After providing some brief details on their upcoming collaborative album last month, representatives for Nas and Damian Marley issued a press release to explain the final details of their musical partnership. The pair, who say they have shared a mutual respect since meeting in 1996, will release the album, Distant Relatives on June 23. While both artists are the offspring of musicians who were quite successful in their own right, they say the title refers to the bond of their African ancestry.

"Africa is the backbone of the world and the foundation of everything and Africans are in a situation where they need help more than anywhere else," Marley stated via the press release. "We know there are dire situations here in America but when you look at America—with public libraries and free education—these are not opportunities most Africans have. It's a completely different scale of trying to help people. As human beings, we’re part of a human family."

Since their initial meeting, Nas and Damian Marley have recorded the song "Road To Zion" together, and they are scheduled to headline at this years Rock The Bells festival.

"As an American, we have so much even in a so-called recession that a neighborhood like Queensbridge or Red Hook is Beverly Hills compared to the way people are living in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Ghana," Nas added. "So obviously if we making records with that theme, there’s gonna be things I want to build on. I think Africa has a lot to teach us."