During the first cut of The Hands of Time, on a selection titled “Full Circle,” the musical experience is aptly introduced as “a universal affair.” The heartbeat, the ancestral core of the album, resides in the percussion most notably the djembe, an African hand drum played by master Weebie Braimah. The opener, that features Braimah’s large band, also called “The Hands of Time,” includes spoken word, rap, funk, samples and synthesizers. Each cut, however, varies in instrumentation and stylistic influences with the timeless rhythms of the African diaspora central to its theme.

Braimah, who has family connections to New Orleans, also calls in notable trumpeter Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, trombonist Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews and vocalist and poet Tarriona “Tank” Ball for a taste of the Big Easy.

That Braimah was born in Ghana, raised in East Saint Louis, Illinois, and comes from a family of drummers offers insight into his intentions and musical directions. His mother, Ann Morris, who married Ghanaian drummer and composer Oscar Sulley Braimah, was a jazz drummer and the daughter of the renowned Weedy Morris, who played drums behind luminaries such as Illinois Jacquet and Oscar Peterson. He is also the nephew of jazz drum ace Idris Muhammad, known earlier in his career as Leo Morris.

Trumpeter Scott and trombonist Andrews are paired on “Ode to Bontuku,” an album highlight that celebrates the fusion of Afro-pop and modern jazz. It builds in intensity and then quiets with some thoughtful guitar. Braimah’s insistent drumming then takes over.

The beat goes Latin on “Send for Me” with the addition of Cuban drummer and vocalist Pedrito Martinez. Tank is onboard, speaking, reciting poetry, laughing, shouting and screaming on this lively look at romance. This song will wake you up.

The Hands of Time ends with Braimah professing his devotion to the drum. “You are the source of my strength… I am a vessel of you,” he says as if in prayer backed by a choir of voices. It’s a spiritual moment with the call of the drum and the names of legendary drum masters offered as an amen.