Michael Franti & Spearhead

Since his days in the 1980s as a member of avant-garde group the Beatnigs while in his early twenties, Michael Franti became an angry young rapper with a political, socially conscious bent in his next group, the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy. With his later group Spearhead, he channeled his social unease and desire for change and merged them with his love for music, particularly old-school R&B, soul, reggae and hip-hop. Beginning in the 90s, the group earned a reputation as a dynamic and beloved live act and released highly rated albums like 2001's Stay Human and 2008's All ...