Music
A protest song, a prison sentence and a nation’s love: Teddy Afro
Teddy Afro, born Tewodros Kassahun in 1976, is one of Ethiopia's most significant musicians. His 2005 album Yasteseryal…
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The Queen of Ethiopian Pop: Aster Aweke’s journey from Gondar to Washington and back
Aster Aweke, born in Gondar province in 1959, is known as the Queen of Ethiopian Pop. She began…
Music
A state orchestra, a sung history of Samory Touré and a tragedy in 1973: Bembeya Jazz National of Guinea
Bembeya Jazz National was formed in 1961 in Beyla, Guinea, and became the country's most popular state-supported band…
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Actress, street theatre performer and Grammy nominee: Fatoumata Diawara’s Malian journey
Fatoumata Diawara, born in Côte d'Ivoire in 1982 to Malian parents, began as an actress in films such…
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Daddy Lumba, 1964 to 2025: from the Lumba Brothers in Germany to highlife royalty
Daddy Lumba, born Charles Kwadwo Fosu in Nsuta, Ashanti, in 1964, began his career in Germany with Nana…
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Benin’s funkiest band was rediscovered by record collectors: Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou was founded in 1968 by Mélomé Clément in Cotonou, Benin. Mixing vodun rhythms with…
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The slow soukous of tcha tcho and a sold-out Bercy: Koffi Olomidé’s long reign in Congolese music
Koffi Olomidé, born Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba in Kisangani in 1956, introduced the slower soukous style known as…
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From Quartier Latin to Tokooos: Fally Ipupa, the modern king of Congolese music
Fally Ipupa, born in Kinshasa in 1977, rose through Koffi Olomidé's Quartier Latin International before launching a solo…
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The log drum that shook Africa: how amapiano grew from South African townships
Amapiano emerged in South Africa's Gauteng townships in the 2010s, blending deep house, jazz, soul and kwaito with…
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From the streets of Masaka to the Grammys: Eddy Kenzo and “Sitya Loss”
Eddy Kenzo, born Edrisah Musuuza in Masaka, Uganda, lost his mother at about five and spent 13 years…