How a DNA Test Led GRAMMY Winner Matt B Back to His Ancestral Homeland

When GRAMMY-winning artist Matt B submitted a simple DNA test six years ago, he couldn’t have imagined where that decision would ultimately lead him. The results didn’t just provide percentages and pie charts—they sparked a profound journey that would take him from Los Angeles to the heart of West Africa, culminating in his most ambitious project yet: ALKEBULAN III: The Water Remembers.

The Chicago-born artist’s quest to answer the age-old question “Where do I come from?” evolved into something far more powerful than a personal discovery. After genetic testing and extensive genealogical research traced his lineage to the Igbo people of Imo State, Nigeria, Matt B transformed his ancestral search into a sweeping multimedia project that speaks to millions across the African diaspora. His 2025 GRAMMY win for Best Global Music Album with ALKEBULAN II could have been the end of the story, but instead, it became the launchpad for an even deeper dive into his roots.

In June 2026, Matt B and his wife Angela V. Benson—who serves as his producer and manager—embarked on an emotional pilgrimage through Ghana and Nigeria. Their journey took them to haunting historical sites like Assin Manso Slave River and Elmina Castle, where they stood before the infamous Door of No Return. These weren’t just tourist stops; they were confrontations with a painful history that directly shaped his family’s trajectory. The trip reached its emotional peak in Owerri, where Matt met living relatives for the first time and was formally welcomed home through traditional ceremonies. He received the Igbo name Ikechukwu (meaning “God’s power”) and the chieftaincy title Ahamefula—”May my name not be forgotten”—a phrase carrying profound weight for descendants whose ancestors’ names were deliberately erased by slavery.

ALKEBULAN III: The Water Remembers channels these experiences into a richly textured body of work comprising an album, short film, and feature documentary. The music itself bridges continents and generations, blending African musical traditions with R&B and Afrobeats through collaborations with heavyweights like Fatoumata Diawara, Skales, Goya Menor, Boy Spyce, Camidoh, The Cavemen, and Kabusa Oriental Choir. The ambitious production even features orchestral arrangements recorded with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at London’s legendary Abbey Road Studios. But beneath the impressive scale lies a deeply personal question: What does home mean when your family was forcibly removed from it centuries ago?

The project’s title draws from the concept that water holds memory—a powerful metaphor considering the Atlantic Ocean both separated millions of Africans from their homeland and now symbolically connects the continent to its global diaspora. For Matt B and countless others navigating fragmented family histories disrupted by slavery and colonialism, modern genealogy can’t undo the past, but it can illuminate what survived. His journey from a DNA test to a Nigerian village where relatives welcomed him home doesn’t just tell one man’s story—it offers hope that some connections prove stronger than the systems designed to sever them. In an era where many diaspora members are reclaiming their African heritage, ALKEBULAN III stands as both personal testimony and collective meditation on ancestry, identity, and the enduring pull of home.

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