Miriam Makeba Miriam Makeba was born in Johannesburg in 1932, during a time of economic depression. Her mother, a domestic worker, was imprisoned for six months for illegally brewing beer to help make ends meet, and Miriam went to prison with her as she was just 18 days old. Makeba’s mother was also a sangoma, or a practitioner of herbal medicine, divination and counselling in traditional Zulu, Xhosa, Ndebele and Swazi (Nguni) societies of Southern Africa. After her father died, Miriam was sent to live with her grandmother at a compound in Riverside, Pretoria. Miriam began her working life helping her mother clean houses. Miriam Makeba began her music career singing for her cousin’s band, the Cuban Brothers, but it was only when she began to sing for the Manhattan Brothers in 1954 that she began to build a reputation. King Kong was about a boxer who kills his sweetheart and later dies in prison. Makeba said of people imitating her ‘look’: "I'm not a political singer”¦ I don't know what the word means.
Kimpa Vita, la Jeanne d'Arc d'Afrique - Regardsprotestants Premier portrait de notre série de l’été : chaque semaine, des portraits de femmes africaines qui ont marqué leur pays. Douze « amazones du Seigneur ». Tout a commencé avec Diego Câo, le capitaine de marine qui découvre l’embouchure du fleuve Congo en 1482. Une première rencontre s’opère dès la fin du XVe siècle entre Congolais et chrétiens européens, quelques années avant qu’un certain Christophe Colomb ne “découvre” l’Amérique. Première cathédrale au Congo en 1596 Pour les populations de la côte congolaise, ces explorateurs portugais, appelés mindele (blancs) sont associés à des revenants. Une prédicante de 20 ans L’instabilité politique grandissante et la prédation européenne va susciter, au début du XVIIIe siècle, une réaction prophétique et messianique. Ancienne prêtresse du culte Marinda, elle tombe gravement malade (1704). En moins de deux ans, elle affine un enseignement original, ancré dans un référent chrétien réinterprété, et met sur pied une Eglise.
Music of Africa Women from the Masai tribe, singing. The music of Africa is as vast and varied as the continent's many regions, nations, and ethnic groups. The African continent comprises approximately 20 percent of the world's land mass and has a population of roughly 934 million. African music is as diverse as its cultures and peoples and has flowered in many indigenous forms as well as been shaped by foreign influences. Although there are many different varieties of music in Africa, there are a number of common elements to the music, especially within regions. African music also helps to connect people together in a variety of ways, strengthening the fabric of the community, which in turn reinforces people's commitment to support each other and the community, toward mutual health and prosperity. Traditional music Drummers, part of a large celebration marking the arrival of running water to their village, Ojumo Oro, Kwara State, Nigeria, in April 2004. Musical components Form Rhythmic Structure Texture
Why West Africa's pidgins deserve full recognition as official languages The BBC World Service’s radio service of English-based Pidgin for West and Central Africa, BBC News Pidgin, is now a year old. And it’s thriving. According to the broadcaster it News Pidgin reaches a weekly audience of 7.5 million people in Nigeria and around the world on radio, online, Facebook and Instagram. Even though Pidgin hasn’t got the official status of a recognised language anywhere, it’s widely spoken across West Africa. Today, variations of pidgins are used in all spheres of life ranging from political campaigns, television and radio broadcast. Pidgin refers to what’s known as a trade language that emerged as a mixture of languages to help people who don’t have a common one to communicate with one another. Pidgin is used differently in different settings. The BBC’s decision to launch a service in Pidgin should be applauded. The history Trade and colonisation brought pidgin to West Africa. Some, if not all, of these pidgins have outgrown their status as pidgins.
Aux Trans Musicales, le rock dans tous ses états Les guitares ont parlé hier soir aux Trans Musicales. Plutôt discret lors des deux premières soirées d’un festival marqué jusque lors par la force des voix et la richesse des collectifs, le rock a tenu son rang samedi soir au Parc des expositions grâce à l’alignement de plusieurs groupes qui ont soudainement fait passer le volume dans le rouge. En forme de potion de jouvence pour fêter leurs 40 ans, les Trans ont ainsi misé avec succès sur la jeunesse de la petite bande new-yorkaise de Bodega. S’ils n’avaient que leur charisme pour eux, ces vingtenaires de Brooklyn feraient déjà un malheur rien qu’avec leur sex-appeal et leurs regards perçants. Al Qasar le 08 décembre à Rennes | RF / Chantepie Un peu plus tard au même endroit, c’est le combo Psychotic Monks qui a fait détonner ses déflagrations noisy dans une ambiance de plus en plus stridente. Arp Frique le 08 décembre aux Trans Musicales | RF / Schnee Nihiloxica le 09 décembre aux Trans Musicales | RF / Chantepie
African music History It is widely acknowledged that African music has undergone frequent and decisive changes throughout the centuries. What is termed traditional music today is probably very different from African music in former times. The material sources for the study of African music history include archaeological and other objects, pictorial sources (rock paintings, petroglyphs, book illustrations, drawings, paintings), oral historical sources, written sources (travelers’ accounts, field notes, inscriptions in Arabic and in African and European languages), musical notations, sound recordings, photographs and motion pictures, and videotape. In ancient times the musical cultures of sub-Saharan Africa extended into North Africa. Get unlimited access to all of Britannica’s trusted content. The cultures of the “Green Sahara” left behind a vast gallery of iconographic documents in the form of rock paintings, among which are some of the earliest internal sources on African music. Musical instruments
World's largest refugee camp Over the past month Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp has marked several important events. More than 3,400 children from over 30 primary schools sat for Kenya’s national primary school examination. A new courthouse was also opened to help refugees resolve disputes. It’s hard to imagine that less than a year ago the camp was being threatened with closure by Kenya’s government. A great deal has changed since then. Earlier this year, a court ruling said it would be unconstitutional to close Dadaab. The ruling came in response to a petition by two human rights organisations – the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights and Kituo Cha Sheria. The court said the order was given without consulting the people who would be directly affected by its implications – the refugees living in Dadaab. In addition to this, Kenya is a signatory to conventions on the protection of refugees, which is part and parcel of its constitutional order. We are pleased with the ruling. What is the status of the camp today?
5 African musical icons you need to know - CBC Music Written by Buhlebenkosi Chinhara From innovative maestros to powerhouse vocalists -- these are the most prominent and influential acts from the African continent. Hear: Miriam Makeba, Fela Kuti, Cesaria Evora, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Amadou and Mariam and more! As excellent and as accomplished as they are, there’s so much more to the musical icon canon than the likes of Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson and the Beatles. Too often, Africa’s many musical geniuses and superstar performers are relegated by mainstream media into the catch-all category of "world music." Fela Kuti (1938-1997) As the man who coined the genre Afrobeat — and who also mastered it — Nigerian-born Fela "Anikulapo" Kuti etched his name in the plaque of musical greats over the course of his lifetime. In 1969, a 10-month trip to Los Angeles would ignite Kuti’s passion for political activism, changing the way the musician used his art. Amadou & Mariam (1954 to present; 1958 to present) Miriam Makeba (1932-2008) More to explore: