African WorldWide: Hip Hop, Music and More…
unohh
I am the Originator.
Posts by unohh
Nigeria: Those That Rule the Music Industry
1519 days
by unohh
in African Hip Hop News
Don Jazzy, Nigerian Top Producer
Anthony Ada Abraham
In the Nigerian music industry, only a few musicians and music producers are famous and influential while many others are not recognised, to say the least. Some burst unto the music scene and within a while, fizzled out, just like the proverbial ‘flash in the pan’. But people like 2Face, Don Jazzy, D-banj, P-Square, Kenny Ogungbe and D-1 have been able to maintain their prominence, both in the actual art of singing and producing.
Innocent Idibia, popularly known as 2Face came to the limelight while singing during his days as a student in the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu, while composing and singing jingles on the famous GB Fan Club radio show of the Enugu State Broadcasting Services (ESBS) in 1996. H e was an influential member of now defunct Plantashaun Boiz, but his major breakthrough came in the form of his award-winning hit-track African Queen. Since then, he has lingered in the sphere of success.
He also released a promotional album The International Edition in 2008, which spawned a hit Enter The Place and some singles. Though he had escaped death on different occasions, he has refused to slow down, choosing rather to climb the ladder of distinction.
2Face has won for himself, ,several awards on the domestic and international scene, some of which include; MTV Base Awards(2005),Best African Act (MOBO Awards, 2005), Best African Act (nomination, MOBO Awards, 2007), Best African Act (Channel O Music Video Awards, 2005), Best Male Video and Best African Video (both for African Queen), KORA Awards 2005 Revelation of the Year.
He also won the Hip Hop World Awards, 2006; Special Recognition Award, 2006 (Channel O Music Video Awards); Best African Pop (for Ole); 2006 Channel O Music Video Awards(Best African West for Ole); Special Recognition Award(Nigeria Entertainment Awards, 2006); Nigeria Breakthrough Artiste of The Year (Nigerian Music Awards, 2008); Album of the Year and R&B Song of the Year; Best Nigerian Act (World Music Awards 2008) and Best R&B (MTV Africa Music Awards, 2009). While he was nominated Artiste of the Year, Best Male & Best Video ( for Enter the Place) in the 2009 MTV Africa Music Awards.
Don Jazzy, one of the most sought after producers in Nigeria, is the president of one of Nigeria’s most promising and fledgling record labels, Mo’ Hits Records. His dream became reality when his uncle invited him to play instrumentals for a church in London. The young man never thought of returning to Nigeria until D’Banj persuaded him to. His returning to Nigeria has added fame to his personality company has produced such stars like D’ Banj, Wande Coal, D’ prince and others.
Peter and Paul Okoye, popularly known as P-Square, formed a dancing group called the Smooth Criminals in their secondary school days, before going on to form another with two friends, after which Peter and Paul formed P-Square.
They formed Square Records, which produced the Get Squared album, after having their debut, Last Nite produced by Timbuk 2 Records (a single which got them to the KORA Awards) . Peter also plays the acoustic & bass guitars, as well as the drums while Paul plays the keyboard and does the production and sequencing of their songs, till date, with their own label, Square records.
The twins owe their present status to thorough hard work and determination. Peter is the choreographer of all their dance routines. Their kind of music is Hip-hop and R&B, spiced up with choreography. They have become the biggest African music act and recently won $1m as the Best African Act at the Kora All African Music Awards this year.
D’banj is a London-based Nigerian singer and songwriter. Together with JJC & The 419 Squad, D’banj has performed at many high-profile shows in the UK including: WOMAD (the biggest music festival in the UK); Fast Forward (event organised by the Mayor of London, the BBC and the Arts Council) held in Trafalgar Square, the centre of London; Out of Africa (a club night at the ever-popular Cargo in Hoxton, London).
He has also featured at E Wa Jo (an African family festival) Essex, Vibrations (South London’s huge summer festival) in Burgess Park; Meet Me There (an African family day out organised by AGOO magazine) at Trent Park, Enfield; Black President – The Art and Legacy of Fela Kuti, a concert series held at the esteemed Barbican Centre in London, as well as a performance at the Black President press launch at Cargo, London.
D’banj featured at the Intro TV’s Nigerian Spot at the Notting Hill Carnival, Cambridge Gardens, London and African Showcase (an outdoor family event), and several others.Though, he is somehow new in the system , he has been able to measure up to prominence.
Kehinde Ogungbe (Keke) and Dayo Adeneye (D-1) are the CEOs of Kennis Music, a record label which specialises in R&B, pop and Hip-hop music. The company has produced albums for such great artistes like Eedris Abdulkareem, K.C. Presh, OJB Jezreel, Mike Aremu , Tony Tetuila, Bola Abimbola and 2Face, Baba Dee, Sound Sultan, Marvelous Benji, Kenny Saint Brown, Essence, VIP, Mzbel, Wale Thompson, Sheyman.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201012130860.html
Nigeria: See What They Have Done to Asa!
0519 days
by unohh
in African Hip Hop News
Asa
Dafe Ivwurie
Two years ago we enjoyed her flow, her soul and her philosophical lyrics laden with instantly recognisable rhythm and motifs. It was like she lived with us; in our cars, our homes. We carried her on our journeys to and fro the world. We took her along as souvenir; we encouraged visiting friends and acquaintances to take her along as a memento of a vibrant musical nation. We knew every word of every track from ‘Bibanke’ to ‘Jailer’. We would even jump on stage and do a karaoke at any given opportunity, closing our eyes and picturing we were her.
Asa, the self-titled debut release of the greatly talented dark skinned singer and song writer was a runaway hit that suddenly made her an icon of the alternative music scene in Nigeria that needs more artistes with something different than the commercialism that is on parade at the moment. A second album is supposed to fully establish you in your chosen genre; for most musicians it doesn’t and for Asa that may be the case.
I had said in my review of Asa that her next album will determine how seriously we should take her as a Nigerian musician on the international music stage. But I get disturbed when they change our music, when they make us sound Western, when we have to appeal to the international crowd of record buyers, to the A&R man who boxes us into the little corner of ‘world music’ and tells you your market is in Europe and America.
Beautiful Imperfection, the latest release by Asa does not convince me that Asa is our own. To put it straight, it breaks my heart that she has to pander to the musical taste of her European producers. Beautiful Imperfection may not be that perfect African gifts you are dying to give to make an indelible impression in the same way as Asa.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201012130951.html
Zimbabwe: Foreign Artists do not come cheap
1520 days
Capleton
Not long ago, many Zimbabweans in search of fertile ground for a diversity of foreign musicians looked up to Johannesburg, South Africa.
With the advent of the 2010 World Cup, South Africa became the envy of many Zimbabweans. This was so when it was announced that The Black Eyed Peas, Shakira, Alicia Keys and John Legend were some of the stars performing at the inaugural Fifa World Cup Kickoff Celebration Concert at Orlando Stadium, Soweto, on June 10.
The concert was being billed as the greatest entertainment event to be held on the African continent, and was broadcast to over a billion people in 92 countries.
The price of tickets ranged from R200 to R500. In an economy like that of South Africa, this was affordable and Orlando Stadium had full capacity audience.
Zimbabwe, despite a weaker economy, is however slowly turning the tables as big name artistes such as Akon and Sean Paul are slowly trickling into the country.
Sean Paul proclaimed that Zimbabwe was a concert country and is looking forward to having some reggae sunsplashes here.
As more and more reggae and dancehall artistes make a beeline to Zimbabwe, one begins to wonder what the sudden attraction is.
Since 2009, after the introduction of the multi-currency system in the country, foreign artistes have found Zimbabwe once again attractive for doing business as anyone can trade throughout the world with the US dollar without hassles. The universal regard for money is the one hopeful fact in modern civilisation and artistes, just like diamond traders, will travel anywhere to get it. As George Bernard Shaw put it many years ago, “Lack of money is the root of all evil”, because all evils, be it robbery, adultery, theft, prostitution, fraud, bribery and other bad practices are motivated by the need to make money.
Namibia: Rap Star Vows to Wow At Album Launch!
0520 days
by unohh
in African Hip Hop News
D-Jay, A Namibian Rap Star
Conrad Angula for The Namibian
“I like doing things differently I want to make this a memorable album launch for all my fans, and music lovers in general, by staging a electrifying performance.” This was the promise from rapper D-Jay, real name Diogene Ochs, yesterday when he addressed entertainment news journalist during the media launch of his much-anticipated second album ‘Favourite Rapper’.
The multiple-award winning artist, who is rated amongst the top rappers in the country, will drop his 15-track album at the Kuisebmond Stadium at Walvis Bay next Friday, December 24, backed by a star-studded line-up.
Top Namibian artists like The Dogg, Gal Level, Jericho, Raphael (of Raphael & Pele fame) Ponti will be joined by a powerful line-up of South African acts like C.9ine Sound Green, Teargas, Biblos, DJ Thobs and Generations actor Ajaz, who will be the MC of the high profile event.
Added D-Jay: “We have something special in the line-up for my performance but I can’t go in to too much detail about that right now, because it’s supposed to be a surprise for the audience on show day. My performance is going to be hot,” he said.
“I am someone who believes in putting a lot of energy into my performances and this show is not going to be any different. I believe in entertaining the people in order to give them their money’s worth. People can expect fireworks in Walvis Bay.”
The Walvis Bay-born rapper described the two tracks ‘The Izinyoka Anthem’, which also features Jericho and Ponti, and ‘Liar, Liar’ as the two stand-out tracks on the album.
On ‘The Izinyoka Anthem’, the artists basically talk about the aims and objectives of the record label, while D-Jay provides a surprise element by singing on ‘Liar, Liar’ despite being mainly known as a rapper.
Damage for the show, which is presented by Izinyoka Entertainment, is N$50 in advance and N$60 at the gate.
Tickets are already available from Namib Radio and Streethouse at Walvis Bay and Young Ones at Swakopmund.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201012160222.html
Str8muzik Festival Rocks Dodoma
0538 days
Joh Makini
Dodoma — HUNDREDS of college students from various universities and higher learning institutions turned up in large numbers during the Str8Muzik Festival Inter-College Special 2010 held at the Royal Village in Dodoma on Saturday night.
The annual event aimed at bringing together college students to share ideas and have fun is sponsored by Tanzania Cigarette Company (TCC) through its Sweet Menthol (SM) brand.
College students who thronged Royal Village came from University of Dodoma (UDOM), College of Business Education (CBE), Planning College, Mining College and St John University. The crowd that turned up for Str8Muzik Festival Inter-College Special 2010 held in Dodoma was bigger compared to the one in Morogoro on November 13, this year.
Hamisi Mwinyijuma a.k.a MwanaFA, Joh Makini and Michael Ross from Uganda stole the show with their top-class performances. The trio also won the hearts of college students during the Str8Muzik Festival Inter-College Special 2010 held in Morogoro.
MwanaFA sang along with the crowd some of top charting songs like ‘Naongea na Wewe’, ‘Usije Mjini,’ ‘Alikufa kwa Ngoma,’ ‘Mabinti’ and ‘Unanitega.’
Tanzanian Best Hip Hop Artiste 2010 as per the Kilimanjaro Music Awards, Joh Makini, proved why he is popular with college students with his command of the stage.
Just as it was in Morogoro, Ugandan R&B artiste Michael Ross won the hearts of the crowd that turned up for Str8Muzik Festival Inter-College Special 2010 in Dodoma with his songs and dancing moves.
Other artistes who graced the Dodoma event were Sam wa Ukweli, Mansu-Li, Ritche Mavocal and Sheta a.k.a Dar Stamina.
Str8Muzik Festival Inter-College Special 2010 climax is scheduled for this Saturday at Posta grounds in Kijitonyama, Dar es Salaam where international artistes T-Pain, Mims, Elephant Man and Gyptian are expected to perform.
Uganda’s newest rap star President Museveni asks: “Do you want another rap?”
0556 days
Ugandan President Museveni
KAMPALA, Uganda – He’s 65, he’s been president for more than two decades, and he’s Uganda’s newest rap star.
Facing a February election, President Yoweri Museveni has released a rap song and video that’s become a sensation in this East African nation, played at dance clubs, on the radio and as mobile phone ringtone.
Enthusiastic supporters at a rally in northern Uganda last week called for Museveni to perform “U Want Another Rap.”
Museveni chuckled, and obliged.
“You want another rap?” Museveni sang in a gravelly voice as his supporters danced. The lyrics aren’t exactly gangsta — they’re about making something out of nothing and getting ahead in life.
“Harvesters … gave me millet, that I gave to a hen, which gave me an egg, that I gave to children, who gave me a monkey, that I gave to the king, who gave me a cow, that I used to marry my wife,” Museveni raps in a gravelly voice.
“The old man knows how to sing. He has come up with a good strategy to win youths in Uganda,” said Amos Opio, 24.
But some Ugandans who heard the song, including on YouTube, opined in Internet postings that they’d rather have new roads than new rap.
Most of the rap is in Runyankore, a language which isn’t spoken by all Ugandans and has rubbed some non-Runyankore speakers the wrong way.
Museveni, who has been Uganda’s president since 1986 after the overthrow of Milton Obote, is expected to win in February.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXe3uRL3gog
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101110/ap_on_en_mu/af_uganda_rapping_president
‘Yes We Can’ album explores African diaspora
0557 days
Yes We Can Album Cover
By Kate Thomas
It is midday in Dakar and a long queue snakes behind the American embassy. Smart Senegalese women clutch patent-leather handbags and folders of neatly filed paperwork. A young man wipes beads of sweat from his forehead and switches off his iPod. A short way off, in the bustle of Sandaga market, Dakar’s busiest, American-inspired hip-hop blares from shoddy speakers. But here there is silence. For some Senegalese, the American embassy is a place where miracles are performed, where new lives in New York and Chicago are stamped into passports, where chronic unemployment is traded for a better life elsewhere.
But for those who do make it – by air, land or even wooden pirogue – to Europe or America, life is not always better, according to Rose Skelton, who put together the music compilation Yes We Can: Songs about Leaving Africa, which has been released by Out Here records in the UK and other countries. “I wanted to put together a compilation that talked to young African emigrants about the tough things they experience,” says Skelton, who included tracks from big names of the African hip-hop diaspora, such as K’Naan and Awadi, as well as music from mainstream Africa-based groups like Daara J Family. The result is a soundtrack for African migrants who have crossed deserts and oceans only to encounter a new set of problems outside their home continent.
Yes We Can brings together freestyle rap, traditional hip-hop outfits and even coupé décalé from Ivory Coast – a frenetic musical movement conceived during that country’s conflict, when artists shook off the shackles of war and headed for the dance floors of Paris and Marseille. The album opens with Money Talk by the Nigerian-born, Berlin-based Rapturous. “Gimme the glitz, the glamour, the fame, the fortune, that euro, that dollar, that Dolce & Gabbana,” he raps. But the bubble quickly bursts. “I see my future when I follow my dreams, but things don’t always look the way that they seem.”
The theme of money is also present in the offering from the internationally acclaimed Muslim rapper K’Naan, who was born in the Somali capital Mogadishu and taught himself English, partly by listening to American hip-hop, before joining his father in Canada. His track, 15 Minutes Away, talks to anyone who has ever made or received a Western Union transfer to or from Africa. “It felt so good when she said… write down these 11 digits,” he raps, going on to talk about how tough it can be to live on a desperately low income in an African city. “Sometimes when I’m in a meeting and everyone else is eating, I feel so awkward asking so I pretend like I am fasting,” he intones.
Gambia: Jammeh wants to be King
0557 days
Yahya Jammeh
By ARTIS HENDERSON, Associated Press
DAKAR, Senegal – Gambia’s president once claimed to have developed a cure for AIDS that involved an herbal body rub and bananas. His administration rounded up nearly 1,000 people last year in a witch hunt. And now he may soon have a new title in this tiny West African nation: His majesty.
Tribal chieftains are touring the country to rally support for President Yahya Jammeh’s coronation.
“The president has brought development to the country, and for that he deserves to be crowned King of The Gambia,” said Junkung Camara, chief of the western region of Foni Brefet. “This is the only way the Gambian people can express our gratitude to a leader who has done a lot for his country.”
Like many rulers in this part of Africa, Jammeh, 45, came to power in the wake of a coup. He was elected president two years later, and is currently serving his third elected term in the tiny country surrounded on three sides by Senegal.
If he were crowned king, he could dispense with the formality of elections altogether.
For a ruler who likes to be called His Excellency the President Sheik Professor Alhaji Doctor Yahya Jammeh — identifying himself as a doctor, scholar, and elder, among other honorifics — “king” would suit him well.
“It’s image construction,” said Abdoulaye Saine, professor of political science at Miami University in Ohio who specializes in Gambian politics. “He’s not a scholar, he’s not a doctor, he’s not a professor. But he covets these titles.”
Saine says Jammeh’s coronation would give him a new title but would not change anything politically.
“Jammeh is already king,” Saine said. “He practically owns the country of Gambia. He controls the press, the opposition, the clergy, and the coffers of the state.”
While sub-Saharan Africa has just one remaining absolute monarchy — in the southern African nation of Swaziland — other leaders have tried to similarly solidify their role. Idi Amin, the brutal dictator who ruled Uganda during the 1970s, titled himself His Excellency President for Life. And Central African Republic’s Jean-Bedel Bokassa crowned himself emperor in 1977.
The call for Jammeh’s coronation is the latest in a series of controversial events that have marked his presidency. In 2007, the ruler claimed to have developed a cure for AIDS and insisted that patients stop taking their antiretroviral medications so his cure could have an effect.
More recently, Jammeh’s administration rounded up nearly 1,000 people last year in a witch hunt that spanned the nation of 2 million. Authorities forced the supposed witches to drink a hallucinogen that caused diarrhea and vomiting. The unidentified liquid led to serious kidney problems, and two people died after the forced treatment, according to international rights group Amnesty International.
Sam Sarr, editor of the main opposition newspaper Foroyaa, says Jammeh’s move to be crowned king will never work.
“It’s unconstitutional,” Sarr said. “According to the constitution, his position is an elected position. Sovereignty resides in the people.”
Not that making Jammeh king would change much.
“The presidency is already like a monarchy,” Sarr said. “As far as power is concerned, he has absolute power.”
Sénégal: Concert à l’Institut français – Awadi sait tout faire sur scène
0568 days
Awadi
Fatou K. Sene
Le rappeur Didier Awadi a cartonné vendredi lors d’un concert donné à l’Institut français de Dakar. Un spectacle musical rythmé par les morceaux de son dernier album Présidents d’Afrique cadencé de multiples sonorités et des messages d’espoir pour l’Afrique.
Le théâtre de verdure de l’Institut français de Dakar était pris d’assaut vendredi dernier par de nombreux spectateurs. Ils étaient de tous les âges. Certains étaient assis par terre, d’autres restés debout pendant deux heures de temps par manque de place.
Tous sont venus voir le rappeur Didier Awadi sur scène pour un premier concert à l’Institut après la sortie en avril de son dernier album Présidents d’Afrique.
Son choriste et percussionniste bissau-guinéen, Bouba Gomis ‘Kirikou’ oeuvre le bal avec trois titres dont la chanson Kirikou de la bande dessinée du même nom. Le ton est alors donné dès l’entame du spectacle par le ‘Lion de capsi’.
‘Ce sera un concert avec beaucoup de messages, à travers l’Afrique unie sans visas’, lance Awadi, habillé en caftan orange blanc sur un jean bleu. Le show commence par des notes de tristesse, de pleurs avec le titre Woye.
‘Partout dans les rues on tend la main on veut du pain, woye wou ya woye’, scandent les choristes. Awadi se veut le porte-parole des milliers d’Africains du Caire à Niamey en passant par la Côte d’Ivoire et Le Cap.
Le rappeur chante la souffrance du peuple noir. Le morceau The Roots, ‘soyez fiers de ce que vous êtes’, invite les Africains à s’inspirer de Malcom X pour se débarrasser de leurs complexes.
Les sons sont distillés par le claviériste Atoumane, les guitaristes Moustapha Gaye et Tibass Kazematick du Congo Kinshasa. La batterie est assurée par Donatien Auguste Dogbo du Congo Brazzaville.
Le public scande et danse aux rythmes des diverses sonorités servies. Chaque morceau a un registre musical particulier, touchant parfois au reggae, aux rythmes mandingue, zoulou, zouk. Le tout sur fond de rap retentissant.
Les messages s’enchaînent mais ne se ressemblent pas. Awadi sert des titres militants pour une Afrique unie. Il s’appuie sur ses choristes et son groupe cosmopolite pour reprendre les titres On a plus le choix avec le refrain Siwbo Modibo Keita Modibo lé et Cabral.
Ils reproduisent avec brio les voix des leaders panafricains reprises dans l’album. Le rappeur rend hommage à ceux qui l’inspirent le Capitaine Thomas Sankara et Patrice Lumbumba, Mandela Ses paroles sont appuyées par les images des figures emblématiques du panafricanisme projetées en fond de scène.
Recent Comments