Gnawa musicians have carved out a unique niche within Moroccan society, as people with revered spiritual power who use music and movement to heal the sick. The Gnawas’ ancestors came to North Africa as slaves. Today they are an elite class of musicians and spiritualists, celebrated in an annual festival that attracts some 400,000 fans, and invited to collaborate with such notable international artists as jazz legend Randy Weston. In this program, originally produced in 2009, author and scholar Deborah Kapchan guides us through the history, practices, music, lore and unique contemporary stature of the Gnawa, both in Morocco and on the world stage. Interviews with Hassan Hakmoun, historian Mohammed Ennaji, and gnawa scholar Tim Abdella Fuson. Produced by Banning Eyre.

APWW #580

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.

APWW # 840

Mr. Eazi stands out among today’s Nigerian pop stars in a number of ways. For starters, in a world of musical dreamers and schemers, he never set out to be a musician. Now, the 29-year-old is one of the most innovative and respected artists in the Afrobeats universe. His 2023 album The Evil Genius is an ambitious concept album recorded in a variety of mostly African countries. Each of its 16 tracks has an accompanying artwork by a different African visual artist. And there’s more, as you will hear in Eazi’s extensive interview with Planet Afropop’s Banning Eyre.

Episode #006

Tony Allen is among the greatest drummers of the past century. His sudden death at 79 in April, 2020, was a shock felt around the world. In addition to his seminal work with the king of Afrobeat Fela Kuti, Allen had a prolific solo career and performed and recorded with artists from Angelique Kidjo, Ray Lema, Ernest Ranglin and Oumou Sangare to Damon Albarn, Brian Eno and Jeff Mills. In this program we salute a towering career in global music, with insights from Michael Veal, co-author of Allen’s autobiography. Produced by Banning Eyre.

APWW #815

Cameroonian musician and composer Manu Dibango passed away on March 24, 2020 at his home in France, an early victim of Covid 19. This episode is a tribute to the exceptional man who, by chance, as he says, gave us the famous Soul Makossa, a tune that opened the Disco era.

In this episode of Afropop Worldwide, Georges Collinet goes back in time to recollect his friendship with his fellow Cameroonian. He explores the many ways their lives paralleled and intersected after they were sent to France by their parents for an education. This musical journey is enhanced by the wisdom and sonorous laughter of Manu Dibango and by the mesmerizing music culled from over 200 records that Manu produced over a 60 year career. We'll sample some Maxi Voom Voom - as Georges Collinet on the Voice Of America was known - and have a taste of Andouillette and Suya in Yaoundé, Cameroon. And we'll finally know how to correctly say "Ma Ma Ko, Ma Massa, Ma Ma Makossa." This episode is definitely a multi-sensory delight!

APWW #814

On this episode of Planet Afropop, we focus on Ghana at WOMEX 2023. But first, Mukwae updates us with South African sensation Tyla, and her hit "Water." Banning has a conversation and informal jam session with Ghanain musician Kyekyeku - recorded by the EBU at WOMEX in Spain. And we wrap up with Ghanain singer, Florence. She shares her origin story and we hear her music.

Episode #005

Zimbabwe’s Oliver Mtukudzi, one of the most beloved singer/composer/bandleaders out of Africa in the last century, died in Harare on Jan. 23 2019 after a long battle with diabetes. Tuku, as his fans knew him, composed countless songs that cut to the heart of life in Zimbabwe, from its struggle for freedom in the 1970s through the rocky road of independence ever since. In this program, we look back at our conversations with Tuku going back to our first visit to Zimbabwe in 1988, and hear his wonderful music at various points in his epic career. We also speak with his biographer, ethnomusicologist Jennifer Kyker, and take a deep dive into what made Tuku's music so special and the stories behind some of his most important songs. Produced by Banning Eyre.

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti would be 85 years old today had he not died from complications of AIDS in 1997. By the time of his death, Fela was the inventor of the enduring and influential Afrobeat music style, the composer of an enormous body of music, and one of the bravest political voices in 20th century African music. It is fair to say that no African musician before or since has sacrificed more for the principles he believed in. Nigerian history and music have barreled forth during the two decades since Fela left us. A powerful new generation of Nigerian musicians have emerged in that time, and the music they now champion has been dubbed “Afrobeats,” an appropriation of the name Fela gave his original sound during its heyday. The youngest artists on the scene today have no direct memory of Fela, though his legacy is impossible to escape. In this program, we hear from current day Nigerians from multiple generations and genres—fuji, juju, hip-hop, Afrobeats, and highlife - on how they remember this musical giant, and how they reckon with his complex and challenging legacy.

Produced by Banning Eyre and Morgan Greenstreet. Hosted by Sahr Ngaujah.

APWW #764

In this edition of Planet Afropop we focus on Brazil - especially with regard the the challenges facing indigenous people within the country. We speak with musical icon and now Minister of Culture, Margareth Menezes. We have a conversation with Brazilian musical legend Carlinhos Brown backstage at Central Park Summer Stage in NYC. We also have a fascinating, free-wheeling conversation with musician, rapper, cultural activist, and deep-thinker, Emicida.

Episode #004

When we talk about the influence of American performers on African music, we usually think about a few obvious examples, legends like Michael Jackson, Jimi Hendrix or James Brown. In this episode, we go beyond these stars to explore the legacy of some lesser-known inspirations. We’ll learn how the fluid guitar playing of ’70s rock band Dire Straits became massively popular in the Sahel, influencing Tuareg rockers like Tinariwen and Tamikrest. We’ll hear about the American country superstar Jim Reeves’ African career, and the unlikely story of how the pedal steel made it from Hawaii to Lagos. Finally, we’ll travel to Angola with the help of director Jeremy Xido, to explore that nation’s death metal scene. And along the way, we will try to understand just how to account for taste. Produced by Sam Backer with help from Jesse Brent.

Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop, on Instagram @afropopworldwide and on Twitter @afropopww.

Subscribe to the Afropop Worldwide newsletter at www.afropop.org/newsletter/

APWW #703