King Kamonzi Adds Herbal Bitters to Hip-Hop Legacy and Red Hidrant Healthy Drinks
King Kamonzi. (Picture provided by King Kamonzi)
King Kamonzi is Milwaukee’s Hip-Hop super soldier. Just as comic book heroes battle villains attempting to take over the world, King Kamonzi tackles the overarching perils that harm his own community.
Whether Kamonzi is working with the youth, hosting peace events or promoting a healthy lifestyle, he continues to educate and enlighten his community. When knowledge is power, “Father Time” ensures every conversation delivers a resonating message.
He’s no stranger to the stage, as he’s blessed the mic for nearly four decades. Between being a member of Milwaukee’s first group to be aired on BET, “Kali Tribe” to his Zulu Nation affiliation, international Hip-Hop ties and long-lasting battle rap record, he ultimately embodies peace, love and unity.
Father Time battles Swave Sevah on Spit Dat Heat’s #BornAgain event Dec. 2019. (Picture provided by King Kamonzi)
Besides having a legacy in local battle rap, his freshly squeezed juice: Red Hidrant, has almost become the unofficial beverage for leagues across the Midwest.
The story goes, while contemplating his career in his kitchen, he tripped over a watermelon while sipping on some homemade juice. Then the lightbulb went on. From that point, he started selling his freshly squeezed watermelon juices at battles. It was a universal flavor that he couldn’t keep it in stock.
King Kamonzi then catered his “Fiya Water” to the battle rap crowd. Performers wouldn’t have to grab a water bottle every two minutes, as they’d have a clear throat with his mixture of ginger, lemon and agave.
As he worked with the youth, he noticed lean’s popularity rising. The opioid laced drink involved adding codeine promethazine cough syrup and candies to soda. While rap music has had a lingering relationship with the elixir, it can be dangerous and lead to addiction and death.
He created “Green Leen,” a healthy concoction of fresh squeezed apple juice and Moringa powder to combat traditional lean.
“I made it a play on words because kids need to steer clear of that,” King Kamonzi said.
From battle rap to block parties, he left every event empty handed with people asking for more.
Red Hidrant rounded into its first year of business in 2020. With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across the world, King Kamonzi didn’t know what was going to be next. While he was producing around 50 to 70 juices a day, he was also dabbling in a new market—bitters.
Herbal bitters trace back to traditional African medicine. Different combinations of roots, bark, grasses and spices are infused to relieve different ailments.
As he attempted to get some delivered from a place in New York City, the wait time was extended to due COVID-19 shortages.
“They told me it’d be a wait, so I called my family in Africa, my friends in Jamaica and consulted some things myself and started creating them in my home,” King Kamonzi said.
King Kamonzi began his bitter journey as a way to boost his immunity, now he’s offering his community the same opportunities. (Picture provided by King Kamonzi)
King Kamonzi breaks into the bitter business
The giant pot simmering in his kitchen smelled earthy with hints of sweetness.
Spices, leaves, bark, grasses, moss and roots filled the giant “medicine” cabinet across from his stove. He pulled several glass jars down and went through all the benefits of certain ingredients.
“When people hear things like licorice and marshmallow root, it’s not to be confused with candy because they are actually bitter herbs that help your digestion lining and gastral lineal system,” he said.
King Kamonzi lifted the lid on the pot, as steam billowed through the kitchen. He stirred for several minutes and eventually added cinnamon sticks to the bubbling brew of sea moss and water. Spices like cinnamon sticks and cayenne pepper add flavor, but also activate the healing properties in other ingredients.
He said that timing was key for adding certain elements to the mixture.
“Just like food can be overcooked and undercooked, certain herbs can be boiled or not boiled enough and fail to release what they were supposed to release,” he said.
King Kamonzi started his journey by testing known recipes on himself. He then added and replaced different ingredients to make it his own.
His self-named “Father Time” bitters were created for everyday use. It was a combination of Burdock, Mauby root, Dandelion root, Sarsaparilla, Chaney root, Licorice root, chicory, cayenne cloves, pimento, cinnamon and water.
“I try to use universal ingredients that work period and then I try to add what works based on my research on my own body,” King Kamonzi said.
As he experimented with ingredients and recipes, people started coming to him with different ailments. Whether it was an immunity booster or a flu-buster, he kept testing and perfecting.
King Kamonzi and Nazir Al-Mujaahid take a chance to enjoy Restore Life Fest 2020. (Picture provided by King Kamonzi)
Kamonzi’s “Live-Justin” was created to keep the digestion system clean and balanced. It has a blend of licorice root, slippery elm bark, cloves bud, wormwood, marshmallow root and cinnamon bark.
“It’s one of my personal favorites,” he said.
A teaspoon of the bitters was a little less viscous than regular liquid medicine. The “Live-Justin” tasted herbal, somewhat bitter/sour, with a subtle hint of sweetness at the back of the tongue. On an empty stomach, after about 15 minutes, it actually settled the aching.
Red Hidrant corners a new market
King Kamonzi now has six herbal bitters that he regularly sells. His market has gone from some of the most feared battle rappers across the Midwest to farmer’s markets and church folk.
“The pandemic sparked me to make this,” he said. “I was just doing the juices beforehand, but the bitters have opened up a larger segment of the community.”
He said younger people, the Hip-Hop community, the health-conscious community and battle rap crowds embraced Red Hidrant. The bitters simply opened his business to a wider audience.
“When you’re talking about healing, it’s more universal,” King Kamonzi said. “When total strangers like the effectiveness of your brand, you know you’ve got a winner.”
Though King Kamonzi never saw himself as becoming Milwaukee’s go to medicine man, he does not plan on stopping any time soon.
“It’s almost like the universe put me in this position, it’s the only way I can explain it. I never went to school for this. People know me as an artist, activist and working with the children. That’s what I’ve always been doing, but for some reason, the knowledge and science fell into my lap,” he said.