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 đ 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.
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 đ 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.
Miss Doctor was one of the biggest hits this year in Ghana. Appietusâ tight production has been booming throughout the entire country since last spring, so six months later itâs a special treat to see the vocals land in the hands of an army of young producers throughout the globe. On this EP we present some of our favorite submissions to the Miss Doctor remix contest. As usual choices were difficult and most likely quite imperfect. But we hope this small sample helps to propel 4X4 into new club stratospheres, and helps to turn new heads onto Ghanaian beats. A quick round up of the lucky few featured here:
Dance Kill Move – Sweden/Colombia: we instantly loved this cumbia/reggaeton/dancehall rework by this young Swedish duo. Funny how it came about: last summer Ricardo – the beatmaker in this duo – spent a few weeks in Colombia, where his family is from, soaking up the cumbia, vallenato, porros, champeta and reggaeton. Then upon his return, stumbled upon the remix contest. Luckily for us, his summertime love affair brought Miss Doctor that much closer to the Colombian coast. Escucha fuerte!
Sabbo – Israel: This is not the first time we dig Sabboâs remix, and certainly not the last! What can we say, we just love how he turns songs into dancehall/kuduro-tinted club bangers. Sabboâs sound is well established with all tropical / global bass bloggers and DJs. The cool thing here is, he was already playing the original Miss Doctor in his sets, so when he heard about the contest, he knew he had to remix it!
Paul Marmota – Chile/Mexico: Paul is a native of Santiago de Chile, where he started producing and getting involved with the local music scene. But in a quest to broaden his horizon, he relocated to booming Mexico City, where he has been working alongside artists such as Zombie Discos Squad, Erick RincĂłn or Waya Waya. His remix is a good example of his heavily percussive sound, which we feel matches well with 4X4âs fast delivery.
artfx! – Germany: another returning favorite, this Berliner is deep-rooted in the German dancehall scene. Over the past 12 years, he has built a name for himself releasing dub plates as part of the Bandulero Sound! collective, Yet his musical horizons are far broader, as demonstrated in his clubby take on Miss Doctor.
Rewiiiiiiind: earlier this year we shared a dozen or so individual studio tracks from the track âCombinationâ, an interesting combination â pun shamefully intended – of traditional kora playing with an afrobeat jam session flavor. Following Jaliâs debut album, Konteh Kunda, produced by Bay area musician Steve Pile, we are now proud to release this fine selection of remixes.
TRACKLIST:
01 â COMBINATION (HATNHOODIE REMIX, DE)
Hatnhoodie are best known for running the hatnhoodie.de blog, where they discuss â in German â the latest and greatest in the bubbling tropical scene.
02 â COMBINATION (ARTFX! REMIX, DE)
Berliner Artfx! has been making beats for well over a decade, but only recently did he get into more tropical type sounds. A pungent, fast-paced take on
Combination.
03 â COMBINATION (VOLTERGEIST REMIX, UK)
Heâs back, you may remember Voltergeist of Microrave Records from the Ze Bula Remix EP. We just love his dark, dubby reworks of these African sounds. Get ready to sink inâŠ
04 â COMBINATION (SENOR OZ REMIX, USA)
Oz, known to stand behind the decks at his weekly San Francisco party Afrolicious, also contributes to Six Degrees blog Global Noize, and â apparently! â also makes pretty great beats.
If you LOOOOOVE this shtuff, remember you can buy it in iTunes or directly from Jali’s own fancy Bandcamp store. Thanks for reading, next up: long overdue Miss Doctor remix contest results, coming VERY soon we promise!!!!
Hatnhoodie sont surtout connus pour ĂȘtre Ă la tĂȘte du blog hatnhoodie.de. Ils y parlent, en allemand, des derniĂšres et des meilleures sorties de la bouillante scĂšne tropical.
Rewiiiiiiind: earlier this year we shared a dozen or so individual studio tracks from the track âCombinationâ, an interesting combination â pun shamefully intended – of traditional kora playing with an afrobeat jam session flavor. Following Jaliâs debut album, Konteh Kunda, produced by Bay area musician Steve Pile, we are now proud to release this fine selection of remixes.
TRACKLIST:
01 â COMBINATION (HATNHOODIE REMIX, DE)
Hatnhoodie are best known for running the hatnhoodie.de blog, where they discuss â in German â the latest and greatest in the bubbling tropical scene.
02 â COMBINATION (ARTFX! REMIX, DE)
Berliner Artfx! has been making beats for well over a decade, but only recently did he get into more tropical type sounds. A pungent, fast-paced take on
Combination.
03 â COMBINATION (VOLTERGEIST REMIX, UK)
Heâs back, you may remember Voltergeist of Microrave Records from the Ze Bula Remix EP. We just love his dark, dubby reworks of these African sounds. Get ready to sink inâŠ
04 â COMBINATION (SENOR OZ REMIX, USA)
Oz, known to stand behind the decks at his weekly San Francisco party Afrolicious, also contributes to Six Degrees blog Global Noize, and â apparently! â also makes pretty great beats.
If you LOOOOOVE this shtuff, remember you can buy it in iTunes or directly from Jali’s own fancy Bandcamp store. Thanks for reading, next up: long overdue Miss Doctor remix contest results, coming VERY soon we promise!!!!
