Tune Your World

Mozambican musician Feliciano dos Santos, campaigns for clean water, wins Environmental Prize

Listen To Massukos's Album 'Bumping'

Feliciano dos Santos, leader of the group Massukos, just won the Goldman Environmental Prize for using  music to raise awareness about health, water and HIV/Aids issues.

Harnessing their popularity to fight poverty, Massukos make music that is not only phenomenally beautiful but also a powerful force for change. Massukos have an enviable reputation as the country's most successful band but they are also making their mark as initiators of social change. Originating from Niassa in northern Mozambique, one of the poorest parts of Africa, Massukos speak out against the hardships that have affected their lives. Passionate about what they do, the band travels for miles to remote villages to deliver simple life-saving messages such as “more condoms less partners”.

"I started using music when I realised that it was a good way to send a message and bring people together," Santos told BBC News.

"Even when you play a loud radio, people are drawn to it. Even when it plays sounds that are not about dirty water, they just want to listen to the sounds. I realised that music had this power, so for this reason we thought it would be good to mix it with what we wanted to achieve."

Santos said the $150,000 Goldman prize money would not change his life but it would help focus attention on what was happening on the ground in Mozambique and Africa.

"It shows that even if you live in poor places, such as Niassa, you can have an influence on the world. Let's not talk about the money, let's do things that can change the world. Don't think about awards, think about quality of life."

Santos said the $150,000 (£75,000) prize money would not change his life but it would help focus attention on what was happening on the ground in Mozambique and Africa.

Listen To Massukos' Album 'Bumping'

Tune Your World: Learn how you can microfinance Masukos' work...

Massukos, Feliciano dos Santos, Goldman Prize, Bumping

Soulfege Band Leader, Derrick Ashong, speaks his support for Barak Obama

Get Today's FREE SONG:''Sweet Mother' by Solfege'

On Jan. 31, Derrick Ashong, a 32-year-old musician and leader of the band Soulfege,  was carrying a sign for Barak Obama outside the Hollywood theater at the Democratic primary debate taking place that day.

Derrick's sign said “¡Sí, se puede!” (Yes, we can!), and he joined a crowd milling around in the street. Then a guy carrying a video camera came by and began asking Derrick a series of very pointed questions about why he supported Barak Obama.

“So why are you for Obama?” he asked. It was clear from his approach that he expected a shallow answer.

As it turned out, Derrick was glad to be asked, and held forth for almost six minutes — which is a very long time for regular broadcast television. — on universal health care, single-payer approaches and public-private partnerships.

Now this may seem like what could have been rather dull fare but here’s the cool part: On Feb. 2, the video interview was posted on a YouTube channel called “The Latest Controversy,” where supporters of both Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Senator Obama are asked very aggressively to justify their choice of candidates.

The video blew up, drawing more than 850,000 views. And after getting such a large response Derrick decided to post his own follow-up video that was posted Feb. 11 and received  300,000 views.

So here is an independent musician, who was looking to (anonymously) show support for a candidate, drawing more than a million views with an impassioned but reasoned pitch.

Derrick clearly appealed to the youth movement that is shaking up the 2008 campaign. While his video could have been lost among the YouTube clutter, an editor at The New York Times heard about it and a Youtube hit was made.

Part of what happened is that the original video was contrary in format to the 'regular' sound bite news format. Neither the camera guy nor Derrick played by the rules. The journalist is never seen and is extremely aggressive in asking questions, while Derrick, does not so much take the bait as reel in the guy setting it out there. It is a classic viral moment. Derrick was quoted by the New York Times, saying: 

“Certain types of discourse are better suited to the Web. There has been so much talk about how this campaign is all about style and no substance, and this video contradicts that. There are reasons that we support Obama, and it has to do with the issues. You can’t get that on CNN right now, you can’t get that on MSNBC right now, and young people saw it on YouTube and they took it.”

It turns out that three of the dozen most popular videos on YouTube this month are about Barack Obama, not Paris or Lindsay or Britney. As noted in the NY Times:

"Many long-held beliefs are taking a beating during this election, chief among them the idea that if you want to connect with young people, you’d best keep it short, funny and stupid."

Thanks to Derrick and the Soulfege crew for exploding this myth...

Tune Your World: Learn how you can microfinance Soulfege's work

Get Today's FREE SONG:''Sweet Mother' by Soulfege'

Get more music by Solfege

The Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project - FREE Song: 'Progress w/ Fela Kuti'!!

Featuring top musicians from around the world, Calabash Music and Modiba Productions will donate all proceeds from ASAP: The Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project, which enriches us with today's FREE  Song:

FREE SONG:'Progress w/ Fela Kuti'

Along with benefiting the people suffering in the Darfur region of Sudan, the aim of this project will also raise awareness about the dire situation in Darfur: by some estimates, over 400,000 people have died by dehydration, disease, and at the hands of the Janjaweed -- armed horsemen supported by the government of Sudan.
To accomplish this, Modiba has teamed up with TrueMajority, a grassroots education and advocacy group committed to social and political justice (founded by Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's). TrueMajority has already done some incredible work in Darfur, sending camera crews and attempting to bring witnesses into the United States (the US State Department refused entry). Many thanks to all the musicians on ASAP for donating their music.

Not only is this an important project to pay attention to, but also are the tracks totally 'golden'. Check out today's free song:

FREE SONG:'Progress w/ Fela Kuti'

Get more music from The Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project here!!

Sudan, Africa, afrobeat,

Saba - FREE Song: 'Yenne Yenne'!!

Today's FREE song is by an artist that more or less carries a bit of everything with her. Born in Mogadishu to an Italian father and Ethiopian mother, Saba has come to represent the meeting of African and European cultures: as an actress she starred in a long-running TV drama, playing the role of a policewoman fighting against the prejudice of her colleagues, while dealing with issues such as illegal immigration from Africa.

FREE SONG:'Yenne Yenne'

Saba left Somalia when she was 5 years old. As the product of a mixed marriage and because her father was Italian (Italy being the colonial ruler of Somalia), the family was viewed with some suspicion. They were given 48 hours to leave, forcing them to migrate to Italy. From this point on Saba was determined to hold on to her Somali roots, to learn the language and to mend the broken thread with her homeland through music.

Jidka is Saba 's way of telling her story. A woman's search for her identity and what it means to be alive in the 21 st century, when so many people live in more than one culture. She sings in her mother tongue – a type of Somali that is spoken in Reer Xamar, a quarter of Mogadishu, and has real expression and rhythm in itself.

Saba is joined on djembe, guitar and percussion by long-term friend and collaborator, Taté Nsongan, from Cameroon, on kora Senegalese Lao Kouyate and on vocals Felix Moungara.

FREE SONG:'Yenne Yenne'

Get more music from Saba here!!

Somalia, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Senegal, Italy, World Fusion,

Andy Brown - FREE Song: ' Mapurisa '!!

Today's FREE song is by Andy Brown, one of the greter artists of Zimbabwe:

FREE SONG:'Mapurisa'

Like many other Zimbabweans, Andy grew up in rural Zimbabwe and only moved to the big city to pursue an education. While in Bulawayo, he created his first band, Impact. A later move to the capital, Harare, would see him work with many different bands, including Grabb and the Rusike Brothers.

Andy joined the band Ilanga in 1986-1989. Fornted by singer Comrade Chinx, Andy played lead guitar. Ilanga had a successful life-span, producing two albums, 1987's Silver and Gold, and 1988's Visions Untold. Their crowning achievement came when they graced the stage alongside Tracy Chapman, Bruce Springsteen, Peter Gabriel, the Bhundu Boys, and Youssou N'Dour at the 1988 Human Rights Concert in Hahare. Although both Andy and Chinx left the band in 1989, Ilanga continued to record, releasing a solitary album under songtress Busi Ncube. In 98' he formed 'Andy Brown and the Storm'. Their popularity has grown in Zimbabwe, and have risen to become one of the country's top acts.

Andy has had a love-hate relationship witht he Zimbabwean government. He had once been such a strong opponent of the ruling party that his band had been kicked out of the government's ZBC studios. However, he has recently become a ZANU-PF activist and has come out in support of the government's controversial land invasion policy. According to the Media Institute of Southern Africa, he has received government funding and has performed at state functions. He has reportedly threatened a popular music journalist with death for supposedly defaming his band and the government.

Today's free song is by a man with a political message:

FREE SONG:'Mapurisa'

Get more music from Andy Brown here!!

Africa, Zimbabwe, Jit, Mbira,Chimurenga,

Doc Leo Muntu - FREE Song: 'Osani Sokoneza '!!

Leo Bweupe aka Doc Muntu, Leo Muntu the handsome savage. Creativity is not just being able to do what everyone expects you to do but doing beyond  their expectations.After the industrial break of black muntu,there has been alot of anticipations as to whether either of them was going to come up with something, but hey, guess whos back? Its the big boy himself, hes back on the scene to set the record straight. Check out today's FREE song:

FREE SONG:'Osani Sokoneza'

After independence in 1964, the most important source of popular music was the Zambia Broadcasting Service and affiliated bands like Lusaka Radio Band. Zambian radio was dominated by Congolese rumba. Record companies soon formed, first Peter Msungilo's DB Studios in Lusaka, and then Teal Record Company (a subsidiary of Gallo Records). The city of Ndola, already known for musical innovation, was the next home for Zambian recording studios. The industry was struggling, but upwards and in the right direction. However, in the 1990s, economic problems caused the collapse of the Zambian music industry. Unfettered by rules promoting Zambian music, the airwaves were covered with imported ragga and reggae from Jamaica and hip hop and R&B from the United States. Inspiration from abroad, Zambian artists today are keen on finding their own recipe, and new and innovative tunes are popping up.
Enjoy Doc Leo Muntu's creation:

FREE SONG:'Osani Sokoneza'

Get more music from Doc Leo Muntu here!!

Africa, Zambia, Hip Hop, R&B,

Leeroy - FREE Song: 'Gigi'!!

Immersed in the Bollywood musical repertoire, Leeroy shows up an explosive and spicy album, mixing Bollywood sounds and Hip hop beats. Today's FREE song is definitely spicy:

FREE SONG:'Gigi'

Leeroy began his career in the 90's, freestyling on Radio Nova, a top French cutting-edge music radio station. After a few featurings on the albums of  big French hip hop stars (Arsenik,  Doc Genyco's..), in 1997, he launched the Saian Supa Crew. Their first album "KLR", mixing reggae, ragga, r&b, soul and zouk elements reached the top 10 in France, and with their outstanding performers, they've been touring in many festivals in France,  England, Canada, Germany among others.

Their second album, "X raisons" received  the French  " Victoire de la Musique Hip Hop" prize in 2001 and was released international with a remarkable success in the worldwide hip hop community. They performed and recorded with quite a few stars such as Wu Tang Clan, Kimany Marley, Alpha Blondy, Asian Dub Foundation, Roots Manuva, etc …

This is a must for some of us hip hop lovers! Enjoy!

FREE SONG:'Gigi'

Get more music from Leeroy here!

France, Hip Hop, Bollywood,

eMotive - FREE Song: 'Raghupati Raghawa'!!

eMotive is a refreshing album. Or should we call it a concept?

FREE SONG: 'Raghupati Raghawa'

Musicians from the four Spanish musicians, Jorge Grundman, David Caballero, Eduardo Laguillo and Joaquin Taboada, utilize a wide variety of sounds and instrumentations when they together created this album. eMotive is a music project made specifically for saving lives. How? well...

Non Profit Music (NPM), a privately owned record label, was born with the vision of helping people through humanitarian programs using the music sales of new emerging artists in the New Age and Contemporary Instrumental genres. Based in Spain,  all of its profits are donated to humanitarian causes, primarily the international medical emergency relief organization Doctors Without Borders (Medicos sin Fronteras). -

Making Music - Saving Lives!!

A mixture of flamenco, classical, world fusion and pop, this album is worth checking out!

FREE SONG:'Raghupati Raghawa'

More music from eMotive here!!

Spain, World Fusion, Jazz, World Pop,

Achisa - FREE song: 'Stop violence'!!

Today's FREE song represents the aspirations of a post apartheid-generation!!

FREE SONG: 'Stop Violence'

Achisa consists of six exceptionally talented young men: Thabo Matheatzie, Thembile Bam, Monde Nyamakazi, Lunga Mbethe, Suvuyo Kemele, and Sipho Mamomsi. They who grew up together at the Khayamnandi Home for Boys in the township of Langa on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa.

Simpiwe Matole, the multi-instrumentalist with Amampondo, is actively involved in encouraging and promoting local talent, and he introduced Achisa to Robert Trunz of the M.E.L.T. 2000 label. Achisa auditioned in the tiny sitting room of Simpiwe's flat, with him accompanying the boys on his piano. Two weeks later the singers were ready with their own songs, some of them written by Simpiwe, and the group went into the Milestone Studio where Sheldon Isaac took over.

Achisa's self-titled debut is sensational, incorporating hip-hop, township jive, ambient dub, reggae, traditional rhythms and contemporary technology. The album's message is one of peace for a country that's been long-steeped in conflict.

This is an exceptional group of young men whose voices speak not only to the youth of South Africa but to the rest of the world. Through Achisa's eclectic mix of styles; hip hop, rap, township jive, ambient dub, and reggae they transmit a global message worth listening to!

FREE SONG: 'Stop Violence'

Get more music from Achisa here!!

South Africa, Hip Hop, Funk, Ambient Dub,

Gulaan -FREE song: 'Mysteres'

In these times of formated music, it is quite an experience to listen to a guy who just wants to be close to his own true self!  Today's FREE song  by Gulaan;

FREE SONG: 'Mysteres'

When they talk about guitar’s arpeggios in New Caledonia, everybody has Edouard Wamejo in mind. He has released 6 albums as lead singer of Ok Ryos, a band from Mare (Nengone, in local language).
Edouard Wamejo recently decided to take his Nengone first name in public use: Gulaan (to be pronounce Goulane) is a nickname of Gui nedr. It was a sort of Coming back to my roots point of view for him. So he has approached his favorite themes in a very simple way, acoustic 6 and 12 strings guitars are flowing all through the album supported by creative percussions and some solid drums and bass kanak grooves. But the most impressive are for sure his powerful voice and all the intricate harmonies he perform by himself.

FREE SONG: 'Mysteres'

Listen to Gulaan's complete album here!

Oceania, French, Tradimodern, String Bands,