Kangsen Feka Wakai http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aShfolR6w8 1. You’ve recently resigned yourself to the fact that at a certain point in a rapper’s career, usually when he/she is already steering the yacht of mainstream success after having surmounted the crab-infested grime of the…
[Conversation] Michael Baird: “I’m not a purist, but I want to be able to hear your roots in music”
Interview by John Wisniewski Born in 1954 in Lusaka, Zambia, and of British nationality, Michael Baird spent his first 10 years in Zambia, then went to England and has been residing in Holland since he was 13. He founded…
[Short Review] The Chairman of Nigerian Hip Hop
Dzekashu MacViban A skit which is as outrageous as it is hilarious introduces us to MI’s third album, The Chairman, setting the tone for the album’s treatment of its main thematic concern, which is overcoming the travails one encounters…
Bombino: the Face of Tuareg Rhythms
Angela Sarpong Don’t forget these words: Omara “Bombino” Moctar is going to take over the world. Critics love him and his albums are a real success all over the world. With his great talent and perseverance, Goumar Almoctar…
BrymO’s Lagosian fiction in Merchants, Dealers & Slaves
Serubiri Moses [Music Review] Reading BrymO’s Lagosian fiction in Merchants, Dealers & Slaves Serubiri Moses Merchants, Dealers & Slaves evokes the confident move of the artist defining their own journey as a songwriter and performer. This is what one gathers…
Lapiro de Mbanga: Protest, Power and Politics
Nchanji Melvin Musicians are integral members of society because of the popularity and the power they wield, but the question as to what role they play in society has often been asked. To what end should they put…
Afrikan Luv Unapologetically Flaunts its African-[ness]
Dzekashu MacViban As a latecomer to the Cameroonian musical scene, hip-hop has been on a gradual but steady rise in an over-congested milieu where, according to Kangsen Feka Wakai, “for at least two decades, it would play fifth fiddle to…
Editorial 04
Soul Makossa by Cameroonian saxophonist Manu Dibango dates back to 1972 and is often cited as one of the first disco records ever. Over the years, the song has been sampled and alluded to in songs by artists such…
Jovi: A New Chapter in Cameroonian Hiphop
Last year, the Cameroonian hip-hop scene took a major step in consolidating its place in the African hip-hop world with MuMak’s release of Jovi’s self-produced debut album, H.I.V (Humanity Is Vanishing). Before Jovi’s emergence, no solo Cameroonian hip-hop act, especially…