Tune Your World

Kabul Workshop & Zeus!! - FREE SONG!!

Old Drum & Bass in the background of new Asian electronica! Check out today's FREE SONG;

Listen To 'Zeus'

Heavily influenced by Afghan and Indian music, the electro-world of Kabul Workshop differentiates itself from the Electro-Asian scene by its originality and the quality of its compositions. It is almost like going back to the essence of drum&bass on some of the tracks. An interesting mixture!

Kabul Workshop is a workshop of musical research where the resulting melodies are a direct expression of the state of mind of their creators; a bridge between their different cultures.
Kabul Workshop, a worldly collective led by Francesco Russo and Khaled Arman, explore the ethnic sounds of Afghan and Indian music in a contemporary, largely electronic setting.

The duo, who met in 1998, wrote all of the songs on Kabul Workshop's debut album, Trigana (2002), while band members Massoud Raonaq and Shyamal Maïtra contribute instrumentation. All four band members reside in France though none are of French origin.

Check out the Kabul Workshop album here!

Listen To 'Zeus'

India, Afghanistan, Electronica, World Fusion,

Marcel Khalife & Popular Cafe!! - FREE SONG!!

Marcel Khalife, he is a United Nations Educational, scientific and cultural organization "Artist for Peace". Not even Bono can say the same,- check him out;

Listen To 'Popular Cafe'

Marcel Khalife is a 'worldly artist'. He has performed in such prestigious halls as the "Palace of Arts" in Montreal, "Symphony Space" and "Merkin Concert" in New York, "Berklee Theatre" and "New England Conservatory" in Boston, "Royal Festival Hall", and "Queen Elizabeth Hall" in London,"UNESCO Palace" of Beirut, Cairo Opera House (Egypt) among others. Born in Lebanon and with his Arabic lute he has been a significant person in his way of 'playing for peace'.

Ironically, some weeks ago a venue in San Diego denied the artist to perform. The manager of the venue  felt the show would be "divisive" and "unbalanced" without an Israeli performer taking the stage the same night. It's tough to tell if this is political correctness run amok or the problem is Khalifé being Arab and this being a Christian-run venue in George Bush's America.?!

Khalife has faced persecution in the Middle East, but never something this inflammatory in the U.S.A. Earlier this year, a performance of his was denounced in the Persian Gulf island nation Bahrain, and Khalife’s music was also recently banned from radio, television, and on stage in Tunisia. Damned in parts of the Middle East for supporting freedom of expression, it is ironic that in the U.S.A. he would find similar efforts to quiet him. hm.. when is the real change gonna happen?

Music is the most peaceful way of expression, and please let it stay this way. We are in 2007, for F***'s sake! - Musicians have for years fought the war of free expression through sound & rhythm,- let's not go backwards!

Listen To 'Popular Cafe'

Get more music from Marcel Khalife here!

Lebanon, Arab Classical, Inspirational, Traditional,

Salamat & Betfout with Mahmoud Fadl!! - FREE SONG!!

From the desert to the dance floor; today's FREE song from Salamat;

Listen To 'Betfout with Mahmoud Fadl'

Mahmoud Fadl, a great Master of drumming, works and travels between the old Cairo and the new Berlin, which happens to be one of the traditional centers of science for Nubian culture. Some find it easier to relate to the club scene around the globe, while others, vice versa; relates better to the music that has origins from the mystic desert. - Either way you won't get lost here,- Fadl lays the world right for you!

His Tribal House Project "United Nubians" has earned international attention as one of the most innovative developments of the vibrant Berlin club scene. Beside his own work as a musician, film actor and fashion designer, Mahmoud Fadl frequently performs with the West-African Griot-Ensemble "Saf-Sap" on oriental wedding and musical workshops.

Listen To 'Betfout with Mamoud Fadl'

You'll find more inspiration from Salamat's music here!

Pantsula John & Till the end!! - FREE SONG!!

This is old-school by now, and damn funky, I'd tell ya!! Check out today's FREE song:

Listen To 'Till the end'

Pantsula John is John Mpotoane of African Flag Pantsula fame! - Pantsula, a Zulu word meaning to waddle like a duck or to walk with protruded buttocks, developed as an artistic depiction of township life.

The South African dance form evolved from the Americano township culture of the 60s, and was originally much more slick and showy than today’s incremental shakes and realignment of the thighs.

Members of the 'pantsula movement' were known for their expensive taste in clothes and harsh township slang. They were easily distinguishable and targeted by apartheid police, particularly following the violence of the 1984 rent boycotts.
It became an underground dance of sorts, practiced secretly in shacks and common halls. After the regime fell, pantsula re-emerged in a more “respectable” commercialized style. However,  this music is still identified as roots/old school funk,- and in my opinion it is far from commercialized. What do you think?

Listen To 'Till the end

Get more Pantsula music and check out the whole album here!

South Africa, Hip Hop, World Pop, Electronica,

George Okudi & 'Oyongito'! - FREE SONG!!

George Okudi is a musician by nature and a direct product of African art and culture! - More vibrant and true to his beat, it's hard to find something like it!

Listen To 'Oyongito'

Having grown up in urban and rural environments, George's music was able to come out of both urban and rural life styles, and created a music that blends African cultural music with modern art and technology!

George Okudi is today singing out of Kampala in Uganda, though he is well-known throughout the whole African continent. With the title of best male artist on the continent of Africa (2003 KORA Awards, Johannesburg, South Africa), the man doesn't stop there! - Suck it up and let yourself go!

Listen To 'Oyongito'

Get more music from Geaorge Okudi here!

Uganda, gospel, Inspirational

 

Sevara Nazarkhan & Yallajonim! FREE SONG!!

Does this work for you? check it out, today's FREE song

Listen To 'Yallajonim'

We first heard about Sevara from a friend living in Uzbekistan. He told us, "Everyone in Uzbekistan loves Sevara." That didn't quite convince us until we heard her; then we were sold. Sevara is truly a treasure, an artist who is able to preserve her Uzbeki tradition, while bringing it into the pop world. Her singing of folk or classic songs is deeply informed, yet her arrangements reveal a sophisticated contemporary senesbility.

Her instrument is the doutar - a fifteenth century, two-stringed, Central Asian lute that is plucked not strummed. When music was the preserve of shepherds and lonely wayfarers, the strings were made from animal intestines... is this what we would call vintage? ... or...new and original?

Listen To 'Yallajonim'

Get more music from Sevara Nazarkhan here!

Uzbekistan, Traditional, World Pop, Folk,

Zap Mama & Call Waiting! - FREE SONG!!

WOW! Today's FREE song is special! - N.W.N - No Words Necessary! - you MUST check it out;

Listen To 'Call Waiting'

Urban Ethnic Music from Brussels. When you first hear that, it sounds something of a contradiction, but since Marie Daulne gathered a number of slightly eccentric friends around her in 1990, nobody finds it strange any more. And there are reasons for that. Since then, Zap Mama has toured Europe, Africa and the United States, and everywhere they have gone, the audience has fallen for the eclectic mixture of styles somewhere between soul, gospel, pygmy song and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

Unearthly harmonies born of Pygmy song, Moroccan chants and exuberant scat made Zap Mama global a cappella queens. Now for the first time they meet the roots throb of bass and drums, shot through with equal parts highlife and hip-hop. Zap Mama is soul music for the diaspora. "If your ears are open," mama Zap Marie Daulne says, "you'll understand."

With the help of gestures and an inexhaustible imagination, the five acrobatic female voices take the audience on a wondrous world journey, pausing for a moment to visit a Congolese soul, and then a few moments later, soaring on a flying carpet above the Taj Mahal. The colorfully attired ladies sprinkle the whole performance with a substantial dose of 'joie de vivre' and a disarming sense of humor.

As I said; N.W.N; it is a must! - a fine line between the soul of the past and the technology of the future!

Listen To 'Call Waiting'

check out all their albums here!

Belgium, World Fusion, Pygmy Music

Proyecto Secreto & Olvida Todo! - FREE SONG!!

Proyecto Secreto has plotted a secret recipe: Ska laced with swing and mambo! Check out today's FREE song;

Listen To 'Olvida Todo'

The 'roots' of Proyecto Secreto goes back to 1995. This Belgian-Chilean band thrives on a clash of cultures, with great horns and nice organs. Based in Belgium, but huge and awesome live at Ska Festivals. They have done; Rude Pot Festival in Dortmund, Dinamite Ska Festival in Leipzig, Ska Explosion Brussels, Reduit at Mainz-Kastel te Mainz etc.. but the clear highlight were the Antilliaanse Feesten the Biggest Tropical Festival in Belgium, with guest singers Begoña Bang Matu, Paola Marquez and Alejandro Donoso.

At the end of 2005, Proyecto Sectreto recorded the single Jamaica 69 an instrumental and Olvida Todo (today's free song) with Paola Marquez on vocals. David Hillyard took care of the production and Victor Rice mixed his engineering skills together, and this is what came out it:

Listen To 'Olvida Todo'

Listen to more ska from Proyecto Sectreto here!

Chile, Belgium, Ska

The Afro Indian Project & Jolay! Jolay! - FREE SONG!!

Today's FREE song; Jolay! Jolay!, with The Afro Indian Project;

Listen To 'Jolay! Jolay!'

The Afro Indian Project is led by a man called RAVI (pronounced: RAH-vee). He is a well-traveled Englishman who plays an African instrument. However, his colleagues do include distinguished Indian colleagues & disciples of the subcontinent's most famous Ravi (sitarist, Ravi Shankar).

Ravi’s ‘Afro-Indian Project’ is a unique and exotic blend of African and Indian cultural sounds. Ravi (West-African kora) explores new musical horizons and soundscapes with world renowned santoor player, Tarun Bhattacharya, Ravi Shankar’s tabla player, Bikram Ghosh, legendary double bass player, Danny Thompson and master of Egyptian tabla, Hossam Ramzy. Mixed by legendary producer John Leckie (The Verve, Stone Roses, Radiohead).

As the name, Afro-Indian indicates... yes, you are right! This mixture of afro beats and Indian tunes will definitely take you places.  If you haven't been down those streets, well I will tell you there is something about this music that has produced a multicultural delight! It is actually a suitably vibrant salute to "the unforgettable experience of Indian trains"!

Enjoy today's free track!

Listen To 'Jolay! Jolay!'

Get more music from The Afro Indian Project here!

Mali, Senegal, India, World Fusion,

Aziza & Hayat! - FREE SONG!!

Aziza A. with her track; 'Hayat' is today's free song;

Listen To 'Hayat'

Aziza is a word in Arabic literally meaning "precious" or "holy"; though her real name is Alev Yıldırım. Born in Berlin and brought up among Turks, the largest minority group in Germany, Aziza A breathes a new life and voice to hip-hop and cunningly reflects the simplicity, attraction and truth of street life through her music which is a blend of funk, soul, jazz and R&B, all deeply rooted in the street.

As an artist creating a new musical language by the Oriental hip-hop style and built a bridge between the East and the West, she is doing it damn well! She also writes the lyrics herself, respect! check her out!

Listen To 'Hayat'

Get more music from Aziza here!

Turkey, Germany, Hip Hop

Tune Your World - Heal the Hood Project in Cape Flats, South Africa

Calabash Music is pleased to announce our newest addition to the Tune Your World campaign:€“ Emile YX. We are featuring one of his songs - 'Soul Shine Bright' - as today's Free Song:

Listen & Download 'Soul Shine Bright'

Emile is a long-time community activist and hip hop artist from Cape Flats, South Africa. Cape Flats is one of the townships outside of Cape Town. Emile is putting all the money from his music sales on Calabash towards ongoing workshops and developmental work with the non-profit €œHeal the Hood€ based in South Africa.

The aims of Heal the Hood are:

• To create a sustainable network of youth artists nationally and internationally through which jobs and new skills are created, arts products and arts related information can be distributed.
• To create sustainable exchanges between youth globally
• To create jobs through the arts in various communities
• To empower youth and their communities with new skills
• To combat racism and xenophobia globally

Since Emile helped create Heal the Hood in 1998, the organization has:

• Raised $85,000 to send 70 breakdancers to the world championships in Germany over the last 10 years
• Hosted African Battle Cry (since 1996), Battle of the Year (since 1997),Freestyle Sessions South Africa, Shut Up Just Dance, African Hip Hop Indaba
• Recorded & Released 6 compilation CDs, and individual sales for Lions of Zion, Ancient Men, Plain Madnizz, Isaac Mutant, Black Noise, Emile YX? & Conquering Lions
• Recorded & Released 2 DVDs and shot a documentary about breakdance history
• Released books for Emile YX?, Da Juice Magazine and R.A.P.S.S. (Rhymes Articles Poetry Sketches, Short Stories)
• Toured Black Noise around Sweden, Holland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Germany, Namibia
• Sent dancers to Sweden to learn more about hip hop dance
• Hosted hip hop dancers from Sweden and NYC in South Africa
• Toured schools throughout South Africa, Norway and Sweden

Emile YX and his crew have shot a couple videos to show people outside Cape Flats a bit of what is happening in the community. Watch them below.

Videos:

I am (Proud to be African)

Cape Flats Ding

Emile's Website http://www.emileyx.co.za

Get more of Emile's music.

Arash Khalatbari & Nicolas De Cusa Was Right! - FREE SONG!!

' La Chapelle' is a station of the Paris Metro, serving the blue line, # 2. The station is connected to the Gare du Nord and the Gare du Nord metro station on lines 4 and 5. Why am I telling you this? - If you know Paris you will know! - Check out today's FREE song,- it will take you right there!

Listen To 'Nicolas DE Cusa Was Right'

For those not too familiar with this city, the neighborhood, 'La Chapelle', is one of the most "chaud" hoods of Paris. Southern and Northern parts of Africa is what you see and what you live! Arash's first solo music project is a synthesis of his experiences living in La Chapelle,  the culturally diverse Parisian neighborhood which is this album's namesake.

Arash Khalatbari, is an Iranian-born percussionist who has collaborated on numerous World Music projects (the most famous being his role as a founding member of the trio Ekova). He has lived in Paris since the age of 14.
Not a traditional musician in the true sense of the word, he assimilates the diverse cultures of the Parisian World Music scene into his music.

Enjoy today's free song, its 'special' I'd tell ya!

Listen To 'Nicolas DE Cusa Was Right'

Get more music from Arash Khalatbari here...

France, Iran, World Fusion, Ethno Techno,

Pinker Tones - Love Tape! - FREE SONG!!

10 FREE SONGS EVERY WEEK!!!

Calabash Music is publishing 2 FREE SONGS every day!!!

Scroll down this page and you will find this week's 10 free songs!!

The Pinker Tones from Barcelona, Europe's special metropolis,  which is renowned for its electric and booming  mix of cultures and "buen rollo". For those familiar with this city, it's easy to feel these elements rooted in The Pinker Tones intoxicating blend of tunes! As we mentioned earlier on this month, It is quite hard to define comparables for this album where deep beats mix creating an over/underground sound, a worldly sound. However, I am more than happy not defining this album! You agree? This album makes my head spin 180 degrees; From sticky nights 'glued to the floor' at Barcelona's "afters" to  total elegance in a 100 % Bossa Nova style! An interesting and exhilarating ride!

Listen To 'Love Tape - Mash-Up By The Pinker Tones'

Spain, Barcelona, Electronica, Bossa Nova,

One Giant Leap & Braided Hair w/ Neneh Cherry ! - FREE SONG!!

Today's FREE song is from an album of treasures! Check it out!!

Listen To 'Braided Hair w/ Neneh Cherry'

Through music, the world is in a 360 degree conversation with itself! Brilliant work put together with today's artists jamming on to traditional & cultural tunes! Artists, such as and Robbie Williams among others. 

When Jamie Catto and Duncan Bridgeman joined forces to create the project '1 Giant Leap', they embarked upon a global journey that included Senegal, Ghana, South Africa, Uganda, India, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, America and Europe, equipped solely with a digital video camera, a laptop and a vision - to capture and weave together a unique fusion of sound, image and spoken word from some of the world's most happening musicians, authors, scientists and thinkers and to explore 'The Unity in the Diversity'

'1 Giant Leap' is nothing short of an electronic drum circle, drawing the citizens of Earth together for a planet-wide cautionary pep talk. Mesmerizing and utterly profound, yet wonderfully accessible!

Listen To 'Braided Hair w/ Neneh Cherry'

Check out the whole album of One Giant Leap here; '1 Giant Leap'

Hip hop, Mbalax, Ghana, Uganda, World Fusion,

The Afro-Brazilian Project & '21-String Samba'! - FREE SONG!!

Brilliant samba/jazz fusion! Check out today's FREE Song;

Listen To '21-String Samba'

Ravi, a British kora player spent six months in Rio de Janeiro recording with Brazilian musicians, exploring the styles and rhythms of this vibrant culture. And vibrant is the word!

Straight and no Chaser, the kora brings more of the rising and falling of the sea to the already sea-like samba. It fits in with guitars like it was always a natural part of Brazilian music. Ravi's compositions are delicate and downbeat, a groove is built on "Berimbao' with an angelic wordless vocal chorus.The meditative "Amazonian Journey one" shows the beauty of Marlui Miranda's voice in a very pure and pristine moment, particularly because of the grace and poise of her tune.

Special guests include legendary clarinettist Paulo Moura; two of Brazil’s leading percussionists Armando Marçal and Robertinho Silva and Marlui Miranda, who re-creates the songs and sounds of the Brazilian Indians.

Brazilian samba with 'pling-plong sounds' from Mali and a western jazzy fusion - does that make sense?

Listen To '21-String Samba'

Get more music from The Afro-Brazilian Project!

Brazil, Mali, World Fusion, UK,

William Cepeda & Grupo Afro Boricua, Bomba Swing!! - FREE SONG!!

Today we go Jazzy!  Put your boa on, dance YOUR dance through the house while you check out today's FREE song;

Listen To 'Bomba Swing'

Trombonist, composer and arranger William Cepeda is part of a new generation of musicians who have not only mastered the skills a jazz artist requires, but combine them with the traditional music of their homeland, creating a new and challenging repertoire. Cepeda calls his own variation on this theme "Afrorican Jazz."

Nothing like this has been done before! While there are plenty of great jazz albums inspired by Cuban rhythms and music, Cuban-jazz fusions as such, there's nothing quite of the same caliber out there for Puerto Rican music and jazz. The music of Puerto Rico is rich and diverse. Unlike Cuban music, which is tremendously popular the world over, the music of Puerto Rico is rarely heard outside the island. Musician William Cepeda's objective is to advocate for change:

"I want to reach out through my music and make Puerto Rican music more universal. That is my mission, to broaden the consciousness of Puerto Rican music... it is time for our music to be heard and its evolution to be given new support."

Enjoy this creation of a new and challenging repertoire!

Listen To 'Bomba Swing'

Get more of William Cepeda & Grupo Afro Boricua's music here!

Bomba, World Jazz, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica,

Dub Champions & Heavy Dub! FREE SONG!!

Today's FREE song is moving the memory of late summer nights to the front of your mind; Warm Dub - sin duda!  Check out today's FREE song;  Listen To 'Heavy Dub'

The evolution of DJ soundsystem, dub studio, and live band. Original reggae, hip hop and drum and bass beats with a blues meets the mid-east melodic attack. Crossfaded real-time inna dub style, with samplers, mixers, computers, analog echo and electric guitar.

Dub Champions transform what was once confined to the studio — the Jamaican dub reggae production style of the 1970s -- into a dynamic DJ soundsystem for the here and now. Vintage analog delay, mixers, and samplers shape the sound of original tunes: tunes that blend reggae, sure, but also hip-hop, drum and bass, blues, mid-east, and African influences, and a guitar so tasty (unofficially classified as finger-licking)
among others.

Dub Champions is a live Subatomic project performing in New York City on the regular, featuring Andrew Carras on guitar, saz, & cumbush and EMCH 'pon the sound system controls. Don't miss out!

Listen To 'Heavy Dub'

Get more Dub from Dub Champions here!

US, Greece, Jamaica, Hip Hop, Electronica

Bole 2 Harlem and Bole to Harlem Vol. 1! - FREE SONG!!

What is the definition of a great "remix"? Is it a total 're-done' or just improvisation of new lyrics or new beats to original material? Check out today's FREE Song;

Listen To 'Hoya Hoye'

These days in Ethiopia, the phrase “remix” has a unique meaning. If you step into a taxi in Addis Ababa, there is a good chance your driver will attempt to get on your good side by playing a cassette, and singing along with a well-known song, while improvising his own set of lyrics over the song. The new lyrics might take on social commentary or may simply be humorous, but they will likely have insider references to modern-day Ethiopian life.    

While hip music enthusiasts are digging through record bins for Ethiopian funk and soul of the ’60s and ’70s, a diverse crew of Ethiopians, other Africans, and Americans in New York’s Harlem have created a new sound with positive Ethiocentric rhymes, funky horns, lively percussion and booty-shaking beats. Bole2Harlem represents the emergence of a new musical identity for the Ethiopian diaspora and a sonic bridge between New York’s uptown “Little Africa” and Bole, Ethiopia’s (air)port of entry. But there is a reason why a sound that some might think of as “out of left field” feels so catchy and danceable: it was created purely for fun among friends. 

“Hoya Hoye” comes from a children’s song chanted during a holiday similar to Halloween called "Buhe." Kids travel door to door in groups singing this traditional call and response. They pound walking sticks to the beat and take turns singing praises in rhyme to earn coins and bread. “The kid has to be sincere and original in his rhymes to get paid,” says Schommer, who set the tempo of the track based on hearing a young boy in Addis Ababa sing it while shining someone’s shoes. “Every Ethiopian knows this song regardless of tribe.”

The song also points to the influence of Harlem on the project. “I go to my corner bodega and hear the best salsa and merengue,” explains Schommer. “I walk down to the Ital juice store and hear the best reggae. The Senegalese and Malian vendors are blasting their traditional and modern music. The song ‘Hoya Hoye,’ is like a walk down the street in Harlem!

Harlem’s church choirs spilling onto the streets on a Sunday morning, was what inspired the opening line of the song that goes ‘Feelin’ alright!’ These riffs used could be either from the American Blues or from Amharic Tizita. 'Bole 2 Harlem' is open to all the sounds of Harlem and the experiences of Ethiopia!

The song 'Hoya Hoye' is a strong remix in that sense; mixing Western urban ghetto rhythms and rural traditional tunes. -  It is most definitely original material, which created this deep underground mix!

Listen To 'Hoya Hoye'

Get more music from Bole 2 Harlem here...

Ethiopia, Hip Hop, Harlem, David Schommer

DEBU and Don't turn back! - FREE SONG!

Have you ever been to the Eastern West and the Western East? Enjoy today's FREE SONG; Listen To 'Don't Turn Back'

DEBU’s repertoire does not focus on a particular category of music, but the musical style transcends cultural borders..

The creation of the music is to take exciting rhythms and themes from both familiar and ethnic instruments and meld them to produce a new, vibrant sound.
Each song is unique and attractive, creating excitement while conveying the message of its Sufi poetry - the universal love of the one True Love. One can clearly say DEBU’s lyrics are from the heart, to the heart.

The music of DEBU is free and rich in expression because it is not fettered to any one musical style or concept. DEBU’s music is progressive, exploring new horizons of sound while at the same time remaining faithful to the purpose of the underlying poetry. It may reverberate with energetic Middle Eastern drumming or soar on the ethereal sounds of a flute. Melodies may evoke an Arabian caravan scene or the strumming guitar of western country music. One may hear nuances of cool jazz, western and Turkish folk music interspersed with the multi-cadences of traditional Indonesian marawis. The listener may be roused by the fierce rhythm of a marching song or soothed by hints of European classical music. Often members of the audience are brought to their feet by soulful rhythms.

Shunning the trite rhythms of most popular music, DEBU’s percussionists play an eclectic array of meters, leaning heavily on Eastern beats and Middle Eastern dance rhythms.

Bon Voyage!

Listen To 'Don't Turn Back'

Get more music from DEBU here...

Asia, Indonesia, Pop, Malaysia

East African Urban and AnaLyze w/ K-G, Sideshow, Musah and NENO! - Free Song

Welcome to East Africa's hip-hop scene!

Check out today's FREE Song: Listen To 'AnaLyze w/ K-G, Sideshow, Musah and NENO'

Hip-hop is culture! In East Africa it is not any different. Many have grown up listening to it and have naturally fallen in love. Zillions of ill tracks have not hit commercial status but have still remained favorites to some.

East African Hip-Hop is today representing the new Urban culture from Kampala, Dar Es Salaam to Nairobi. Since the 60's the three countries Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania have shared the same culture in music and now with the new rise in Afro-Urban music, East Africa has become a buzz with music.

In the beginning of 1989 music of hip hop and Reggae etc emerged and drew the attention of many youth in East Africa. More still needs to be done but East African Urban Music is on the rise, and what comes out of there is the most brilliant mix of urban and rural tunes. Music has always been used as a tool of expression and passing message for current social issues, and Hip-Hop’s and Reggae historical roles has its true outlet from this region.

'The East African Urban Vol. 1' expounds upon this by providing rural and urban music an open time and space to discover new sides to music and the culture that drives it. This compilation showcases the talents of various acts from all this countries.

Enjoy the ride!

Listen To 'AnaLyze w/ K-G, Sideshow, Musah and NENO'

Get more music from East African Urban here...

East Africa, Hip Hop, Kenya 

Bokoor Beats and Egbe Enyo w/Brekete & The Big Beats! - Free Song

Vintage will always be vintage? Check out today's FREE Song: 'Egbe Enyo w/Brekete & The Big Beats '

Bokoor Beats is a collection of vintage afro-beat, afro-rock & electric highlife from Ghana! Booker Beats manages to collect some of  afro-beat , afro-rock and electric tunes and mix together some of the coolest vintage rhythms!   

A great deal of Ghana's rich musical traditions have been documented, recorded and played by the musician/musicologist Professor John Collins. His own Bokoor Band, founded in the 1970s, was at the forefront of blending western pop with indigenous African rhythms and musical traditions, inaugurating the first generation of so-called Afropop. By the time it had disbanded Collins transformed it into Bokoor Studios where he went on to record over 200 artists in various genres including palmwine and electric highlife, afro-beat, afro-rock, afro-jazz, gospel, reggae and traditional drumming.

John Collins recorded all the tracks and had them remastered from the original tapes. In his Bokoor Studio as well as his own compositions with his group Bokoor Band, pioneers of Afropop who performed and recorded in the 70s, mixing western pop rhythms with indigenous African beats.

Listen To 'Egbe Enyo w/Brekete & The Big Beats '

Get more music from Bokoor Beats

bokoor beats, ghana, john collins palmwine west africa afrobeat

Manu Chao - 'Rainin in Paradize' - Free Song

Listen To 'Rainin in Paradize'

Manu Chao's 'Rainin in Paradize' is the single from his new album and this week's free single. Chao is the "the ringmaster of a multicultural, cross-generational, genre-busting circus that can whip tens of thousands of people into a frenzy even if they don't speak the same language."

Get the Music

Manu Chao, Rainin in Paradize, Manu Chao Spain

Cold Storage Band - 'Mafambira e Wai'

Listen To 'Bulawayo Jazz'

'Mafambira e Wai' is a sweet track presented by the legendary saxophonist/composer August Musarurwa, the leader of the 'African Dance Band of the Cold Storage Commission of Southern Rhodesia'.

This is but one track from the 'Bulawayo Jazz' album of dynamite jazz from the city of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe, recorded between 1950 and 1952 by Hugh Tracey. You will find no mention in any history of jazz of this exciting style developed in southern Africa - this is a grand omission and here finally is the evidence, digitally remastered by Michael Baird! Tracks on the album include "Ndakurakura Mai", "Mafambira E Wai", "Skokiaan", "Rhumba", "Tsuku Kunema", and "Hondo Chivutsi" by The Cold Storage Band; "Icharlie Jive", "Ungityela Manga", and "Hamba Hamba Madala" by Los Angeles Orchestra; "Kuenda Namwendo" and "Machipisa Watere Muchikunda" by Umtali Chipisa Band; and "N'ga Ngile Ntombi Yami" by Dick Nuebe Trio.

Get the music...

West African Stars Dry Yai Debut in U.S. with Free Single

Listen To Ease Di Tension Remix

CalabashMusic is offering a free download from Sierra Leone hip-hop/dancehall superstars Dry Yai. "Ease Di Tension" was written by Dry Yai to promote non-violence at home during this week's elections. The group's brand new single is co-produced by Nomadic Wax and Modiba in advance of Dry Yai's special guest appearance with the acclaimed Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars in Brooklyn.

From the streets of Freetown, Sierra Leone's biggest recording artists, Dry-Yai's Pupa Bajah and the Baw-Waw Society land amid New York City's steamy skyscrapers to bring international attention their country, urging non-violence with the FREE release of their latest single, "Ease Di Tension."

"..un leh we ease di tension pan dis election.."
"..unless we ease the tension upon this election.."

The track, co-produced by Modiba Productions and Nomadic Wax in association with hip-hop community site OkayPlayer is being released just a day in advance of tomorrow's elections. Saturday, August 11th, on election day the musicians will promote their message of peace live by appearing on stage with the Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars at Celebrate Brooklyn's African Festival at the Prospect Park Bandshell.

Pupa Bajah and Baw-Waw Society are often hailed as "the voice of the youth", having rocked their small West African nation with hits like Grap en Clap, Angel, I Love This Lady and City Line, making them vital figures in a nation in which over half the voters are under 35. Featured in the excellent Blood Diamond film soundtrack starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Connelly, Pupa Bajah and the Baw-Waw society have subsequently garnered critical acclaim from artists such as Wyclef Jean and Moby, and have most recently appeared in the film Bling: A Planet Rock, starring members of the Wu-Tang Clan, Paul Wall, and former child soldier and literary sensation Ishmael Beah, produced in conjunction with VH1, United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and Article 19 Films.

This year's elections, the first since UN peacekeeping forces left in 2005, are a true test of the fragile peace in a nation recently ravaged by a brutal ten-year civil war: an estimated 50,000 people were killed, 500,000 people were displaced, and thousands of people were mutilated by warring forces. But poverty and joblessness, along with widespread governmental corruption, some of the initial causes of the war, are still rampant, and the population has grown tired of living in poverty, without access to power, clean water, and health services. Some Sierra Leoneans have been leaving the country ahead of the elections, fearful that violence will break out as voting begins. Recent news reports low-level skirmishes and isolated incidents of political violence.

But Bajah, who narrowly escaped the war as a refugee in Guinea, has a deep love for his country and an inspiring hope for the future: "after some years we will become the shining star of Africa." To make this happen he will use his music to create change within his country, "with hip-hop you can easily pass a positive message to the public as we are doing now."

Bajah sings in "Ease Di Tension": "We need a leader with a very good intention/One with a good plan for the nation/That will take us out of sufferation!"

They hope this message will ring loud and clear back home.

Free Song - Fela Kuti - 'Progress'

In honor and remembrance of the father of Afro-beat, we offer up the track "Progress", originally written by Afrobeat founder Tony Allen. Dance, remember, and rise-up!

Fela Kuti's recording of Progress comes from the Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project. The album features “Progress” by Afrobeat founders Tony Allen and Fela Kuti, and a previously unreleased live version of “Uprising” by Antibalas. Other artists contributing material include: Kokolo, Akoya Afrobeat Ensemble, Dele Sosimi, Wunmi, Ikwunga, Keziah Jones, Franck Biyong and Massak, and Baba Olagun.

In today's turbulent international political climate, artists throughout the world have seized upon Afrobeat as a way to amplify the voices of those who are suffering. Afrobeat is the ideal soundtrack to mobilize relief for the victims of this dire African crisis. According to TrueMajority, the project’s sponsor:

"Life is bleak in the Darfur region of Sudan, where 1.8 million people are refugees from military attack. With intense grooves and furious horns these Afrobeat artists campaign for a better future throughout the continent, and do some immediate good for the Darfurians. Proceeds from the album go to the Kebkabiya Smallholders Charitable Society, a local community group in Sudan helping their countrymen find food and shelter as they flee the attackers. From the Tony Allen classic ‘Progress’ (featuring Fela Kuti himself) to Antibalas’ call for ‘Uprising,’ this is a revolution which dances."

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Malouma - 'Nour'

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Malouma is from Mauritania, one of Africa's most desolate countries. Malouma is the first Mauritanian women to introduce Modern Mauritanian Music. Her music is a mix of traditional and modern sounds where she is melding western styles to the Moorish music of the Sahara and adding electric guitars to traditional instruments such as the four-stringed, lute-like tidinit.

Anchored in the tradition yet resolutely modern, inspired by the songs of the desert and immersed in the rhythms of the Senegal River, somewhere at the crossroads of West Africa, the Arab and the Berber worlds, between the Sahel and the Savannah, Malouma's music is unique.

Malouma is also known as a militant singer, spokesman for women rights in a Muslim Country. She was born into a family of griots, the daughter of Moktar Ould Meidah, a prominent traditional musician as well as a highly skilled poet, and the granddaughter of Mohamed Yahya Ould Boubane, another virtuoso of words and the tidinit (a small traditional guitar used by griots).

Although she started performing at age 12, she started to make a national impact a bit later, through her commitment to encourage justice and equality in Mauritania, she involved herself in activist songs to stir people into action, singing for the AIDS campaigns, for the vaccination of children, for the elimination of illiteracy and for the promotion of women, among other things. While her music soon became popular among the youth (girls and boys), it was rejected at first by the dictatorship of Mauritania.

However, with the first elections in Mauritania, Malouma is now in a special place to effect change, being both an elected official in the government and continuing to make powerful music. [More...]

Boubacar Traore - 'Kongo Magni'

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Boubacar Traore (Kar-Kar) has been dodging musical stardom for most of his life. In his youth, Boubacar Traore was known as the Malian Chuck Berry or Elvis Presley. People woke up every day to hear him singing on the radio. His most popular song at that time was "Mali Twist" which he has likened to a national anthem for the newly independent nation of Mali.

Traore is an artist who has affected an entire generation. His is the voice of a nation, its hopes and its fears. He is a storyteller, and his songs deal with daily living, the many facets of love, political conditions and solidarity. Sometimes they are small parables, resonant with meanings we'll never be able to understand, but clear to his friends. Perhaps the final words are best said by one of his peers, Ali Farka Toure: "If the maximum is five, I give ten to Kar Kar".

He insists he's no blues man. "Blues is blues," he says. "It's American. But there is also blues in Europe and blues in Africa. The languages are different, but you can see that all these kinds of blues have the same parents--same father, same mother." [More...]

boubacar traore, mali, pierrette blues west africa mariama

Video: 'Ave Cruz' by CeU

CeU is one relaxed, sexy, soulful, electro-pop singer-songwriter. And as a budding student of Brazilian Portuguese, I can tell you that her music comes from a mixing of samba, soul and candomblé into a style that Brazilians refer to malemolência  -- which roughly translates as "flowing" or "relaxed".  Though we really don't have the same word in English, listening (and dancing) to Ave Cruz will give you the feeling that won't be lost in translation.

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Spanish Harlem Orchestra - 'United We Swing'

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On United We Swing, Spanish Harlem Orchestra continues in the same classic-meets-contemporary sound, but with refreshing originality. Nine of the songs are original compositions grounded in the unique identity the band has forged based on the musical legacy of El Barrio, a pulsating Eastside community in NYC located to the south of 125th St that gave rise to Boogaloo, Latin Soul, and Salsa.

“Our music style is the original sound of New York old school "Salsa dura" (heavy salsa) that was played in the early years by our pioneers,” says Oscar.  “That sound has been lost and we want to keep it alive while educating the new generations (and music lovers in general) on the true musical roots of our culture.” Oscar adds, “we’ve brought back the essence of what makes this music great and are keeping the salsa spirit alive in our recordings and shows.”

From the opening horns of “SHO Intro,” you know you’re in for an aural party.  The song is upbeat and features Oscar introducing the members of the band and opening the show. “Llegó La Orquesta” (The Orchestra Has Arrived) was co-written by Oscar and Gil Lopez. It sets up a ballroom scene that will have listeners jumping out from their seats to dance.

“I have a lot of colleagues who helped me on this album and who I feel have their finger on the pulse of what this music should be. The arrangers include Sonny Bravo, Gil Lopez, Angel Fernandez, Jose Febles and myself,” says Oscar.

Spanish Harlem Orchestra pays tribute to the legacy of Manhattans Palladium Ballroom, “the home of the mambo,” with “En El Tiempo Del Palladium” (In The Times of The Palladium), that catered to Mambo dancers and featured the bands of the BIG-3: Tito Puente, Tito Rodriguez and Machito. Tipica 73 icon, Sonny Bravo, arranged the Willie Tórres tune, “Se Forma La Rumba” (The Rumba Has Begun). Oscar advises “Sácala Bailar” (Take Her Dancing) and leads into the classic 1970s Fania-era hit, “Ahora Sí” (Now’s The Time).

The rest of the album will satisfy Salsa lovers with “Que Bonito” (How Lovely) and “Salsa Pa’l Bailador” (Salsa For Dancers). The Joe Cuba cha-cha-cha, “Mujer Divina” (Divine Lady), is done in doo-wop three-part vocal harmony. “Soy Candela” (I Am Fire) keeps the pace burning and segues into a smoking “Plena Con Sabor” (Tasty Plena). “Danzón For My Father” is a piece originally recorded by Dave Valentin that Oscar composed as a tribute to his dad, Emilio Hernández.

Saving a surprise for the finale is always a great way to end a party and Oscar Hernández and Spanish Harlem Orchestra certainly do that with special guest Paul Simon. “Late In The Evening/Tarde En La Noche” is a reconfiguration of a Simon Top Ten hit from his 1980 One-Trick Pony album. Hernández, who collaborated with Simon on his Broadway musical, “Cape Man,” arranged the piece with Simon singing the classic refrains.

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The Musical Black Coffee of Cuba and Congo - Cafe Noir

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Papa Noel’s Café Noir Crosses the Ocean with Pan-African Congo Rumba

There are centuries-old ties that bind the Congo and Cuba, dance steps that swayed from central Africa to the Caribbean and back again. The story of Congolese guitarist Papa Noel and his latest African-Cuban collaboration, Café Noir (Tumi Music), is the latest word in a long and fruitful cultural conversation spanning the Atlantic.

“Bana Congo is a mission for Papa Noel,” explains Tumi Music producer Mo Fini. “I recall when I took him to Cuba for the first time some seven years ago. As he walked the streets of Havana he cried and cried, saying that when he was young his mother used to play Cuban songs to him, and this was like coming home again.”

In the 1930s, Cuban sounds took the Belgian Congo by storm. The rhythms of the rumba, originating in a Congolese dance brought by slaves to the island long before, were delightfully, eerily familiar to Congolese musicians and dancers. Imported records inspired a new generation of musicians to explore the Cuban transformation of their ancestors’ songs, creating what became known as rumba congo, a musical form that hit a nerve throughout Africa.

At first, bands played tunes they learned from Cuban recordings, sometimes inventing Spanish-sounding lyrics, but soon they crafted their own original songs with words in the local language of Lingala or in French. Against the backdrop of colonialism and dictatorship, their music assumed a truly African flair and started a musical craze that soon spread across the Congo and beyond.

Seventy-eights of Cuban son and Congolese rumba spun on many a prized phonograph player around Léopoldville, now Kinshasa, including the turntable at the home of the young Nedule Montswet, later known as Papa Noel thanks to his Christmas birthday. Noel listened from an early age to his mother’s record collection, which featured Congolese rumba greats like Antoine Wendo, whose songs were believed by some fans to have magical powers.

"I was very lucky that I had all these amazing ‘babysitters,’” Noel mused in a 2002 interview with Jane Cornwall for Jazzwise Magazine. “I mean, Wendo's [1948] song ‘Maria Louise’ was held to be so powerful it could raise the dead! I couldn't help but be inspired by these musicians. They were the first epoch of a particular style of Congolese rumba."

Noel became an apprentice of sorts to the legendary musicians of this first generation of rumba congo players. After years of absorbing Cuban and Congolese sounds, Noel taught himself to play the guitar when his mother encouraged him to pursue his passion for music. Meanwhile, a tide of talented young musicians had gathered in 1950s Léopoldville, replacing the trés and piano parts found in their favorite Cuban songs with the guitar and infusing the new music with African jazz sensibilities. Noel began to hang around studios where musicians like Wendo recorded, learning the ropes and deepening his self-guided education in rumba congo.

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papa noel, rumba, son congo cuba cafe noir

Baka Beyond & Baka Gbine - 'Kobo'

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Baka Live is a special collaboration between Baka Beyond and Baka Gbine. In April and May 2006, seven Baka Pygmy musicians made a historic visit to UK to tour with Baka Beyond.

For most of them, it was their first journey outside their rainforest home, and for all of them their first trip outside Africa. Their remarkable performances were captured on digital multitrack and we are featuring one of these tracks - Kobo - as the free single this week.

Baka Gbiné are Baka musicians from the village of Banana, near the Cameroon border with Congo, deep in the rainforest. Gbinéis their association and now becoming their village near the road. The crossroad between forest life and life in the outside world. Using guitars, percussion, voices and dance they play modern songs heavily influenced by both their traditional music and the Congolese music they hear on the radio.

Baka Beyond consists of musicians from 6 countries in the Celtic fringes of Europe and the West coast of Africa that join together to play the most original live world fusion sound around. The spirit of the music lives in the rhythm. All Baka Beyond's rhythms are played by human beings not machines !

Baka Beyond were originally inspired by Martin Cradick & Su Hart's visits to the Baka Forest People in Cameroon. While there they played music with and recorded the Baka and have continued to play and record a mix of music written with & inspired by the Baka.

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Baka Beyond, Baka Gbine, Baka Live Kobo pygmy

Manuela Oh Manuela by Fanfare Ciocarlia

Listen To 'Let's Get Latin Oriental'

This week's Featured Song is from a compilation called Latin Oriental and features Fanfare Ciocarlia playing Manuela Oh Manuela. Fanfare Ciocarlia is a gypsy brass band from Romania, and they are playing songs and instruments and feelings that have been handed down for generations.

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LatinOriental, Fabian Alsultany, fanfare ciorcarlia, gypsy, romania