Hard to believe, but it was just over 2 years ago that our first release, Akwaaba wo Africa, came out worldwide. What a journey it’s been since then! 2 dozen releases spanning the gamut from Nigerian highlife to Gambian griot kora, Angolan kuduro to Benin salsa… We’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with artists from 12 countries, not counting the numerous remixes pouring in from Mexico, Israel, Argentina, all over Europe and North America.

For us this release is at heart a big thank you, Thank you for helping us carve out a niche on this overcrowded web. Thank you for helping us connect the dots between talented, hardly-known local artists and music lovers worldwide. Thank you for playing our music on your radio shows, for pushing it on your blogs, for playing it at work and letting the world know where the music is coming from. We have been overwhelmed with the response, the emails, big ups and shout outs, and we start the year with a huge smile, filled with all the energy required to keep tons of fresh music coming your way.

So here it is, a collection of 50 songs giving a thorough taste of what Akwaaba is about: an open ear tuned in to sound made in Africa. We priced this mega-compilation at a ridiculous minimum price of $10. I mean, in many ways the price tag seems ridiculous, but if you feel differently, hell, shoot us an email and let’s bargain some more You can buy this compilation from us directly only, secured credit card payment and all that good stuff. It will not be available on iTunes or anywhere else.

Along with the songs comes a fantastic mix by DJ Zhao. We asked him to do this mix for us because he is one of the very few DJs we know, who can piece together a mix not made exclusively for the dancefloor. So here goes one hour covering so many of the sounds we have been pushing. Really, an epic journey into the heart of contemporary African pop music.

How did this happen?!?! In their own words:

“So this is our exclusive mix for Akwaaba Music. It‘s not so much all new and exclusive bangers but rather our impression of African music and its big influences on other musical territories (with one or two stylistic exceptions in the mix). We also kinda tried to give an idea of what we do in our club sets, not paying too much attention to tempo or style while keeping it funky and a wee bit humorous… Featuring Akwaaba artists Appietus, Ruff‘n‘Smooth, Kedjevara, Onyenze, Killamu, Dred Man-Gi and Arc Djebe. Hope you enjoy!”

Uhhhhhh… yep, we do. Right?!?! Have you downloaded this mix already?!?! Have you listen to their Mixcloud page? How about their myspace?! Wait, and more importantly, if you’re in or near Tübingen, are you attending their party this Saturday November 13?!?!

Full tracklist on the Soundcloud page.

Akwaabarama Mix by Hat+Hoodie

Our German sucks, but we still love to *read* Hat + Hoodie’s posts – or should we say, look at the odd series of letters and wonder what they are saying. Thankfully, once they get behind the decks the language is universal, and this last mixtape of is sure to move any dancefloor from Cape Town to Hamburg, Dakar to Beijing. Here’s what the doods have to say:

How long have you been DJing?

Both of us have been DJing for a long time, together it’s over 20 years. We dug many different styles ever since and got to know lots of great music, which maybe is why we still like our sets rather diverse. Being friends for a long time, we finally teamed up in 2009 and started hat+hoodie.

How long have you been into tropical / African beats?

We both were into Reggae, Dancehall, Ska and Afrobeat at some point, which probably built the foundation for us. In the last few years we became more and more involved in electronic dance music, but always felt it lacked the rough and direct energy of a Dancehall party. Playing so-called “World Music” never was an option, as it was considered Hippie-Music and absolutely not club-compatible in Germany. So you had to listen to it secretly, ha ha. That was, until 2008 Radioclit and Buraka Som Sistema hit the clubs. Hearing “Secousse” for the first time was a true key moment – We instantly got hooked on Tropical Bass and World Electronics.

Its an eclectic mix… What’s the story behind it? What are some of your current favorites?

We tried to put everything in there that we like right now, so there’s Tropical House, some UK Funky, African Beats, Barefoot, Dancehall… We like it wildstyle, a whole night of Tech House gets us bored. Then we wanted to feature some of the great artists we met on the internet recently, such as BukBuka from Istanbul or Sabbo from Tel Aviv. We really love cruising the Web for new artists and connecting with them. We also wanted to represent the German/Austrian scene, so there’s the very awesome Schlachthofbronx from Munich, So Shifty from Hamburg, and of course Vienna‘s Ku Bo and Beware & Motorpitch.
We like messing around with music rather than only playing it out, so we mashed some of the tracks, re-arranged them, combined them… What came out is pretty much what we consider a good party: global dancehall music, lots of bass and a touch of anarchy, hehe.

Playlist:

Skeat – Relela [Akwaaba]
Skeat – Mama Le Papa [Akwaaba] x Douster – Alleluja [Bebup]
Killamu – Melodia de Semba [Akwaaba] x Mujava – Mugwanti/ Sgwejegweje [Out Here]
Poirier – Militaris Riddim [Ninja Tune] x So Shifty – Clap (Acapella) [Top Billin]
Fauna – Gauchito Gil (Douster Remix) [ZZK]
Skeat – Phamphanyane (hat+hoodie Edit) [Akwaaba/Bootleg]
Hat+Hoodie – o!e [Faluma Africa]
Roska – Squark (hat+hoodie Edit) [Rinse/Bootleg]
Schlachthofbronx – Vem Que Tem (Beware & Motorpitch Remix) [Man Rec.]
Sekta – Peterpan (Doc Daneeka Remix) [Top Billin]
Beware & Motorpitch – Pororoca [Man Rec.]
Manare – Pirog [Younggunz]
Old Money – Mamaseh (Sabbo Remix) [Unreleased]
Jali Bakary Konteh – Combination (hat+hoodie Remix) [Unreleased]
Chief Boima – Techno Rumba (Uproot Andy Remix) [Dutty Artz]
Legobeat – Gun, Whistle, Bird (Cocotaxi Remix) [PBP]
We Are Enfant Terrible – Wildchild (Myd Remix) [Web]
Jamtech Foundation – Run The Track [Mad Viking]
Lady Chann – Sticky Situation (Toddla T Remix Intro) [rcrdlbl]
Bert On Beats – Suomo (Ku Bo Remix) [Man Rec.]
BukBuka – Capoeiristas (Jump da f@#$ up) [Unreleased]
Schlachthofbronx – Ayoba (Ku Bo Remix) [Man Rec.]
Figura – Ze Bula (Peter Pozorek Remix Intro) [Unreleased]
Figura – Ze Bula (Sabbo Remix) [Akwaaba]

The review is in the paper mag, but apparently not on the website… thanks to our buddy Georg from Outhere Records for pointing this one out!!

To be honest, we don’t really remember how Max showed up on our radar… did he ask for a Killamu promo? Did we comment on one of his pungent sets? How can it already be a blur?!?! Whatever the case may be, we’re glad we connected, this cat’s been making noise in Brussels with his MDD crew, pushing kuduro, cumbia, coupé décalé or kwaito, without neglecting European flavors such as uk funky, dubstep or grime. So Killamu fit right into his routine, and we hope you dig this mix!

Max Le daron vs Killamu mixtape – Download

Get the album in iTunes!

Killamu is one of the most respected kuduro beat makers in Angola. He has been part of the kuduro scene for ten years now, and started producing tracks for Gueto Produções with Mestre Ara eight years ago. The duo quickly established their production house as one of the very best in Luanda, collaborating with many of Angola’s most innovative kudurists: laying tracks for artists such as Puto Prata, Noite e Día and Fofandó & Saborosa, together they have paved the way for the next generation of hard-hitting, rhyme-spitting kuduro lyricists.

With a slew of hits behind his name, Killamu has become an unavoidable producer on the kuduro circuit. But as this album shows, his versatility allows him to explore sounds beyond kuduro, starting with kizomba (Angolan zouk), but also, and perhaps most importantly for Western audiences, his experimentations into more instrumental, electronic kuduro beats have definitely set him aside within Angola’s kuduro community.

Killamu’s full length album is coming out this Tuesday January 12. Til then, get your mouth watering as BBRAVE squeezes the album’s potency into a 30 minute set of pure 140bpm Angolan batidas… Pick your poison: Mixcloud, Soundcloud, Fairtilizer, or just stay here, listen a download!
[audio:http://dl.dropbox.com/u/330960/Music/killamu_mixtape.mp3]

Akwaaba meets Killamu in front of his home and studio in Luanda, Angola. Killamu’s been making kuduro beats for close to a decade, and explains the stories and realities of kuduro in Angola today. We highly recommend you watch the video in HD on Vimeo!

Enjoy the tease, Killamu’s full length album comes out January 12, 2010. If you haven’t already, go download Killamu’s song Flaminguinho right here for free.

You may remember Killamu’s remix of Tiramakossa on our Akwaaba Sem Transporte kuduro compilation. His full album A Minha Face comes out very soon, starting with an iTunes exclusive January 12, 2010. We couldn’t resist to give you a free preview of one of his bangin’ kuduro beats. It was hard to pick one, the album features a handful of instrumental kuduro beats, as well as “regular” songs with some of Luanda’s finest lyricists. And even a couple kizomba tracks!

We look forward to unveiling the entire album, but in the meantime, we hope you dig Flaminguinho, a nice ingredient to blend into your mixes, o DJ friends. Blast it, pass it, slice it, dice it, and if you have a mix send it over, we can feature it here in our podcast. Feedback is always appreciated as well!