Holy Mountain
by DJ Khaled (featuring Buju Banton & Mavado)

Album: Father of Asahd (2019)
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Songfacts®:

  • DJ Khaled enlisted dancehall artists Mavado and Sizzla for "Holy Mountain." On the track, the pair rap spiritual rhymes about Jah protecting his children during the steep climb up the Holy Mountain. Mavado and Sizzla previously teamed up on Rick Ross' 2014 cut "Mafia Music III."
  • The song also features G.O.O.D. Music signee 070 Shake, who has previously worked with Kanye West ("Ghost Town") and Pusha T ("Santeria").
  • A fourth guest artist is Khaled's buddy Buju Banton. The Jamaican singer had just been freed from a seven-year prison sentence in the US after being convicted on drug-related charges when he jumped on "Holy Mountain." Khaled told Vibe their close friendship led him to collaborating on Father of Asahd's opening and closing tracks.

    "Buju is family to me, and when he came back, I went to Jamaica to welcome my brother back home. He met my son and we were just vibing," he recalled. "Then Buju asked me to 'play a chune' and I played him the 'Holy Mountain' beat and Buju finished it in one take."

    "Then Buju said, 'Play me another one,'" Khaled continued. "I had this idea for 'Holy Ground,' played it for him and he loved it. The rest is history."
  • The song samples teenage reggae artist Billy Boyo's early 1980s song "One Spliff a Day."
  • The music video was filmed partly in Sizzla's hometown, August Town. That portion was shot when DJ Khaled visited Buju Banton in Jamaica in December 2018.

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