I first heard “Fortified Live” in ‘97 in my bedroom at my parents house on the radio late at night. My ears caught that beat and I fell in love with the track immediately. I literally stopped everything I was doing to give this song my entire focus because it caught me within only a few seconds. Everything about this song is magical to me. The beat from DJ Hi-Tek lays the perfect foundation for a young Talib Kweli, the Mighty Mos Def, and Mr. Man from Da Bush Babees to absolutely rip the beat to shreds. After hearing, I picked up the Reflection Eternal single on cassette and the Rawkus Records’ Soundbombing compilation on CD which both had “Fortified Live” on them. I still love this song just as much now as when I first heard it as a teenager out in Southern Cali.