge, but with a smooth polished overtone.”

“Our take on reggae is more feel-good, fun and loving, relaxed in that Hawaiian way,” says Jr. “We’re not a political band.”

CELEBRATION is just that for Common Kings…a way to toast more than a decade of musical excellence and have a real good time doing it.

Concludes Jr., “It’s a culmination of our careers, jamming 20 years, raising families, living life and making music, all of it coming together and being able to share that with the world.”