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A Rebel with a Sensitive Soul with Sylvestre Kabassidi
The village of Ntambo is what became Brazzaville in 1880. During WW2, Brazzaville was the de-facto capital of aFree France. In 2013, Unesco designated Brazzaville as a city of Music, adding Brazza to the Creative Cities Network. Flanked by the mighty Congo River, and The Nabemba Tower offering panoramic views, Brazzaville captivates in its earthy vibrancy of art, music and cultural vivacity.
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Straight from the outset, Sylvestre takes Ruth on a linguistic and heritage journey into the history of The Congo and Africa in general. Sylvestre’s passion for delving into the Chimuntu embraces the wholesomeness of the ancestry of the Bantu and Nilotic peoples of Africa.
Inevitably the conversation touches on The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and its impact in Cuba, Brazil and the Caribbean as most of the slaves would have been taken from western coast of Africa right down to Angola. Naturally dovetailing into the purpose of Wasafiri Africa in contributing to the authentic storytelling of the Continent. The impact of The Scramble for Africa and the decisions made in Brussels a period that spanned from 1885 -1914.
The consequence of colonialism on how the African saw themselves diluted what being Bantu and Sylvestre expounds on his pride in being Bantu and the broader meaning of Chimuntu in “seeing another person”, emphasising the power of the collective in building a strong community.
Moving on to Sylvestre’s time in Namibia, he is quick to concede that African music greats such as Papa Wemba encouraged him to sing before he left home, and by the time he arrived in Namibia. His arrival in Cape Town was intended as a transit stop en-route to Paris, but a glitch with the visas thwarted further travel to their final destination.
A self-proclaimed "Rebel with a Sensitive Soul," Sylvestre explains that he cannot help but tell things as he sees them on the continent, and yet his love for Africa lends his lyrics poetry and gentleness to his melodies. He cajoles the truth to the fore, asks questions that may not be answered and pays homage to all the suffering citizens of the continent.
When he sings, his intent comes through clearly. In the end, the request is simple. Apply Chimuntu. Be constructive in telling the reality as it is.
Twendeni, Africa is Ready!
Connect with Sylvestre: https://www.instagram.com/kabassidi/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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By Wasafiri AfricaThe village of Ntambo is what became Brazzaville in 1880. During WW2, Brazzaville was the de-facto capital of aFree France. In 2013, Unesco designated Brazzaville as a city of Music, adding Brazza to the Creative Cities Network. Flanked by the mighty Congo River, and The Nabemba Tower offering panoramic views, Brazzaville captivates in its earthy vibrancy of art, music and cultural vivacity.
*
Straight from the outset, Sylvestre takes Ruth on a linguistic and heritage journey into the history of The Congo and Africa in general. Sylvestre’s passion for delving into the Chimuntu embraces the wholesomeness of the ancestry of the Bantu and Nilotic peoples of Africa.
Inevitably the conversation touches on The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and its impact in Cuba, Brazil and the Caribbean as most of the slaves would have been taken from western coast of Africa right down to Angola. Naturally dovetailing into the purpose of Wasafiri Africa in contributing to the authentic storytelling of the Continent. The impact of The Scramble for Africa and the decisions made in Brussels a period that spanned from 1885 -1914.
The consequence of colonialism on how the African saw themselves diluted what being Bantu and Sylvestre expounds on his pride in being Bantu and the broader meaning of Chimuntu in “seeing another person”, emphasising the power of the collective in building a strong community.
Moving on to Sylvestre’s time in Namibia, he is quick to concede that African music greats such as Papa Wemba encouraged him to sing before he left home, and by the time he arrived in Namibia. His arrival in Cape Town was intended as a transit stop en-route to Paris, but a glitch with the visas thwarted further travel to their final destination.
A self-proclaimed "Rebel with a Sensitive Soul," Sylvestre explains that he cannot help but tell things as he sees them on the continent, and yet his love for Africa lends his lyrics poetry and gentleness to his melodies. He cajoles the truth to the fore, asks questions that may not be answered and pays homage to all the suffering citizens of the continent.
When he sings, his intent comes through clearly. In the end, the request is simple. Apply Chimuntu. Be constructive in telling the reality as it is.
Twendeni, Africa is Ready!
Connect with Sylvestre: https://www.instagram.com/kabassidi/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.