Southern California roots reggae mainstays Arise Roots have returned with “Watch Over I,” a new collaboration with Jamaican singer Rik Jam released August 28 through Ineffable Records.
The single continues a new stretch of music from Arise Roots following July’s “Live Today,” while connecting the Los Angeles reggae veterans with one of the younger voices emerging from Jamaica’s contemporary roots scene.
Arise Roots have spent their career building music around the traditional foundations of roots reggae while working within Southern California’s expansive modern reggae community. Rik Jam, born Ronaldo Ricketts and raised in Kingston, has similarly developed his work around positive and conscious songwriting rooted in Jamaican reggae tradition.
On “Watch Over I,” those two paths come together.
The song marks the second new Arise Roots single of their current 2026 run, following “Live Today,” which arrived July 17. That track centered on appreciating the present rather than constantly waiting for something better in the future, with the band describing it as a reminder that tomorrow is never guaranteed.
“Watch Over I” continues the group’s return to releasing new original material and opens the door further on what appears to be a fresh creative chapter for the band.
Arise Roots Continue a Long Southern California Reggae Tradition
Arise Roots have been part of the Southern California reggae landscape for well over a decade, developing a reputation for a sound that takes the traditions of Jamaican roots reggae seriously without attempting to simply recreate the past.
The 15-track album brought together an extensive group of collaborators from throughout reggae, including Kyle McDonald of Slightly Stoopid, Eric Rachmany of Rebelution, Lutan Fyah, Nattali Rize and Turbulence.
Tracks such as “Come and Get It,” featuring McDonald and Rachmany, and “Lions in the Jungle,” featuring Lutan Fyah, Turbulence and Nattali Rize, demonstrated the position Arise Roots had developed between the American reggae circuit and the wider international roots community.
The band followed Pathways with its dub companion Dubways in 2023 and continued performing throughout the years that followed, including appearances alongside artists from several generations of reggae.
Now, the arrival of “Live Today” and “Watch Over I” brings the focus back to new Arise Roots material.
Rik Jam brings his own roots background to “Watch Over I.”
Born Ronaldo Ricketts in Kingston’s Fletcher’s Land community, the singer began performing through church before joining his high school choir as a teenager. Music became increasingly important after the death of his mother, and he eventually began working professionally with producer and EarthKry keyboardist Phillip McFarlane.
From early in his career, Rik Jam has emphasized positive, conscious lyrics rather than chasing whatever style happens to be popular at a given moment.
That approach culminated in his debut album The Genesis, released in August 2025. The project gave Rik Jam a larger platform after years of steadily developing his sound through singles and performances, and he has continued releasing music into 2026.
Arise Roots have long centered soulful performances, roots instrumentation and messages meant to carry beyond the immediate moment. Rik Jam has built his own catalog around many of those same ideas from the Jamaican side of the genre.
For Arise Roots, “Watch Over I” also adds momentum to what has already become a significant return to new music. Six years removed from Pathways, the combination of “Live Today” in July and “Watch Over I” in August suggests a band actively moving into its next phase rather than simply looking back at its established catalogue.
And after years spent connecting Southern California reggae with artists including Slightly Stoopid, Rebelution, Lutan Fyah, Nattali Rize and Turbulence, bringing Rik Jam into that circle feels like a natural continuation of the band’s collaborative history.
“Watch Over I” by Arise Roots and Rik Jam is out now through Ineffable Records.
