By ROB KENNER

These days, Africa is basking in newfound attention. The World Cup kicks off in South Africa next month. There is a United States president with a Kenyan father. And even on Broadway, the Afro-centric musical “Fela!” has accumulated Tony nominations.

A recent concert in Manhattan and release of an innovative album provided fresh evidence of Africa’s new prominence.

Damian Marley came to the Fillmore at Irving Plaza in March on a stealth mission. This Jamaican dancehall star, also known as Jr Gong, and the New York rapper Nasir Jones, also known as Nas, planned to surprise the audience gathered for a show by the hip-hop artist K’Naan with a song from their new album, “Distant Relatives.”

They stood in a crowded dressing room and watched the Somalian- born K’Naan. Soon K’Naan brought out Nas, who delivered his 1992 “New York State of Mind” to a thunderous ovation. Next Mr. Marley performed “I Come Prepared,” a rugged duet from K’Naan’s latest album, “Troubadour.”

Then it was time for the Distant Relatives to join forces. As the crowd roared its approval, the duo stomped its way through “As We Enter,” trading intricate bars over a quirky breakbeat by the Ethiopian jazz master Mulatu Astatke.

“My man’ll speak patois,” Nas said, “and I can speak rap star.” He concluded his rapid-fire verse with a Swahili greeting: “Habari gani.” To which Mr. Marley replied, “Nzuri sana,” as if they were chatting on the streets of Nairobi.

Such unexpected cultural mashups are at the heart of “Distant Relatives,” a new release that explores the shared African ancestry connecting these two artists, who hail from different countries and musical genres, and the entire human race.

“Realistically, Africa is the wealthiest place in the world, but the people don’t benefit from their wealth,” Mr. Marley, the youngest son of Bob Marley, said in an interview .

“By the time Africa is developed, it will be the wonderland of the world, ‘cause it will be able to make use of all the mistakes of other nations,” he said. “But it nah go just drop out of the sky. So we have to put in work.”

“Distant Relatives” was not conceived as a collaboration with African musicians like Paul Simon’s “Graceland.” Instead the album focuses on the idea of Africa, drawing power from the continent that has held sway over hip-hop and reggae culture since the late 1970s.

“This album just wouldn’t have worked 10 years ago,” said Mark Anthony Neal, professor of black culture at Duke University in North Carolina. “But because Africa is cutting-edge cool at this point, it works all the way around. The hope is that Nas and Damian can push the conversation beyond just being the cool thing to riff on.”

At first glance Mr. Marley, 31, and Nas, 36, are something of an odd couple. One is an avowed Rastafarian while the other can be something of a hip-hop hedonist.

Nas first worked with Mr. Marley when he contributed a searing verse to “Road to Zion,” a brooding single from Mr. Marley’s Grammywinning 2005 album “Welcome to Jamrock.” They reunited four years later to do an EP, but once they got started, the project became more ambitious.

“Friends” is built around a snatch of the Angolan singer David Ze’s “Undenge Uami,” while “Patience” interpolates “Sabali,” a haunting track by Amadou & Mariam, a husband- and-wife duo from Mali. As with Mr. Astatke’s Ethiopian jazz, “Patience” is a cross-cultural collaboration that highlights the intermingling of Africa and the West.

Nas wants to tour in the Motherland one day. “We goin’ to Africa, son,” he said. “We got a lot to talk about to our fellow Africans out there. This is not a game.”