I’ve managed to get unlimited web on my blackberry here in Ghana, and now a 3G USB modem, and before the modem the occasional cyber café. Well as it turns out, all of this is usually not enough to stream the tracks submitted for the remix… so how can we pick a winner?!?! The good new for prospective winners is that we might as well extend the submission period. So knock yourselves out, we’re giving you til the end of May. We’ve been getting emails telling us how great the remixes are – we believe it, we just hope we can actually LISTEN to them soon!!!!
Another no-media blackberry post… Long days, hard to find time to upload much from a computer, but here’s the low-down:
We spent the day in Tema, about 30 km east from central Accra. TONS of hits have been coming from there. Some names are emerging. We met Nana Boroo, who’s latest song plays about 3 million times a day, catchy as hell… Don’t mean to be so masochistic in our allusiveness, but rest assured, we’ll figure out a way to post this track soon – and remember its name…! We met Nana at Playboi’s studio, before the G TV crew took over. A show about Nana, who’s hit (name!? Argh!!) is enormous here. Playboi grew up in London but moved to Accra 4 years ago. He’s been producing a ton of tracks, distilling his British R’n’B / pop touch. He complains that Ghanaians are narrow minded. But he’s being modest: his style is adding a whole new dimension to the Ghanaian sound. Panji was telling me that “Afropop” sounds like it imitates the Nigerian Naija Rap sound, which itself was inspired by early, more minimal hiplife.
Nana Boroo
Playboi
Nigeria, so enormous, keeps absorbing Ghanaian culture. It’s cool to hear Nigerian singers come to Accra to record. But really the musical difference is minor compared to the coastal music vs what we’re about to discover up north… Tamale and Bolgatanga, hometown of King Ayisoba, an incredible artist we encourage you to swallow up. Great collabo with Panji of Pidgen Music. Can’t look up myspace or itunes link from this phone, but please make the effort, you won’t regret it!
Today we also caught up with Eugene aka Choir Master (pronounced kwaya masta) of Praye. He introduced us to his protege, Blaqsam. They sing together on the track Mabrewo. Glued to it here as I type. Another one we’ll surely feature soon… Join our mailing list to get it first.
Tema is teeming with music. We also met Keywa, a top “sound engineer”, aka often the arranger / producer, responsible for dozens of hits with major and underground artists. Speaking of underground and major, Rough’n’Smooth just made it. After close to a decade making music, they just got propelled into the Ghanaian stratosphere. Being in high demand means shows and endorsements. A pretty good life, although some point that the $ is still minuscule in regards to what the artists are contributing. Artists often aren’t paid for a show organized by a radio personality, in exchange for free or reduced payola. Brands bombard the cities with billboards of famous artists. The artists don’t get much for these endorsements. Everything else is a cost.
This monetary pressure on artists makes it tough for a kid from the ghetto to make it. Especially since there are too few real producers, who really enable artists to perform and record. Yet there is no shortage of raw talent. So there is a LOT to do.
Keywa
Tomorrow morning… We head to Kumasi. Say hello if you’re around!
Oh and for the real addicts among you, you should follow our twitter, I’m able to post throughout the day.
Most people think of Togo as a way to have food ordered. But it’s also a sliver of a country sandwiched between Ghana and Benin, a nation some may know for its gnarly ties to international – in particular French – money, arms and drugs scandals. The Gnassimbe dynasty has kept power within arms reach for decades, it is one of the finest examples of corruption in the world, the elite is particularly disinterested in the dire state of the country, which despite abundant mineral and agricultural wealth, is stuck in a rot. The rot is ibvous when entering from Ghana: one side of the border has buildings with rooms and computers. The other side has a shack with officers holding LED flashlights to fill in the paperwork. Sorry, photos of that were not so welcome.
The poor leadership and lack of development in the country are reflected by its extremely poor cultural reach. If anyone reading this can name ONE single Togolese musician, or even any kind of artist based in Togo, we’ll give you some free music!! More than in any country we’ve visited, there are hardly any structures to decently record and produce music, there is very limited access to foreign culture, besides the usual top 40 + garbage 40 (Celine Dion….).
BUT…. culture is very much alive. Hip hop took the country by storm since the mid 1980s, although it took over a decade for it to finally be accepted on the radio. Today hip hop is the dominant style for the Togolese youth, who sing in French, but mostly in Ewe and other regional Togolese languages. The hip hop is mostly influenced by what kids hear on the radio, which is – unfortunately – quite limited. 50 Cent, Akon, Tupac, and some French cats as well. We don’t want to hate on these major artists (actually we do, but we shouldn’t), but we believe there should be room for more. And finally now that internet access is trickling in, kids have some broader access to foreign music and culture.
As a result a new generation of artists is experimenting with the music. We were fortunate to meet with acts such as Dodji (photo of guy with guitar below) and Elinam (full band photo below), who blend a lot of foreign influences with elements of traditional folklore, in particular Ewe and coastal drumming techniques, which are impressively elaborate. We hope to work with such artists so stay tuned…
We should also note last Tuesday April 27 marked Togo’s 50th independence anniversary, hence the fireworks:
And we couldn’t resist but share some of the visuals…. hairdressers do it best over here:
Hey African music fans! I’d like to take this opportunity to say “Miawoezor” (that’s “welcome,” or “akwaaba” in the Ewe language) to Benjamin, who has just arrived in Ghana. In honor of his trip, I decided to take a break from my samba-semba blog entries and write a little bit about traditional Ghanaian music.
The dance-drumming of the Anlo-Ewe society of Southeastern Ghana features a complex rhythmic interplay between three supporting drums and a master drum. The ensemble also includes a bell, which acts as the conductor, and several rattles, which embellish the basic rhythm played by the bell.
Check out this video of Agbadza, a traditional Ewe dance. It’s a little long, but it really captures what it’s like to attend a dance-drumming event in an Ewe village. There are great shots of the drummers at 4:45, 6:31 and 7:40.
What I find most fascinating (and most frustrating) about Anlo-Ewe music is that it’s impossible to play it alone—you need at least five people—unlike music in the Western tradition, where individual practice is necessary for group success. Drummer Kevin O’Sullivan has had a brilliant solution to this problem: he has arranged Anlo-Ewe rhythms for drum set, assigning each limb a different part of the Ewe drum ensemble. Check out his arrangement of Atsiã, an Ewe social dance:
If you’re interested in seeing it performed live (with dancers!), percussionist Amanda Duncan will be playing it on her senior recital at Cal State Long Beach on May 15th, 2010 at 8pm in Daniel Recital Hall. And if you want more info on Anlo-Ewe dance drumming, O’Sullivan’s website is one of the best resources I’ve found on the web; be sure to check it out!
