'The Wire' Star Set To Release Nelson Mandela LP

The Wire alumnus and the star of 2013 Nelson Mandela biopic Long Walk To Freedom, Idris Elba, is set to release an album of South African-inspired music to celebrate the late, beloved leader this November.

Titled Mi Mandela, the album is a collaboration with renowned musicians such as James Blake, Mumford & Sons, Mr Hudson and Nothembi Mkhwebane, and is set for release internationally on November 24. Its lead single, You Give Me Love, is set to feature Irish-English rapper/singer-songwriter Maverick Sabre.

The seeds for the record were sown during Elba's preparation to play the long-time South African president, as "part of my research", the actor said in a short explanatory video about the album.

"I wanted to understand what music [Mandela] liked, and so in that journey I discovered the roots of South African music ... At the time I had [a] studio [in] the apartment I was staying in ... a little keyboard, a laptop, and as an experiment to myself I vowed to keep making music."

Watch his full explanatory clip about Mi Mandela below.

Elba is well known for his work on acclaimed crime/civil series The Wire, as well as having starred in films such as Prometheus, Pacific Rim, Thor and its sequel, and American Gangster. Mi Mandela will be his debut musical release.