JJC
June 2005 - Nigerians Ruggedman and Sunny Neji play the UK
Hello and welcome to another edition 'Africa On Your Street'.
- African hip-hop on TV, radio & film
- Catch Nigerian artists in the UK
- Emmanuel Jal and Sudanese music compilation
- Hip Hop Senegal
- JJC's recommended CDs
African hip-hop on TV, radio & film
In April MTV staged two events in Africa to celebrate the historic launch of their 100th MTV channel, a pan-African version of MTV Base which is being broadcast via satellite to 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The concerts took place in Abuja, Nigeria (with Ludacris, 2-FACE Idibia, Asa, DJ Jacob and our good selves JJC & 419 Squad ) and in Johannesburg, South Africa (with Will Smith & DJ Jazzy Jeff, Ludacris, Lebo Mathosa, Mandoza and Seun Anikulapo Kuti & Fela's Egypt 80 Band ).
We had a great time in Abuja, and we also for the first time had the opportunity to perform 'Looking For A Wifey' together with Nigerian duo Maintain who the track was recorded with. It was also really good meeting 2-Face who gave a great performance.
The BBC's Africa season will be in full swing in July with BBC 1Xtra broadcasting shows live from Africa (Nairobi, Lagos and Johannesburg) between 20 and 24 July. This will include a special from Kenya of DJ Edu's excellent African music show D.N.A. (DestiNation Africa), plus Africa-related features, docs and shows throughout the month. Watch out for full details here very soon. In the meantime, make sure you listen to D.N.A. every Wednesday from midnight till 2am (on DAB radio, internet & digital TV) and remember you can listen to it again, if you missed it, on the BBC Radio Player .
Intro with DJ Abass - Europe's No.1 African music TV show (offering music videos and interviews from Nigeria, the rest of Africa and the Diaspo) has now moved to OBE TV (Sky Digital Channel 223, Wednesdays at 9pm, live every last Wednesday of the month 8.30pm - 10pm).
The Black Variety Show with Ronke Apampa has also moved to OBE TV (Saturdays at 1pm and live every last Saturday of the month 12noon - 2pm). OBE TV is fast becoming THE channel in the UK to check out African music. Other music-based programmes on OBE include:
Shot One - A collection of the very best of songs and interviews from DR Congo chart toppers such as Koffi Olomide, Werrason, Papa Wemba and many others.
Saga Africa - A look at the current African chart topping videos from West, Central and South of Africa.
Hip Life - Showcasing hip-life music from Ghana.
Access Time - A live magazine show with of African music features, videos and guests.
'Hip Hop Colony: The African Hip-Hop Explosion' is a documentary film produced and directed by Michael Wanguhu which explores Kenya's hip hop scene. It features artists such Kalamashaka, Necessary Noize, Hardstone, Nonini, Mercy Myra, CMB and Bamboo , as well as producers Tedd Josiah ("Kenya is not just about lions, giraffes and fast running men - it's also about hip hop and studios"), Ogopa and The Homeboyz . The film will be shown at the San Francisco Black Film Festival in June and the Zanzibar International Film Festival in July, and it is also expected to be shown in London (details here as soon as I get them), Nairobi, South Africa, and at more festivals worldwide. I haven't seen the whole film yet myself but it certainly sounds like a very interesting project. For further information, check out: www.hiphopcolony.com .
Catch Nigerian artists in the UK
n Saturday, 25 June 2005, R70 World & DJA Music present the Intro Summer Jam 2005 , to be held at N-TYCE, 38 Wellington Street, Woolwich, London SE18 6PQ .
Admission is £15 in advance (£20 on the door). Doors open at 9pm (free magazine & CD giveaways for the first 100, so get there early), performances start at 11pm, and the night ends at 5am. Entertainment will be provided by Ruggedman, Sunny Neji, X2 and comedian Wale Gates , plus on the decks you'll have DJ Abass . For further information call 07956 374 473 or visit www.R70.com or www.djabass.com
This is going to be the first time controversial Lagos-based rapper Ruggedman will be performing in the UK. His first full-length album 'They Album Come' is out now in Nigeria and it features his hits 'Ehen', 'Baraje', 'Peace Or War' and more.
For Nigerian highlife star Sunny Neji (http://www.sunnyneji.com/ ) this will also be his first performance in the UK. Sunny's nickname is 'Mr Fantastic', the title of his 1997 hit which won him numerous awards, such as two Fame Music Awards, two Awards for Musical Excellence in Nigeria and a Youth Award for Excellence in Music (Highlife Song of the Year). Sunny has recorded and collaborated with Lágbájá, Pasuma Wonder and Felix Duke, and his latest album 'Unchained', his fourth, (recorded in Ghana and released in Nigeria in 2003) features contribution by rapper Freestyle (of the legendary Nigerian hip hop trio Trybesmen) on two tracks. The album also includes the extremely popular track 'Oruka'.
Female rapper X2 ( http://www.x2ayo.com ) was born and raised in Nigeria but now lives in London. Her two passions in life are music and football (and not just as a spectator but actually playing for Hendon Women's Football Club). What a better way to combine both passions and do a track called 'Girls Are Playing Football'! It was a pleasure working with X2 (who is also featured on the JJC & 419 Squad and Maintain collaboration 'Looking For A Wifey').
Emmanuel Jal and Sudanese music compilation
Emmanuel Jal is a young rapper from the southern Sudan and a former soldier who for five years of his childhood was involved in the bloody civil war in Sudan. By a stroke of luck he ended up being adopted by a British aid worker when he was 11, smuggled to Nairobi, Kenya, where he got the chance to change his life and get an education. Emmanuel also developed a passion for music and started rapping (in Nuer Arabic, Swahili and English). His break happened last September with his single 'Gua' which became a massive hit in Kenya.
The only place to get this song in the UK is on the 'The Rough Guide to the Music of Sudan' compilation which is why I initially wanted to get hold of the CD. Apart from Emmanuel there is no other rap on the CD but what an excellent compilation. I wasn't sure what to expect of Sudanese music but it's a great selection showcasing music from Africa's largest country. The musical influences are predominantly Arabic, as well as Egyptian and even Congolese. Apart from 'Gua' other stand-out tracks include 'Sawani' by Setona , 'Tour To Africa' by Tarig Abubakar & The Afro-Nubians , 'In Kadugli' by Joseph Modi and 'Na-Nu Na-Nu' by Abdel Aziz El Mubarak (who has performed at both WOMAD and Glastonbury). Interestingly, because of the country's political situation most of the music featured on this CD has actually been recorded outside Sudan.
And coming back to Emmanuel Jal , he is not just featured on this compilation - he is now signed to Riverboat Records/World Music Network and is currently working on an album to be released later this year. It will be a collaboration with none other than Abdel Gadir Salim (a Muslim singer, composer and Oud player from northern Sudan) who is also featured on the Rough Guide compilation. Read more about Emmanuel's experiences here .
Hip Hop Senegal
Nomadic Wax is a New York based label run by Ben Herson (aka Benny Beats). From 1998 to 2000 Ben, then a student at Hampshire College MA, USA, went on several trips to Senegal for his thesis on the social and political implications of hip hop in Senegalese life. After he finished it, Ben decided that to do his subject justice he had to get the music out there. So he returned to Senegal in 2000 with a small porta studio, met up with the rappers he hung out with before and new ones to record tracks with them.
On his return to the US, Ben finished off the recordings with his cousin, well-known recording engineer Dan Cantor . (The idea of field recording is getting quite popular, with the other significant African hip hop release of recent months of course being the Kenyan compilation 'Kilio Cha Haki' - see my November column). Ben then sent the masters back to Senegal - and under the name 'Deglul' the music got released as a double cassette which sold masses. Under the name 'African Underground Vol. 1 Hip Hop Senegal' this collection of songs has now become the first release on Nomadic Wax.
Most rap in Senegal and definitely the type featured on this compilation, is socially conscious and political. In fact the Senegalese hip hop movement partly influenced the 2000 election which brought about the first democratic government in 30 years. None of the Senegalese hip hop superstars ( Daara J, Pee Froiss and Positive Black Soul ) are on here, but the talent is impressive and a couple of names, Abass (no, not Nigerian DJ Abass!), Omzo and BMG 44 , have previously appeared on the ground-breaking African hip hop collection 'Africa Raps (Senegal, Mali and The Gambia)' (Trikont).
Other artists featured include Yat Fu, Slam Revolution and Shiffai . The raps (in Wolof, French and English) and beats are quite aggressive and hard-hitting and an underground vibe runs throughout the CD. But there is also a great old skool vibe (including scratching). Well worth investigating! For more information: www.nomadicwax.com
Until next time!
JJC
JJC's recommended CDs
Various Artists - 'African Underground Vol. 1/ Hip Hop Senegal'
Various Artists - 'The Rough Guide to the Music of Sudan'
Ruggedman - 'Thy Album Come'
Sunny Neji- 'Unchained'
JJC & 419 Squad with Maintain, X2 and Tony B - 'Looking For A Wifey'
Check out my recommended CDs this month in the CD Reviews section or go to Music Search to look at our archive of recommended CDs.