New York, NY (July 2007) – Talib Kweli, the Brooklyn wordsmith, returns with his eagerly awaited sixth album Eardrum, in stores on August 21 on Kweli's own label, Blacksmith Music and Warner Bros. Records. With this career defining new album, Kweli mixes hard hitting beats with inventive rhymes that serve to not only entertain, but also to educate.

Hailed by USA Today as "Hip-Hops most inventive lyricist" the MC's penchant for being a lyrical mastermind is reflected in his album title, aptly called Eardrum. Talib explains, "The image of the ear and of the drum are powerful enough by themselves, but when you put them together, it's an instrument that's in your body that helps you hear. They're also two very simple, yet powerful words."

From start to finish Eardrum delivers career-defining work from Kweli that showcases his advanced lyricism and knack for picking beats that resonate long after the song ends. Eardrum shows Kweli's versatility ranging from his new single, "Hot Thing" produced by will.i.am to the alluring strings of "Soon the New Day" featuring the sultry vocals of Grammy Award winning jazz artist, Norah Jones to the brassy horns of "Country Cousins" which feature the underground kings of the south, UGK. Other guests on the album include: Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, KRS-ONE, Blacksmith artist Jean Grae and Musiq Soulchild.

Eardrum boasts innovative production work by such vanguard artists as Kanye West, who worked on Kweli's 2002's gold-certified Quality and 2004's The Beautiful Struggle; Black-Eyed Peas founder will.i.am; and Black Star producer Hi-Tek, who also collaborated with Kweli on the gold-certified 2000 album Reflection Eternal. Additional production highlights include New York rapper Kwame and multi-instrumentalist/producer Madlib, whose previous collaboration delivered the free digital –only EP, Liberation (2007).

The talented wordsmith is preparing to hit the road for the Rock the Bells Festival and his own summer tour. As one of the most toured Hip-Hop artists (at least 250 dates a year) fans can expect to hear Kweli perform new tracks from Eardrum including "Listen" and "More or Less" as well as classics from past albums.

Listen:
"Hot Thing": Quicktime Hi | Quicktime Lo | Windows Hi | Windows Lo
"Say Something": Quicktime Hi | Quicktime Lo | Windows Hi | Windows Lo

Catch Talib Kweli On Rock The Bells Tour Featuring Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, Cypress Hill, Mos Def and Rage Against The Machine (select dates):
July 26th Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center
Jul;y 27th Baltimore, MD - Sonar *
July 28th New York, NY Randall's Island
July 29th New York, NY Randall's Island
July 31st Winston-Salem, NC - Ziggy's *
August 1st Charlotte, NC - Neighborhood Theater
August 2nd Atlanta, GA - Hi-Fi Buys Amphitheater
August 4th Miami, FL - Bayfront Park Amphitheater
August 5th New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues *
August 7th Dallas, TX - Smirnoff Music Center
August 8th Austin, TX - Emo's *
August 10th Tempe, AZ - The Brickhouse *
August 11th San Bernardino, CA - Glen Helen Hyundai Pavilion
August 12th San Diego, CA - Coors Amphitheater
August 15th Seattle, WA - Showbox *
August 16th Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom *
August 17th Bend, OR - Domino Room *
August 18th San Francisco - CA - McCovey Cove
August 19th Sacramento, CA - Sleep Train Amphitheater
August 21st Salt Lake City, UT - USANA Amphitheater
August 22nd Denver, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheater
August 25th Minneapolis, MN - Metrodome
August 26th Chicago, IL - Charter One Pavilion
August 28th Cleveland, OH - House Of Blues *
August 29th Detroit, MI - DTE Energy Music theater
* Denotes Talib Kweli headlining dates

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