Yatrika Shah-Rais, host of Global Village every Wednesday on KPFK, hosts a wonderful show, and also runs a great music program at the Skirball Cultural Center. She has invited Benjamin Lebrave to her show on Dec 10 to explain Akwaaba’s concept and mission, and share some of the sounds from our catalog.
Tune into 90.7FM in the Los Angeles area, listen on KPFK’s site or here:
On November 7, Akwaaba Music welcomes you to the release party for Akwaaba wo Africa, its first release, and the introduction to its wide spanning catalog of fair trade African music.
Akwaaba wo Africa – welcome to Africa in twi, the language of the Ashanti people of Ghana. An eclectic sampler of acoustic Senegalese music, Malian pop, reggae, salsa, highlife and hiplife, all recorded in Africa. All of Akwaaba’s artists have released music locally, but have never had the opportunity to take their music outside of Africa. Akwaaba signed fair deals with these artists, splitting its net revenue 50-50 with all of its licensees, and working directly with the artist whenever possible.
For this first event, Akwaaba has received strong support from some of LA’s most prominent purveyors of African sounds. Tom Schnabel and Jeremy Sole, both renowned KCRW hosts and DJs, will share their take on contemporary African music, along with the Bay Area’s own DJ Chief Boima, and Akwaaba founder Benjamin Lebrave. Salt has actively been supporting Akwaaba. It is an elegant and minimal boutique of women’s designer clothing, located on Abbot Kinney Blvd in Venice, CA. It has featured art and hosted exhibits for local artists such as Deborah Glusker and Sherry Olsen (flyer).
For specific information, please join our mailing list.
[:en]Iba is another talented Malian griot. The son of revered Malian great Abdoulaye Diabaté, Iba’s voice was noticed at an early age in the village of Yorosso, east of Bamako near the border with Burkina Faso. Iba sings mostly in his native Bambara, but also in French, English and Spanish, singing about respect, peace, love and social injustice.
[:fr]Iba est un autre talentueux griot malien. Fils du révéré Abdoulaye Diabaté, la voix d’Iba a été remarquée dès son jeune âge à Yorosso, son village à l’Est de Bamako, à proximité de la frontière avec le Burkina Faso. Iba chante surtout dans son Bambara natif, mais aussi en Français, Anglais et Espagnol, il nous parle de respect, de paix, d’amour et d’injustices sociales.
[:de]Iba is another talented Malian griot. The son of revered Malian great Abdoulaye Diabaté, Iba’s voice was noticed at an early age in the village of Yorosso, east of Bamako near the border with Burkina Faso. Iba sings mostly in his native Bambara, but also in French, English and Spanish, singing about respect, peace, love and social injustice.
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[:en]Mamou is a djelimousso or griot from the Wassoulou region of south-east Mali. For about 30 years now the region has been a musical hotbed for experimentation, where Manding and Peul traditions are fused with western instruments. Mamou started singing to encourage workers in the fields, before heading to the big city, Bamako, where she sang as a back-up singer for Malian star Oumou Sangaré. Mamou eventually left Oumou to develop her own style. Today, she’s considered one of Mali’s song divas.
[:fr]Mamou est une djelimousso ou griotte de la région de Wassoulou au sud-est du Mali. Depuis 30 ans maintenant la région a été le terreau fertile d’expérimentations, le lieu où les traditions peules et mandingues sont mêlées aux instruments occidentaux. Mamou a commencé le chant pour encourager les travailleurs dans les champs, avant de se rendre dans la capitale, Bamako, où elle officia comme chanteuse back-up pour la star malienne Oumou Sangaré. Mamou finit par quitter Oumou pour développer son propre style. Elle est aujourd’hui considérée comme une des divas de la musique malienne.
Son titre Bakoye est chanté dans son sonrai natif, un langage parlé surtout autour du fleuve Niger au Mali, Niger et Bénin. Bakoye narre l’histoire d’un berger, qui malgré son large troupeau et ses abondants pâturages désire l’aventure.
[:de]Mamou is a djelimousso or griot from the Wassoulou region of south-east Mali. For about 30 years now the region has been a musical hotbed for experimentation, where Manding and Peul traditions are fused with western instruments. Mamou started singing to encourage workers in the fields, before heading to the big city, Bamako, where she sang as a back-up singer for Malian star Oumou Sangaré. Mamou eventually left Oumou to develop her own style. Today, she’s considered one of Mali’s song divas.
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