It is early in the morning in Centre County, Pennsylvania, when my interview with Martin Perna, Founder of Afrobeat group Antibalas, begins. Perna is relaxed, a little tired from the early wake-up call, and he has a lot to say. “The group has become something of...
“The idea is that we are building our own MIT here,” says Roya Mahboob, founder of Digital Citizen fund, and one of the first Afghan women to become CEO of a tech company in the country. The project she is referring to is something she has envisioned...
“I am sorry if you don’t understand what we are saying in our songs, I will try and explain”, said Aliou Tourè, lead singer of Malian band Songhoy Blues, mid-concert in Sala Bikini in Barcelona, less than a month ago. The atmosphere in the room was festive,...
J.B Lenoir was one of the protagonists of the Chicago blues scene of the 50s and 60s. His zebra patterned suit, and high-pitched voice could be recognised for miles. Born in Tilton, Mississippi, Lenoir started playing when he was “awful young” as he said in an interview...
Emberà is a language that is spoken by approximately 80,000 people. It is an indigenous language of Colombia and Panama and like many indigenous languages, it is in danger. Preserving culture and language is a fundamental part of maintaining a diverse cultural heritage. Progression and technology...
This has been an incredibly tough week. Donald Trump’s winning of the US elections against Hilary Clinton has been a shock for the whole world, and now we all stand powerless, unable to take this back. As the world tries to figure out a way to...
“You don’t have to live next to me Just give me my equality” Racial discrimination is a problem of the present. With the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump filling our tv screens and newspapers with racist remarks and comments, and as police violence towards black people...
‘Mona Ki Ngi Xica’ is part of Angolan artist Bonga’s album Angola 72, one of the most powerful and influential protest albums ever recorded. The album was smuggled into Angola and Portugal, and was a soundtrack for revolutionaries fighting for independence as the Portuguese dictatorship and colonial...
Born in Cote D’Ivoire to Malian parents, at 32 years old, Fatoumata Diawara is a force of nature. She escaped a restrictive environment in her family and at 20 years of age she moved to Paris to pursue a career in music and theatre. Although she...
In a recent article about Independent Journalism, Libyan Freelance Journalist Ayat Mneina said in a that she was driven by one idea: that the truth would speak for itself and she simply had to deliver the facts. When working in a risky environment, many journalists are...
Seemingly a children’s story, which is what the artist claimed to get out of an interrogation, Ebi Te Yie is in fact charged with political meaning. By the time Nana Kwame Ampadu, leader of the African Brothers Band, released this song, its genre, Highlife had been established in Ghana...
Released in 2011 by Calle 13 an alternative hip-hop music band famous for its songs filled with political and social consciousness ideas, Latinoamérica is inspired by a journey that two of the founders of the band took through the continent. The song was released as a...
On Sunday 10th January 2016, the world lost one of music’s icon. David Bowie fought an 18 months long battle with cancer, and lost at the age of 69. He was one of the most influential musicians of this era, a man who was flamboyant to say...
Zombie is not Fela Kuti’s only song with a political meaning. On the contrary, Fela was a political activist who used music as his weapon against the Nigerian government’s authoritarian line and the lack of freedom in his country. This is a song that marked the beginning of a dark...
In 1980, Australian musician Neil Murray moved to the Aboriginal community of Papunya in Australia, where he worked as a teacher. Here, Murray met local brothers Gordon and Sammy Tjapanangka of the Luritja people, and they were joined by Sammy’s brother-in-law George Rrurrambu Burarrwanga from the Yolngu people. Murray provided...
