| SOJA | |
| Landscape: | yes |
| Origin: | Arlington, Virginia, U.S. |
| Genre: | Reggae, reggae rock[1] |
| Years Active: | 1997–present |
| Website: | sojamusic.com |
| Current Members: | Jacob Hemphill Bob Jefferson Ryan "Byrd" Berty Ken Brownell Patrick O'Shea Hellman Escorcia Rafael Rodriguez Trevor Young |
SOJA (an acronym of Soldiers of Jah Army) is an American reggae band based in Arlington, Virginia. Formed in 1997, their music is currently produced under ATO Records. The eight-member band has released a number of singles, albums, and DVDs, including SOJA – Live in Hawaii. Their third full-length album Born in Babylon peaked at number 11 on the Top Heatseekers chart, while their 2012 album Strength to Survive topped the Billboard Reggae Album Chart. The band continues to tour and record new music.
Before the band was founded, the members had performed together on and off for some years. Frontman Jacob Hemphill (vocals, guitar) and Bob Jefferson (bass) met in first grade shortly after Hemphill had returned with his family from living in Africa, where Jacob's father was the IMF resident representative in Monrovia, Liberia. Hemphill and Jefferson then met Ryan Berty (drums), and Ken Brownell (percussion) in middle school and high school.
SOJA released a dub version of their Peace in a Time of War album titled, Dub in a Time of War in 2005.[2]
See also: Get Wiser. In 2006, the band released Get Wiser, their second full-length album, and their first on the record label Innerloop. It debuted in the Top 10 Reggae Albums on iTunes and has remained in the top 100 since its release. The album release party was held on January 6, 2006 at The State Theatre in Falls Church, Virginia. It consisted of two separate sets, with the opening set being older songs, and the second set being Get Wiser in its entirety. The show was recorded and was released as a DVD, known as the Get Wiser Live DVD, on November 21, 2007.
In January 2008, they released an EP titled, Stars and Stripes. That same month in Hawaii, SOJA recorded their live performances in Oahu, Maui, and Kailua-Kona. Those performances were released as a DVD, known as the SOJA – Live in Hawaii, on January 8, 2009.
The band had released one major album and toured largely in Virginia. A great promotional effort by Nick Yuen in the release of their new live album Live in Virginia.
See also: Born in Babylon. SOJA released their third full-length album Born in Babylon on August 21, 2009, on DMV Records. It peaked at number 11 on the Top Heatseekers chart, and reached number 38 on the Independent Albums chart. Trevor Young, formerly SOJA's guitar tech, became lead guitar and backup vocals in late 2011.
See also: Strength to Survive.
The band released their fourth album, Strength to Survive on January 31, 2012, their first album on ATO Records. It sold over 50,000 copies, and topped the Billboard Reggae Album Chart in both 2012 and 2013. It was also number 9 for the year end Reggae Albums chart on Billboard, and reached number 36 on the Billboard 200, as well as number 2 on the Independent Albums chart. It received 3.5/5 stars from Allmusic, with the website praising the band's growth as songwriters and Hemphill's vocal developments. While Allmusic criticized the non-reggae acoustic tracks at the end of the album, it stated that overall "You've got one of the best American reggae albums of the year."
In 2018, SOJA booked some festivals in the U.S. and toured in Europe in the summer.
On May 22, 2020, SOJA was featured as one of many reggae bands on Collie Buddz riddim album, Cali Roots Riddim 2020 with their single, "A Brief History", which was produced by Collie Buddz and mixed by Stick Figure's touring guitarist, producer Johnny Cosmic.
The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums charts.[6] It also debuted at No. 34 on Billboard's Current Albums Sales chart, and No. 52 on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart.[7] Billboard describes the album as, "Contemporary reggae with a forthright social conscience."
According to SOJA's Facebook page, Beauty in the Silence is being considered for the 64th Annual Grammy Awards for Best Reggae Album. Also, their song "Press Rewind" featuring Collie Buddz and J Boog is being considered for Best Global Music Performance.
In December 2021, SOJA was nominated for the fans-choice "2021 Album of the Year" award by Surf Roots TV & Radio for their album Beauty in the Silence. Voting was determined by Facebook, Instagram and Twitter users. This was the band's first time being nominated with the reggae rock streaming TV channel on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Roku.[8]
On April 3, 2022, SOJA won their first Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album for 2021's Beauty in the Silence at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.[9] This was their third nomination since 2015. They also made history for being the first American Reggae-Rock group to win the award.[10]
SOJA was one of the many featured reggae rock artists on Crossed Heart Clothing presents Pop Punk Goes Reggae, Vol. 1, which was produced by frontman Nathan Aurora of Iya Terra. The 16-track album was released on September 15, 2023 by Ineffable Records.[11] The band put their reggae spin on a cover of "Sugar We're Goin Down" by Fall Out Boy.
| Album title | Release details | Chart peaks[12] | Certifications | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 200 | US Regg. | US Heat. | US Ind. | |||||
| 1998 |
| — | — | — | — | |||
| 2002 |
| — | — | — | — | |||
| 2004 |
| — | — | — | — | |||
| 2006 |
| — | — | — | — | |||
| 2009 |
| — | — | 11 | 38 | |||
| 2012 |
| 36 | 1 | — | 2 |
| ||
| 2014 |
| 20 | 1 | — | — | |||
| 2017 |
| — | 1 | — | — | |||
| 2021 |
| — | 2 | — | — |
| ||
| Album title | Release details | Chart peaks | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Regg. | ||||
| 2016 |
| 1 |
| EP title | Release details | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 |
| ||
| 2008 |
|
| Song title | Album | |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | "I Don't Wanna Wait"[14] | Born in Babylon |
| 2010 | "I Tried (Don Corleon Remix)" (feat. Gentleman)[15] | 1 track single |
| 2012 | "Not Done Yet"[16] | |
| "Everything Changes" (feat. O Rappa) [17] | ||
| 2013 | "F**k Your System (Jr Blender Mentality RMX)" (feat. J Boog)[18] | |
| "She Still Loves Me" (feat. Collie Buddz)[19] | ||
| "Tell Me" (Jr Blender RMX feat. Richie Campbell)[20] | ||
| 2014 | "I Believe" (feat. Michael Franti and Nahko Bear)[21] | |
| "Your Song" (feat. Damian Marley) | Promo single/ Amid The Noise and Haste | |
| 2017 | "Bad News" | Promo single |
| "More" | Promo single | |
| 2021 | "Press Rewind" (feat. Collie Buddz & J Boog) | Beauty in the Silence |
| "The Day You Came" (feat. Rebelution & UB40) | ||
| "Reason to Live" (feat. Dirty Heads & Nanpa Basico) | ||
| "Jump" (feat. Slightly Stoopid) |
| Title | Release date | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Jah Atmosphere" | 2002 | Peace in a Time of War | |
| "Rasta Courage" | 2002 | Peace in a Time of War | |
| "True Love" | 2002 | Peace in a Time of War | |
| "Open My Eyes" | 2006 | Get Wiser | |
| "You Don't Know Me" | 2006 | Get Wiser | |
| "Decide You're Gone" | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "Here I Am" (feat. Rebelution) | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "I Don't Wanna Wait" | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "I Tried" (feat. Gentleman & Tamika) | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "Losing My Mind" | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "Summer Breeze" | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "Used To Matter" | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "You and Me" (feat. Chris Boomer) | 2009 | Born in Babylon | |
| "Be With Me Now" | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "Everything Changes" (feat. Danakil) | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "Not Done Yet" | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "Nothing Ever Changes" (feat. Gentleman) | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "Tell Me" | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "When We Were Younger" | 2012 | Strength to Survive | |
| "Easier" (feat. Anuhea & J Boog) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "I Believe" (feat. Michael Franti & Nahko) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Lucid Dreams" (feat. Nahko) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Promises and Pills" (feat. Alfred the MC) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Shadow" (feat. Trevor Young) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "She Still Loves Me" (feat. Collie Buddz) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Tear It Down" | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Your Song" (feat. Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley) | 2014 | Amid the Noise and Haste | |
| "Everything To Me" | 2017 | Poetry in Motion | |
| "I Found You" | 2017 | Poetry in Motion | |
| "More" | 2017 | Poetry in Motion | |
| "Moving Stones" | 2017 | Poetry in Motion | |
| "Tried My Best" | 2017 | Poetry in Motion | |
| "A Brief History" (feat. Collie Buddz) | May 22, 2020 | Cali Roots Riddim 2020 (Single) | |
| "It's Funny" (feat. Common Kings & Eli Mac) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Jump" (feat. Slightly Stoopid) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Press Rewind" (feat. Collie Buddz & J Boog) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Reason To Live" (feat. Dirty Heads & Nanpa Basico) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Something to Believe In" (feat. Stick Figure) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "The Day You Came" (feat. Rebelution & Alli Campbell of UB40) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Things You Can't Control" (feat. Trevor Young) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Tis Heart is Mine" (feat. Eric Swanson) | 2021 | Beauty in the Silence | |
| "Sugar We're Goin Down" (Fall Out Boy Reggae Cover) | August 4, 2023 | Pop Punk Goes Reggae, Vol. 1 (Single) |
| Release details | |||
| 2006 |
| ||
| 2009 |
|
| Artist(s) | Notes, role | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Syr Mahber - A SOJA Production | Various (Bobby Lee (SOJA), Luciano, Prezident Brown, Zedicus, Queen Ifrica, Ras Attitude, Jacob Hemphill (SOJA), Sister Carol, Ras Abel, Batch, Tony Rebel, Fear Nuttin Band, Don Carmelo (Gomba Jahbari), Jah Dan & Junior Kelly) | Production and track compilation, released Oct 4, 2008 |