Afropop Worldwide

On a visit to the U.S. Virgin Islands in winter 2018, we took the pulse of the national music of St. Croix – quelbe. Rarely recorded, rarely exported, quelbe is an energetic form, led by sax or flute with percussion and banjo, and it fuels the traditional dance style, quadrille. St Croix is the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and sits alone 42 miles south of St. Thomas and St. John. That’s part of why traditional music and dance forms have remained strong on St. Croix. Meet bandleaders Stanley Jacobs of Stanley and the 10 Sleepless Knights, and Dmitri Copemann of the Renaissance Band, who are cultivating a vibrant next generation. Produced by Marika Partridge and Banning Eyre. APWW #782 Originally produced in 2018

The latest music craze to hit South African dance floors is a dark, pulsating and energetic sound called gqom. For the past seven years, a young and technologically skilled generation in Durban, KwaZulu Natal, has created and finessed a sound that has the world hooked and wanting more. It is an entire cultural movement complete with distinctive dance moves and styles. We talk to some of the deejays and young producers of this genre, like DJ Lag, Citizen Boy and Distruction Boyz, as well as Gqom Oh! record label owner Francesco Nan Kolè to understand where gqom originated, how it’s made and where it’s going. We also look at how this rough and raw party music has evolved to accommodate a more commercial market. Produced by Akornefa Akyea in 2018 APWW #784

The square gumbe frame drum was created centuries ago by enslaved Africans in Jamaica. It traveled to Sierra Leone with freed Maroons from Jamaica’s highlands in 1800. From there, the drum and its evolving, pan-ethnic music spread to 17 African nations. In this program we trace the history and legacy of this joyous and surprising music with field work in Jamaica, Sierra Leone, Ghana and Mali. Produced by Banning Eyre in 2020. APWW #817

When Ugandan American writer and producer Jessica Kariisa moved to the San Francisco Bay Area early in 2022, she did not expect to find a thriving African music club scene where DJs spin the latest hits, be they Afrobeats from Nigeria or Amapiano from South Africa. In this episode, she goes deep to tell the story of how this scene emerged. Narrated and produced by Jessica Kariisa

In its 36th year, the Nuits d’Afrique festival in Montreal pulled out all the stops to meet the expectations of an audience that was hungry to see and hear some of the world’s biggest stars. The Afropop team was there recording two nights of kora mastery, plus Gnawa roost from Moktar Gania, Haitian pop from Wesli, Femi Kuti & The Positive Force and more. The program is a deep dive and a solid salute to North America’s best African music festival. Produced by Banning Eyre. APWW #859

When Siama Matazungidi first heard soukous music on the radio in Kinshasa, Congo, it was as if the keys to a technicolor world of sound had landed in his lap. Though Siama’s father wanted him to pursue the pious (and stable) life of priesthood, it was the guitar that became his place of prayer, and the dream of soukous stardom his calling. Of course, the pathway to manifesting a dream is never without detours and diversions. This is the story of Siama reaching beyond himself to create African music in America that connects audiences across time, traditions and generations. Produced and narrated by Abë Levine.

Changüí is a little understood, loose and lively, community-based music of eastern Cuba. In this program we sample recordings from the 2021 box set Changüí: The Sound of Guantánamo, and hear from Gianluca Tramontana, the man who made the recordings. Rooted in Afro-Haitian music, pan-Caribbean styles, Spanish poetic traditions and more, Changüí emerged in the mid 19th century in plantations, not unlike the blues. We also hear from musician and scholar Ben Lapidus, author of the only English language book on Changüí, and we update the story with Changüí fusions into jazz, salsa and hip-hop. Prepare to dance! Produced by Banning Eyre in 2021 APWW #840

Inspired by Jamaica’s dancehall music from the 90s and early 2000s, Zimbabwean dancehall music (Zimdancehall) started out as an underground subculture in the ghettos of Zimbabwe and is now the country’s most popular genre. In this episode we’ll trace the subgenre’s rocky rise to the top and meet some of its founding pioneers: the likes of producer, Jusa Dementor, and recording artist, Sniper Storm. We’ll also explore the hidden layers behind the upbeat party tunes to reveal questions about: social class, language, originality and cultural authenticity; and how these underlying factors may play into Zimdancehall’s prospects in the international music market. It’s a fascinating story of resistance and persistence—it’s the Zimdancehall story. APWW #844 Produced by Christine "DJ Kix" Mwaturura

858 Oromo Music: Historical Memory and Competing Visions in Ethiopia by Afropop Worldwide

In the age of slick, international Afrobeats music, and especially its epicenter, Lagos, Nigeria, one would not expect to find a group of 20-somethings composing and performing classic highlife music. But that is exactly what the two brothers known as The Cavemen do. And they’re finding success with the formula as well. Produced and narrated by Fay Fay.

Sometimes music can take you to places you've never imagined! That’s what Afrofuturism does.… Afrofuturism is a cultural aesthetic that explores the intersection of African culture with science fiction, technology and the future, fusing magical realism with the beauty of Africa, beyond the clichés. The term was originally coined by Mark Dery (an American journalist working for The Washington Post & Rolling Stone). From the start, Afrofuturism was a child of music, born in the ‘60’s in the boundless mind of Sun Ra, and it still shines in today’s music of American artists such as Janelle Monae. Nowadays, Afrofuturism is flourishing in Europe and in Africa, constantly revitalized by artists who offer new perspectives to expand our idea of Africa. In this episode, we explore this boundless inner space and George Collinet is trans-connected to a futuristic nebula through a patchwork of stories, soundscapes, and various avant-garde music productions from the cosmos and elsewhere. The episode includes interviews wit

As in so many African countries, Malawian hip-hop evolved from a marginalized and often disparaged form of music, to an underground sensation, to a mainstream phenomenon. In Malawi, it has also come to play a role in the nation’s quickly evolving politics, serving as the voice of a burgeoning youth population. Ethnomusicologist Kenneth Lipanga unpacks the story, which he has studied deeply and experienced first-hand. Narrated and produced by Banning Eyre

Toronto is Canada’s most cosmopolitan city--“like New York but mellower” in the words of Kofi Akah, son of the Ghanaian highlife legend Jewel Akah. Kofi is one of many superb African artists who have made Toronto their home over the years. That list is long, and it has included highlife star Pat Thomas, South Sudanese rapper Emanuel Jal, rising Congolese star Blandine, Malagasy guitarist Donné Roberts, and a hidden treasure of Ethiopian music, Fantahun Shewankochew. In this program, we take the pulse of Toronto’s African scene through music and interviews with Kofi, Emanuel, Blandine, Fantahun and many more. Produced by Banning Eyre APWW #830

"Dakar Muse" takes us to one of the most exciting musical cities in Africa. We'll meet young stars on the Mbalax scene, Senegal's national music, including Tarba Mbaye, Sidy Diop, Sidy Samb and Pape Diouf. And we'll hear rappers making their mark in the huge Hip Hop scene including Dip Doundou Guiss and Ngaaka Blinde. Finally, we pay tribute to the brilliant Mbalax pioneer Thione Seck, who recently died of Covid-19. APWW #832 Produced by Sean Barlow

"The New York Sound of Latin Music" demonstrates how the metropolis transformed the music. Guest Ben Lapidus, author of New York and the International Sound of Latin Music 1940-1990, talks to Georges Collinet and Ned Sublette about how innovations in rhythm and instrument design joined with folklore, jazz, New York's education system, and urban multiculturalism to make a new, world-changing music. We'll hear Eddie Palmieri, Sonny Bravo, Larry Harlow, Jerry González and Fort Apache, Eydie Gormé, and many more. APWW #845 Originally produced in 2021 by Ned Sublette

Botswana is a large, landlocked country in Southern Africa, a vast stretch of desert and savannah between South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia with a population of only 2.2 million. While widely overlooked internationally for their music, over the past 20 years Batswana have steadily built a diverse and fruitful local scene that includes traditional choirs, hip hop and kwaito, R&B and jazz and even heavy metal. While the biggest star in the country, Franco, packs stadiums with his Congolese-derived Setswana kwassa kwassa, Vee Mampeezy, Charma Gal and a host of aspiring stars champion a distinctly local fusion called house kwassa: a mix of rumba guitars, house beats and kwaito vocals. In this program we hear from Kabelo Mogwe of the popular cultural troupe Culture Spears; hip hop star Jujuboy; the metal band Skinflint; Afro soul singer Mpho Sebina and reformed house kwassa badboy Mingo Touch. We also head to a midnight recording session with young producer Zolasko and singer Naisi Boy and learn the insides of th

In 2018, the renowned music journal Fact boldly claimed that “the world’s best electronic music festival is in Uganda.” In only a few years, Nyege Nyege has indeed become one of the hottest artistic hubs in East Africa, birthing two music labels that propelled local scenes, such as Ugandan acholitronix or Tanzanian singeli, across the globe. At the heart of this explosive universe lies a big house, known as “the Villa,” that almost constantly vibrates with sounds as musicians from the region and beyond tirelessly produce, exchange skills, and frenetically party until dawn. Despite reducing the Villa’s bubbling flow, COVID-19 didn’t silence it, and the house kept on nurturing its community of underground musicians. In this episode, producer Basile Koechlin takes us to the Villa to meet current residents and other members of the Nyege Nyege nebula. Through a patchwork of stories, soundscapes, and fresh musical releases, we hear more about this unique and strange place that came to host and generate a seminal pa

Calypso and reggae have been mainstays of Grenada’s musical culture, until the emergence of the distinctive Carnival-based offshoot known as jab-jab soca, and more recent hybrid forms embraced by a younger generation of musical practitioners. On this program, we explore how the island’s tempestuous history has influenced its dynamic music scene, with testimony from leading Grenadian music figures, including calypso kings Ajamu and Black Wizard, members of the innovative group Moss International, jab-jab soca pioneers Tallpree and Mr Killa, and upcoming artists such as Sabrina Francis, a rising star who draws on soul, jazz, R&B and folk elements.

Known as Australia’s music and cultural capital, Melbourne is a hub of creativity boasting a diverse arts scene. The African community in Melbourne has been growing with Africans from all parts of the continent bringing their fashion, food and music to the city. In this episode we’ll explore African musicians and music curators who are making their mark in Melbourne. Expect to hear a blend of traditional African instruments by the Melbourne African Traditional Ensemble (MATE); funky jazz fusion by Black Jesus Experience; South-Sudanese modern rock by Ajak Kwai, and hip-hop from IJALE and Sampa the Great. We’ll also meet the presenter of the longest running African radio program in Australia, Stani Goma. Guiding us through our journey of Melbourne’s African music scene will be DJ Kix, bringing to light some of the nuances of migration, identity and life in Melbourne. APWW #836

The Afro-Roots Fest is Florida’s state-wide celebration of Africa’s global musical heritage. The 2022 edition featured a diva of Afro-Cuban jazz, Daymé Arocena, Sudanese American indie rock band Sinkane, Miami’s own Latin music champions Cortadito celebrating their tenth anniversary, and more. We’ll hear live highlights and interviews with the principles. Produced by Banning Eyre and Sean Barlow.