Africa Is a Country

Weekend Music Break, N°36

Weekend Music Break, N°36

By
Tom Devriendt

Not too long ago, a new video by Amadou & Mariam would have made a bigger splash. There’s no way denying their (?) questionable choice to get Bertrand Cantat on board for their latest record has somewhat tempered the global enthousiasm for their music. Which is regrettable — the end result is a fine record. And the above animated video for ‘Africa mon Afrique’, produced by No-Mad Films, ticks all the right boxes (including Africa’s launching of a “space program”). Next, Congolese artist Didjak Munya’s latest single, “feat. Bill Clinton” (yeh), before his album drops. (Via Akwaaba.) Filmed between New York City and Kinshasa: 

‘Dance For Me’ by Ghanaians “Ruff N Smooth” Ricky Nana Agyeman and Clement Baafo is a TUNE:

Something else. Let’s get this straight. Tunisian rapper Weld El 15’s track below might not be everybody’s musical cup of tea, but when the “actress” and the cameraman involved in the making of the controversial ‘Cops are Dogs’ video are both sentenced to six months in prison for their contribution to the video while “Weld El 15 (himself) remains on the run and was sentenced to two years of imprisonment in absentia,” Tunisian government needs to be called out on this loud and widely. Says Weld El 15: “As an artist, I chose the (police’s) violent language to criticize their violent behavior and harsh treatment. I tried to express my opinion freely thinking that Tunisia has democracy, yet I was mistaken.” Head over to Les Inrocks for a longer interview with the artist. Surely Tunisia’s Ministry of Interior’s got better things to do. We’ll follow up on this story.

http://youtu.be/6owW_Jv5ng4

Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, Ajebutter 22’s got other things to worry about. Pastors and stuff:

Abobolais and his Ivorian crew bring the better coupé-décalé moves this week:

There’s been more than one collective musical effort to unite Mali recently. Here’s another one. Featuring: Oxmo Puccino, Inna Modja, Féfé, Cheick Tidiane Seck, Doudou Masta, Rouda du 129H, Ousco, King Massassy, Abbba Mamadou Ba, Lélé, Elie Guillou, Toya, Rim, Ramsès, Lyor, Guimba Kouyaté, Camille Richard, Tanti Kouyaté, Amkoullel l’enfant peulh — many of whom are based in France:

You already know we’re a fan of Carmen Souza. Here’s a video for her ‘Donna Lee’:

Nicole Wray and Terri Walker are touring with (AIAC favorite) Lee Fields this spring. Can’t wait to see them bring this live:

And to conclude, there’s no official video yet for the trans-Atlantic “Family Atlantica” project, but Soundway Records released the following song on YouTube: ‘Escape To The Palenque’, featuring Mulatu Astatke — and that will do for this week:

Further Reading

Fuel’s errand

When Africa’s richest man announced the construction of the continent’s largest crude oil refinery, many were hopeful. But Aliko Dangote has not saved Nigeria. The Nigerian Scam returns to the Africa Is a Country Podcast to explain why.

Fragile state

Without an immediate change in approach, Somalia will remain a fragmented country populated by self-serving elites seeking foreign patrons.

Coming home

In 1991, acclaimed South African artist Helen Sebidi’s artworks were presumed stolen in Sweden. Three decades later, a caretaker at the residential college where they disappeared found them in a ceiling cupboard, still in their original packaging.

Imaginary homelands

A new biography of former apartheid homeland leader Lucas Mangope struggles to do more than arrange the actions of its subject into a neat chronology.

Business as usual?

This month, Algeria quietly held its second election since Abdelaziz Bouteflika was ousted in 2019. On the podcast, we ask what Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s second term means for the country.

The complexities of solidarity

Assassinated in 1978, Henri Curiel was a Jewish Egyptian Marxist whose likely killers include fascist French-Algerian colons, the apartheid South African Bureau of State Security, and the Abu Nidal Organization.