Slum Beach Posse isn’t your typical reggae rock band. They’re more like a musical family of surfers, outsiders and longtime friends, brought together by a shared love of music and a creative chemistry that can’t be manufactured. Think Wu-Tang Clan meets Southern California surf culture, with producer DENM playing the role of RZA.
Now, the collective has returned with their sophomore album, Slum Beach Posse Vol. 2, an 11-track collection released through Slum Beach Records in partnership with Controlled Substance Sound Labs, the independent artist distribution division of Silverback Music.
The album reunites DENM, Landon McNamara, Jesse James Pariah and Benny Ranks, while expanding the collective with appearances from Kanaka Fyah and Boostive.
“Definitely, definitely embraces that old like Wu-Tang Clan type of hip hop,” Jesse James Pariah told ThePier.org in a recent interview. “Like yeah, big, big crew up on the stage. Like we don’t care. We’re vibing.”
The group’s debut was born during a week-long recording session at McNamara’s family home on Hawaii’s North Shore. What started as friends hanging out, surfing and making music eventually became Slum Beach Posse Vol. 1, a breakout release that has since accumulated more than 40 million combined streams.
For the follow-up, the crew returned to Oahu with a little more experience, a bigger budget and absolutely no intention of changing what made the first record special.
“The exact same recipe and equation we did before, except more perfected and better,” Pariah explained.
This time, DENM rented a house next door to McNamara’s family home, giving the group space to live together, surf and create without the pressure of a traditional recording schedule.
“The goal was to make music, but there were no expectations set, which is always nice, you know, because every day is different,” Pariah said.
The first day was spent hanging out in the water. By the second morning, the creative floodgates had opened.
“A beat popped up and I started writing to it and then I started singing to it and the boys were into it,” Pariah recalled. “And then next thing you know, the album started getting created.”
The sessions quickly turned into five days of nearly nonstop songwriting and recording, capturing the loose chemistry that has become the Posse’s signature.
“‘Sun Come’ was the first of 11 songs that make up Slum Beach Posse Vol. 2. The album was recorded on Oahu, and we really got to dive deep and spend intentional time creating this record,” DENM explained. “We’re thankful for these songs and for each other. It’s a very special project for us, and we’re stoked to finally share it with everyone.”
While the collective thrives on collaboration, DENM remains its creative architect, guiding the sessions while allowing each artist’s personality to shine.
“He’s definitely got that RZA vibe for sure,” Pariah said. “I’ve worked with other producers and yeah, he’s one of a kind for sure. He hasn’t hit his prime yet. Let’s just say that.”
That chemistry carries into songs like “Sun Come” and “The Ocean,” the latter using the changing tides as a metaphor for navigating life’s highs and lows.
“If you really watch the ocean through the seasons and the years, you learn a lot about the ebbs and flows of life,” DENM explained. “Some days are warm and calm, some days are cold and stormy, and some days are pure fun. You just have to learn to ride the tides as they come and go. Life is like the ocean, so we wrote a song about it.”
For Pariah, Slum Beach Posse represents something considerably deeper than another musical project. He credits DENM with encouraging him to pursue music when he was struggling with insecurities and finding his identity.
“If it wasn’t for Slum Beach Posse and Denim, I wouldn’t even be in music,” he admitted.
Perhaps the strongest endorsement of the new album comes from Pariah himself, who says the record has become the soundtrack to his everyday life.
“If you find me driving out of my car, I’m not listening to other shit. I’m listening to the album, and it’s usually not even songs I’m on,” he said.
With Vol. 2, Slum Beach Posse proves that sometimes the best music comes from simply putting the right people in the same room and letting the magic happen. No egos, no expectations, just a group of friends making music they genuinely love.
As Pariah confidently puts it, “This album is going to be popping for sure.”
Watch the full interview with Jesse James Pariah about the new Slum Beach Posse:
