MOH! KOUYATÉ feat. MARIAMA - "Darré" [official video]

Zangalewa (this Time for Africa)

As Shakira was asked to compose a song for the 2010 football championship in South Africa, she acknowledged that he had been inspired by a song she heard as a little girl. When listening to « Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) », it becomes clear very soon that a part of the song stems from Cameroon's Golden Sounds' « Zangalewa », a song from 1986, that has become known throughout Africa. It was successful to the extent that the band even changed its name into Zangalewa.

The original song, also referred to as « Zamina » can be watched hereunder. The band, composed of members of the presidential gard had prominent members such as Jean Paul Zé Bella, Guy Dooh, Emile Kojidie, Luc Eyebe, and young singer Annie Anzouer who went solo later. Others, for example Benjamin Denga and Mathurin Oyono have died.

It was Emile Kojidie, who lives in the United States who contacted a lawyer, most other members are retired in their village in Cameroon. Apparently, some sort of an arrangement has been settled, although others speak of jealousy between members of the band. Rumour is that a new album for Zangalewa is being considered. Apparently, no money has been paid yet, but I was happy to hear the original song on Dutch television during a sports programme. This is surprising as the song is not available on the market (except on old cassettes in Cameroon)...

R.I.P. Ramata Diakité

Only a few days ago I discovered that Malian singer Ramata Diakité (35) has died in the night of 30 October. Much too young to die, she just got married in September to a Burkinabe businessman, it was her third marriage. She has been burried in Burkina Faso.


Ramata was one of the more successful female singers from the Wassoulou region, just second to Oumou Sangaré. She sold in excess of 100,000 legal cassettes in her home country. Her biggest hit album was « Na », an album that was released worldwide in 1999.

She succeeded in combining the Wassoulou music with modern influences and the album still stands as a classic of Malian music, especially for this mix of the old and the new. Another hightlight was her contribution to the album « Kulanjan ». by Toumani Diabaté & Taj Mahal.

Here's one of her more recent songs, « Sigui » :

Madilu 1950-2007

It has already been more than two years since he is gone: Le Grand Ninja, Madilu System. He started singing in 1969, rose to fame as one of the main singers of Franco's TPOK Jazz, where he contributed to the success of songs such as « Non », « Mario », « Réponse de Mario » (1985), « La Vie des hommes » (1986) and « Mamou (Tu Vois?) » (1984).

In the last two decades his solo albums encountered reasonable success.

In the following song, split in two videos, « Destin » (a later version called « Biya » was released on his « Sans commentaire » solo album), he sung about his love for his companion, that should never end. Especially in the second part they really rock. Singers are, besides Madilu, Josky Kiambukuta, Diatho Lukoki and the late Djo Mpoyi. The genius on guitar was Jerry (or Gerry) Dialungana, who is neither no longer with us.





The later version by Madilu can be watched here:




More info on Madilu on Musiques d'Afrique

Elie Kamano feat. Les Espoirs de Coronthie: Dounya

Today I want to show you a clip of a great song from Guinea. It is a song by Elie Kamano, a rapper/ hip hop and reggae star from this West African country, featuring a prominent band of a musical genre which has become very popular in the last years, a genre that could be called « musique tradi-moderne ». The song is called Dounya and is about the fact that life is not smiling to everyone. For me, it is a song I can listen to several time after each other, with this intriguing rhythm led by the gongoma thumb piano, and with these great vocals. Just give it a few listens:



direct URL http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=0s0xZhqskrg&feature=related

On the above picture you see Elie Kamano (or Eli) in the center next to two singers from Les Espoirs de Coronthie.

I will tell you more about both Kamano and Les Espoirs soon.

Bako Dagnon

A great « cantatrice » from Mali released a first international CD album after 30 years of career. This gorgeous album « Titati » I can very much recommend.

Along with great female singers such as Mokontafe Sacko, Sarafing Kouyaté, Wandé Kouyaté and Nantenedié Kamissoko, she helped developing and promoting traditional Malian music within the Ensemble Instrumental du Mali for 10 years (from 1974).


When Ibrahima Sylla of Syllart Productions asked her to join in the recording of the second volume of the « Mandekalou » project, the road was finally open to recording an album of her own. « Titati » was mainly recorded in the Bogolan Studio in Bamako, and arranged in Paris by François Bréant (Salif Keita's « Soro », Bambino's « Sinikan »).

The Musiques d'Afrique web site now features a page about Bako here.

Here is a promotional video on Youtube:

R.I.P. Hamid Chanana

Dangerous traffic conditions in Africa or more specifically in Guinea was never meant to be a Leitmotiv of this blog although it currently looks like it is...
Already on December 23, 2007, Guinean hip hop artist Hamid Chanana (his real name being Hamidou Camara) crossed the road in his Kipé neighborhood of Conakry during the night, when he was hit by a taxi. He was brought to hospital in a coma, he woke up but died shortly after due to several injuries. Hamid, born in Kènèma in Sierra Leone on March 8, 1973, has lived for years in Sierra Leone and Liberia but returned to Guinea in 1986.

He released three cassette over the years, « Sewa » (1997), « Mano River Union » (2001) and « S.O.S. Amour » in 2004.