African music in 2006 and into 2007
Ilka Schlockermann talks to African music insiders in the UK to get a round-up of African music in 2006 and a look ahead to 2007.
African music in 2006 certainly had its success stories: Ali Farka Touré 's last album 'Savane' was nominated for a Grammy and generally a huge success with critics and music fans alike, Amadou & Mariam continued breaking records and have become one of the most exciting African live acts, there was the discovery of K'naan , the most hyped act of the African Diaspora (and the hype is justified). The line-up of the 2006 WOMAD festival included many brilliant African acts and the headliners on two nights were from the continent: Femi Kuti and Angélique Kidjo both gave thrilling, crowd-pleasing performances.
There were also festivals solely dedicated to African music: the London African Music Festival created a real buzz at the South Bank with Toumani Diabeté's Symmetric Orchestra being one of the highlights. Moreover, there were a number of brilliant free outdoor festivals: in London Out Of Africa , in Liverpool Africa Oyé and in Newcastle L'Afrique à Newcastle . We asked seven individuals from the African music scene in the UK:
- What has been your favourite African album of 2006?
- What was the best African live act, concert or event you attended in 2006?
- What was your favourite TV show or programme with African music content?
- What are your thoughts on the current state of the African music scene, especially in the UK, and on the general acceptance of African music in the mainstream?
- What are your predictions for 2007? Any artists that you reckon will be big next year?
Don't forget to also leave your own comments on our above questions.
Here's our panel African music insiders:
Manoute Seri is the artistic director of the L'Afrique a Newcastle Festival , an African music festival that has been taking place annually since 2003. Find out more about the festival on the L'Afrique a Newcastle Festival website . Manoute is also the former Chairperson of the Ivorian Community Association and he has set up Afro-Caribbean nights in Middlesborough and in Stockton-on-Tees.
Sylvia Arthur is the editor of What's On Ghana , a lifestyle and listings magazine for UK Ghanaians. Find out more on the What's On Ghana website . Sylvia is also a freelance journalist and has contributed to various UK and US publications including The Guardian, The Voice, Upscale and Pride.
Kwaku is a music industry tutor, consultant and journalist. His eclectic coverage includes the African Gold column in G Mag and a LifeFM.org.uk programme that links the dots between the African continent and the Diaspora. He has also compiled albums by Lucky Dube and Alpha Blondy. For more information on his work log on to the British Black Music website
Muchi Lukhezo is a Zimbabwean-born UK resident who runs a monthly African music night called ' Hoza Africa !' in Herne Hill, South London. Muchi also djs at parties and festivals such as the Out Of Africa festival.
DJ Amita is a British-born Ghanaian currently working in the music publishing. She is also a DJ spinning the best Ghanaian and African tunes and can be heard every Sunday from 3 till 6pm on Rainbow Radio (Sky TV channel 0207 and online at www.rainbowradio.co.uk ). Check out DJ Amita's MySpace page for further info.
Tunde Babalola is the head of marketing at Blacknights Entertainment , a London-based events and promotional outfit specialising in Nigerian club nights and special events. They are the organisers of the biggest annual Nigerian Independence show in London. Blacknights also have a weekly music show on BEN TV called Knightflow. For more information go to the Blacknights' website .
Dupe Ayinde runs Radio Palmwine , an internet radio station specialising in all styles of Nigerian music. For more information and to listen online log on to the Radio Palmwine website .
1. What has been your favourite African album of 2006?
DJ Amita:
My African album of 2006 has to be 'The Dusty Foot Philosopher' by K'naan (Somalia/Canada). I loved the whole feel of the album, the production which fused hip-hop and African beats, his lyrical skills which eloquently told the tale of the many issues affecting Africans today. The runner-up is 'Emmanuella' by Ofori Amponsah (Ghana) as it has so many catchy up-tempo tracks and exemplifies how far contemporary hi-life music has evolved.
Sylvia Arthur:
My pick is 'Africa Plays On…', a compilation which paired contemporary African artists with their Western counterparts and in so doing succeeded in showcasing the versatility and dynamism of African music to the wider world. Although it was originally released to commemorate Africa's participation in the World Cup, the songs on this compilation will far outlive the summer of 2006. The album's standout cuts include 'Please Don’t Stop', a sublime collaboration between Cameroonian bassist Richard Bona and US R'n'B singer John Legend and the brilliantly epic '2000 Blacks Got To Be Free' by Fela Kuti and Roy Ayers. Wahala Project's 'Wahala', a groovy slice of Afrofunk also rates an honourable mention. The CD perfectly enunciates how our music could compete in the international mainstream outside of the 'World Music' tag. Despite the many languages on this disc, the beauty of it is that the truly universal rhythms transcend linguistic boundaries, taking the listener on a compelling journey through a musical continent. A true aural delight!
Muchi Lukhezo:
For me, it's also 'Africa Plays On…'. Essentially, the music is by African artists at a collaborative edge with international artist as guests (not, as commonly, vice versa); the flavour remains strongly African at its contemporary best. It’s an upbeat fusion, a 'snap-shot' chronicling the confident and cheerful evolution of African music. The participation of quality artists like John Legend and Roy Ayers can only help in winning the indulgence of mainstream tastes not necessarily open to African music.
Tunde Babalola:
I would choose 'Expressions' by the Nigerian trio Styl-Plus. The album sees them emerge with a different genre of music, from R'n'B to Reggae, as well as singing in their different Nigerian dialects. It shows the depth of their creativity and their resolve to reach out to everybody, the cross-over appeal is tremendous.
Manoute Seri:
My favourite is Madina N'Diaye's eponymous first album. Led by her love for Manding tunes, Madina N'Diaye holds and claims an original status in the West African musical landscape. She is currently the only Malian woman on stage, accompanied by a kora, one of the most emblematic instruments in the Malian musical heritage. Armed with her kora, her compositions and her commitment for women's causes, Madina opens the way to a new phenomenon in Mali: women who have access to musical instruments usually played by men or by the 'jeli' (griot) caste. Despite some traditionalists' wrath, she made herself known as a talented author, composer and performer. Trained by well-known masters like Toumani Diabeté and Djélimadi Cissoko, she carries on her initiation by herself. In 2003, Madina lost her eyesight, but despite her handicap, she did not stop the rehearsals and has completed this album.
Dupe Ayinde:
I would go for 'Get Squared' by Nigerian duo P-Square. They were nominated at the 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards in the African act category, they are innovative, they appeal to Africans and non-Africans and especially in Nigeria appeal to all social classes in the country and they had one of the highest record sales this year.
Kwaku:
As a music lover, I find it most difficult offering the usual end of year top 10, let alone chosing the 'best album' from the dozens one has listened to over the year. Hence I make an attempt on the proviso that I can mention some of the other albums I've enjoyed in 2006.
I offer Oliver 'Tuku' Mtukudzi's 'Wonai' as the 'best album'. I do so because of the feelings that overcame me when I listened to the CD and watched the videos on the accompanying DVD. It gave me a feeling of pride as an African, and more importantly, I discovered a commonality among us as Africans whilst watching the videos. The issue of Africanness is currently of major importance to me. Because with 2007 being the bicentennial anniversary of the British Act that abolished the slave trade, I am proposing that the word 'African' be high on the agenda among the British black community. I'm campaigning for people of African descent to be called simply African or African-British, as the term black is almost meaningless. Whether black music becomes African music, or my organisation, Black Music Congress, becomes African Music Congress, will be one of the issues up for discussion in 2007.
Other albums I greatly enjoyed were UK-based Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Netsayi's 'Chimurenga Soul', Algerian singer-songwriter Souad Massi's 'Honeysuckle (Mesk Elil)', the late Ali Farka Touré's 'Savane', Toumani Diabaté's Symmetric Orchestra's 'Boulevard De L'Independence', South African jazzer Bheki Mseleku's 'The Best Of'.
I became a fan of K'naan after watching his show at the Printemps de Bourges Festival in France last April. I was again impressed when I saw him play at London's Jazz Café, with the Somalian massive definitely in the house! I like his album 'The Dusty Foot Philosopher'. K'naan guests on Guinean Ba Cissoko's amazing modern roots kora-featured 'Electric Griot Land' album. Their collaborative effort 'Silani' is also on the 'Africa Plays On…' CD. Ghana was represented on the compilation by Osibisa. It was a pleasure to discover a '70s Osibisa photo from the Brent Library archives, which was used on the cover of this year's Brent Black History Month brochure on account of the group, represented by group leader Teddy Osei, being one of those featured on the Brent Black Music History Project, an audio-visual heritage project led by moi. Osibisa may have flown the Ghanaian flag, however Ghanaian hip-life artists and labels are yet to learn how to effectively engage the British specialist and mainstream music press. On a positive note, I was recently introduced to an interesting cut by Namibian R&B singer Jossy Joss singing in his native Oshiwambo.
2. What was the best African live act, concert or event you attended in 2006?
DJ Amita:
I enjoyed the Afrolution Hip-Hop Festival at Cargo which featured great performances by Wawesh (Kenya) and Kimba (Malawi). Tic Tac (Ghana) performing with a live band on the African stage at the Rise Festival was impressive. It was also great to see Kanda Bongo Man (D.R. Congo) hit those great falsetto notes in the intimate setting of the Kemia Bar at Momo's. However, the best gig for me was K'naan at Cargo.
Muchi Lukhezo:
There were two outstanding events in a generally wonderful 2006. The first was the London African Music Festival at the South Bank Centre. Ten days packed with rocking performances from musical grandees picked from around Africa, closing with a stirringly riotous assembly with Queen Sawala Abeni from Nigeria. The second was the Afrolution African Hip-Hop Festival, the first event of its kind in Europe. It was a well-delivered evening showcasing music at the ruder end of the African music spectrum – exciting in its demonstrating that African music also continuously absorbs and experiments with others genres. It was as an inevitable event and I look forward to watching it grow bigger from the middle! I also have to mention the phenomenally energetic Wunmi who let loose with both barrels at Out Of Africa at the Spitz. Sassy and funky, look out for her new release 'A.L.A. (African Living Abroad)'.
Manoute Seri:
L'Afrique à Newcastle Festival in 2006 was our fourth year, and it was a great success. The festival has two clear aims. Firstly, to create an opportunity to experience and celebrate our region's growing cultural diversity and vitality. Secondly, to showcase the contribution of new African communities to the region's arts and culture, reflecting the inclusion of those communities within the whole community of the North East. In its brief existence the festival has established itself as an annual event in the North East arts calendar. International stars such as Meiway, Mory Kante, Tony Allen, Angèlique Kidjo, Lokua Kanza and Alpha Blondy have all performed in the region for the first time as part of L'Afrique. Talented local artists such as Dominic Tshaba, Robert Maseko and Amabutho African Arts have been provided with a platform for their talents and a regional African film festival has been established. A range of educational events have also helped hundreds of people to improve their understanding of the African continent and what it has to offer.
Tunde Babalola:
The two live performances that stood out for me were Styl-Plus at the Coronet as part of the Nigerian Independence/ Mr Nigeria UK event and African China at N-tyce in Woolwich as part of the Laffs & Jamz Easter event. The craftsmanship on stage and overall performance were unbelievable and on both occasions had the crowd screaming for more. In fact in African China's case the crowd started spraying him with money to show their appreciation - that was weird as I had never seen anything like that in that genre of music, Reggae - it's common in fuji and juju though for example.
3. What was your favourite TV show or programme with African music content?
Muchi Lukhezo:
A television programme I really enjoyed was BBC 4's African Rock & Roll Years, engagingly narrated by Rita Ray. It presents a chronological evolution of African music in the 1970s. It was particularly effective in summarising the politics of the time and their shaping of the lives of the musicians their music. Understanding the context of the music now adds, like all history, another dimension of appreciation and enjoyment of the music. African music is challenging marketing exercise since it is not, like reggae or bhangra, a product of one country. People with no idea can easily get confused, being unable to differentiate what they are listening to and knowing of a few 'buzzwords' like Afrobeat and soukous. This kind of programme wonderfully bridges exactly this knowledge gap. Fascinating and recommended viewing.
4. What are your thoughts on the current state of the African music scene, especially in the UK, and on the general acceptance of African music in the mainstream?
Sylvia Arthur:
The African music scene in the UK is getting better but it still has a long way to go. Promoters, DJs and media practitioners need to come together, think outside the box and take the music to the people in new and innovative ways. There needs to be more unity in the industry as a whole and a concerted effort needs to be made to exploit new outlets for African music, such as digital media and dedicated festivals. With more African television and radio stations than ever before reaching greater audiences, the systems are now in place. All we have to do is use them.
While there have been a few breakout acts like Amadou & Mariam and K'naan we're still waiting for a hurricane as opposed to a quiet storm. Believe it or not, Africa's biggest star is Akon! There's really been little movement overall in terms of gaining recognition for truly African artists on the global stage.
Muchi Lukhezo:
The African music scene in the UK continues to go from strength to strength, developing a firm ground-swell of interest and support; it is too funky and exciting to do otherwise! More importantly, the people on the scene are starting to link up, work together, and support each other. Communications are improving across various media, and some coherence is necessary before African music can be successfully promoted to the mainstream. The loss of the flagship Limpopo Club sessions at the Africa Centre, and the late eclectic John Peel are lamentable in this respect.
DJ Amita:
The African music scene in the UK and in general is still at its embryonic stage. A few of the problems I see are the lack of fusion of Francophone and Anglophone music still very separate, not enough attention is given to the marketing and promotional side of the industry. (Although websites such as Myspace.com appear to be playing a part as I've met quite a few African musicians world-wide in this way.) Also another problem, I see, is access and the distribution of the product. Therefore, I would say the scene is still static. I think people need to take a few more risks and pump some money into the industry. However, the talent that continues to emerge is extremely encouraging.
I think the acceptance of African music in the mainstream continues to be an up-hill struggle. To illustrate this point, cast your mind back to the Live 8 event in the summer 2005 which featured the most prominent artists in the world who were brought on the bill to highlight the plight of the poverty-stricken in Africa, however there was only ONE African artist who performed at the main events all over the world which was Youssou N'Dour who performed at the gig in France. After much criticism, Africa Calling, a line-up of the top African artists to perform at the Eden Project in Cornwall, was put together and seemed a little as an after-thought. It was evident to see that all the tireless work of all the deceased and living African music icons are still not respected and valued as their Western counter-parts.
Dupe Ayinde:
I think African music is doing pretty well, not only in the UK but across Europe and North America, although we can do a lot better especially in the quality of our music, the most important thing right now is that it's being widely recognized and accepted more than ever before, and industry is beginning to recognize some of the talent coming out if Africa which gives hope to a lot of people struggling in the industry. In terms of African artists breaking through in the UK, I believe that at the moment it's easier for African artists to make it in the rap/ hip-hop genre more than any other genre of music.
Manoute Seri:
The African community that has settled in the UK is now of significant size and visibility as part of the whole community of the country. We are all keen to promote awareness and understanding of our existence here as residents through creating opportunities to demonstrate our cultural heritage and the contribution we can make to cultural/ artistic diversity in the UK. To date there has not been an event which provides this opportunity on a scale large enough to include the whole community and raise the UK's profile as a multicultural society. This will be the first chance for people from all communities here to enjoy the music and dance of some of our best artists, and to encourage the development of multi-cultural arts/ music projects.
Tunde Babalola:
On the issue of acceptance I think there is a long way to go because there is still a notion that artists coming out of Africa can't hold their own anywhere else. Also, you have a supposedly black music radio station like Choice FM and they don't have a programme that represents African music. Until organisations like Choice FM start doing something about that, we really have a long way to go. But for that to change, responsibility lies with the artists themselves as well, i.e. the quality of their production, the lyrical content, the overall packaging and their promotion and marketing.
On the plus side, the recently introduced African category at the MTV Europe Music Awards is definitely bringing African music onto the world stage. Also I think what we, Blacknights, are doing is a real contribution to the African music scene: we are promoting African artists and music wherever we go, flying the flag for the continent. Blacknights will not be afraid to play an African song in a West End club.
5. What are your predictions for 2007? Any artists that you reckon will be big next year?
Sylvia Arthur:
Next year will be a crucial year for African music. Given the significance of 2007, with the focus on the anniversary of the abolition of slavery and Ghana's golden jubilee, there'll be a brilliant opportunity for African artists to showcase their talents to the wider world. African music is in the process of change. There's been a big preoccupation in the recent past with trying to sound American but artists are starting to realise that there's a lack of credibility associated with replication. In order to breakthrough, there needs to be a genuine change in direction, going back to basics using indigenous sounds and instrumentation. The tide is starting to turn and artists will hopefully reap the benefits of this in 2007 and beyond.
Dupe Ayinde:
2007 will definitely be a good year for African music, the African music industry seems to be improving and getting better as each year goes by with new talent, collaborations and ideas. There is a lot of competition now in the industry with so many artists hungry to make it and be recognized, I have my eyes on a Nigerian duo called De Indispensables that have been performing in London a lot in 2006. There are some sceptics out there when it comes to them but I think they have a lot of potential and star quality and in time will make their mark in the industry. They are already receiving massive airplay and been interviewed in a lot of radio stations and have been featured in UK newspapers and magazines as well as TV.
Tunde Babalola:
We are seeing a trend where African, especially Nigerian, artists are now coming over to the UK to shoot their videos and spend time promoting their products here – I think this will continue in 2007.
The two groups to watch out for, that I can believe cross over into the mainstream, are De Indispensables and Tri-O. De Indispensables just achieved what no other independent artist in the history of African music in the R'n'B/ hip-hop genre have managed: they released a UK single, 'I Love U', which is even available at HMV - and that to me is history. We actually have more established artists, like for instance MTV Europe Award winner 2Face who we all expected to capitalise on this and to make himself a house-hold name in this part of the world but it didn't quite happen, and then along come a group that you have hardly heard of come, De Indispensables, and achieve that - we should all support them and get them to number 1. Another name I believe you will become familiar with in 2007 is that of Tri-O - remember where you read it first.
DJ Amita:
I believe artists to look out for in 2007 are Donkarleon (D.R. Congo/Rotterdam), Wutah (Ghana), Makadem (Kenya), Full House Crew (Nigeria), Afroganic (Ghana) and Somi (Rwanda/Uganda).