Afropop Worldwide

This Hip Deep episode presents the stunning radio premiere of “Oh, David,” the traditional song of the annual Easter Rock in Winnsboro, Louisiana. The Easter Rock is in fact a surviving ringshout—the oldest known form of African American music—but it’s about 600 miles west of the ringshout’s heartland in Georgia. It’s located across the Mississippi River from Vicksburg in the Louisiana Delta, where they don’t call it a “ringshout,” but a “rock.” And it totally rocks. Producer Ned Sublette attends the Easter Rock ceremony and talks with Dr. Joyce Marie Jackson, a scholar and Louisiana native, who has been working with the Rockers for almost 20 years and confirms their tradition as a direct musical link to slavery days. In Athens, Georgia, Sublette visits Art Rosenbaum, producer of recordings by Georgia’s McIntosh County Shouters, and more. Produced by Ned Sublette. Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop, on Instagram @afropopworldwide and on Twitter @afropopww. Subscribe to the Afr

The music being made in Puerto Rico before and during the salsa years had its own sabor, even while the salsa boom was exploding out of New York. We talk to three of Puerto Rico’s all-time most important bandleaders: Rafael Ithier, founder of El Gran Combo; Quique Lucca, founder of Sonora Ponceña; and Willie Rosario, and hear key tracks from the island. Produced by Ned Sublette with José Mandry. 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 PGM #207 Distributed 4/6/2017

Highlife—West Africa’s pioneer popular music of the late colonial and independence periods—has mostly faded from popularity in 21st century Nigeria. However, highlife is alive and well in Edo State, 300 kilometers east of Lagos, and the center of the former Benin Empire. Edo highlife musicians fill the role of traditional musicians by animating community ceremonies such as weddings and funerals, and praising prominent members of the community, in exchange for “financial love.” This traditionalism is also progressive: Edo highlife music draws on traditional genres like asonogun, ojeke, agbi, ivbiagogo, and ekassa, and musicians continue to incorporate instruments and styles from neighboring Yoruba communities and Western popular music. In this Hip Deep program, we'll hear how Edo highlife musicians have found sustainable careers by simultaneously rooting their music in their local communities and appealing to diasporic enclaves in Europe and the United States. Their local support has even allowed certain music

In our visit to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, we go beyond the handful of artists who have achieved international careers and dive into the local scene. We visit azmaribets, down-home music clubs featuring vivacious women artists and their ensembles of traditional players. We catch Mimi and Besat live. Competition between the leading music producers in Addis is fierce: We visit the recording studio of Abegasu Shiote, who breaks down the Ethiopian pop sound track by track, and for the finale, we attend a performance by the revered elder singer of the classic Addis sound--Mamoud Ahmed. Produced by Sean Barlow. 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 PGM #532 Distributed 3/23/2017 [Originally aired in 2007]

In recent months, three Afropop Worldwide producers--Sean Barlow, Banning Eyre and Morgan Greenstreet--have been working in four different regions of Nigeria to gather material for the upcoming five-part Hip Deep in Nigeria series. In this program, the producers sit down to talk about their experiences, share favorite stories and tracks, and preview Afropop Worldwide’s most ambitious field project in our 30-year history. We’ll hear Naija pop, fuji, nanaye film songs and Hausa hip-hop from the north, and highlife from Edo and Rivers States. Produced by Banning Eyre, Morgan Greenstreet & Sean Barlow. 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 PGM #750 Distributed 3/16/2017

The “Black Pacific” is a term coined by our guide, ethnomusicologist Heidi Carolyn Feldman. She describes the circumstance of African descendants displaced not only from their ancestral homes in Africa, but also from the Atlantic coast nations where their enslaved ancestors were originally brought. This Hip Deep edition explores the sonically vibrant realm of Afro-Peruvian music, a young genre identification that has flourished since the 1950s and has now produced artists of international renown, such as singer Susana Baca, and the black folkloric company Peru Negro. The music is sensuous and deeply beautiful, and represents a fascinating and little-understood history. We will hear from Juan Morillo, who represents Peru Negro, from Susana Baca, and from other artists and community scholars Feldman has worked with during her extensive research of this topic. Produced by Simon Rentner and Wills Glasspiegel. Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop, on Instagram @afropopworldwide and

We visit one of the world's last untamed natural and musical wildernesses: The Guyanas. Riding along bumpy jungle roads and in dugout canoes, Afropop producer Marlon Bishop travels from Suriname to French Guiana for the Transamazoniennes Festival, located in the remote border town of Saint-Laurent-Du-Maroni. We enjoy the region's fascinating cultural stew, where French Creole, Maroon, Amerindian, Hindu, Javanese, and Dutch elements all mingle together on the outer fringes of the Amazon and hear styles like kaseko, bigi pokoe, aleke and kawina. We'll speak with local stars Prince Koloni, Little Guerrier and Chris Combete, as well as visiting acts such as self-proclaimed "African gypsy" Wanlov the Kubolor and polyglot rap crew Nomadic Massive. Originally aired March 2012. Produced by Marlon Bishop. 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 PGM #6

Every September, millions of people celebrate Carnival in Brooklyn. From the pre-dawn J’ouvert bacchanal in the streets, to the intense Panorama steel pan competition, to the massive Labor Day Parade on Eastern Parkway, central Brooklyn is transformed into a Caribbean cultural haven. But before the fun comes months of preparation and centuries of history. We follow Caribbean steel pan groups, masquerade bands and Haitian rara groups through their preparations and celebrations and we hear how members of these Caribbean communities keep their cultural activities alive and thriving despite considerable challenges: violence and political backlash associated with Carnival, and soaring rents and cultural changes in Brooklyn due to gentrification. Produced by Morgan Greenstreet, Saxon Baird and Sebastian Bouknight. 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/

Every January, New York's Webster Hall jams to the music of 12 bands on three stages in one wild night. globalFEST has become an annual kick-off ritual for music-minded New Yorkers. This program samples the 2017 lineup with dynamic live recordings from Cuba (Septeto Santiguero), Congo (L'Orchestre Afrisa International), Ghana (Jojo Abot), Sudan (Alsarah and the Nubatones), Morocco (Hoba Hoba Spirit), and more. We also speak with Modero Mekanisi about the revival of Afrisa International, and with Reda Allali about Hoba Hoba Spirit's Moroccan roll. Produced by Banning Eyre and Sebastian Bouknight. 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 PGM #748 [Distributed 2/09/2017]

On this program we survey the careers of two giants within their genres. Bunny Wailer is the last surviving member of the original Bob Marley and the Wailers trio. Right up to his 2016 tour, where we met him, this architect of reggae music has continued to carry the banner with new concerts and recordings. And he tells his story with bracing poetic candor. Meanwhile in Egypt, Hakim, the lion of shaabi music, remains a superstar and a player in that country’s turbulent pop scene. On a rare visit to New York, Hakim gives us a tour through his post-revolution songs, and offers personal insights into Egypt’s equally turbulent politics. Produced by Banning Eyre. 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 PGM #737 [Distributed 2/02/2017]

Borrowing the title from Cuban polymath Fernando Ortiz, producer Ned Sublette takes a group of travelers, including you, to multiple sites in western Cuba to analyze the musical impact of what Ortiz called the "Cuban counterpoint" of tobacco and sugar. We'll hear endangered species of drums in mountain farms and sugar towns, drilling down into the deep culture of the Afro-Cuban world. We'll hear sacred drumming as handed down from Kongo sources, from Yorubaland, from Dahomey, and more, in sites that are indelibly stamped with the imprints of Africa, above all in music. We'll hear an incredible poetic improviser, go to a block party in Matanzas, and talk to our guest scholar, Latin Grammy-winning record producer Caridad Diez, about the power of rumba and its meaning in Cuban society in the wake of UNESCO's designation of rumba as world heritage. Update: Ned Sublette's group was in Cuba at the time of Fidel Castro's death. Ned, who covered the story for Billboard, tells us what he experienced as Cuba went for n

Barbados recently celebrated its 50th anniversary of independence. We look into the rise and mysterious fall of the funky Bajan spouge beat which ruled the island in the ’70s, and discover a few underground musicians who are trying to keep it alive. Calypsonians Mighty Grynner and Red Plastic Bag detail their contributions to the lyrically potent kaiso scene. Soca stars Alison Hinds and Edwin Yearwood talk about the pros and cons of the island's competition circuit, and we learn about the hot new "soca bashment" scene. Produced by Saxon Baird and Noah Schaffer. 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 PGM #746 [Distributed 1/19/2017]

New York City is home to a diverse community of Colombian musicians and groups who create in a wide range of traditional, popular and experimental music styles for diasporic communities and beyond. Our “Colombia in NYC” program takes us from independence day celebrations in a chic Manhattan club with accordion virtuoso Gregorio Uribe, to vallenato parties and outdoor festivals. We’ll hear from experimental groups Combo Chimbita and Delsonido; traditional Afro-Colombian bullerengue group Bulla en El Barrio; salsero, folklorist and educator Pablo Mayor; innovative dance bands MAKU Soundsystem and Grupo Rebolú; harp virtuoso Edmar Castañeda, and many more amazing performers. Along the way, musicians weave in stories about nationalism, identity, place and diaspora, and discuss the challenges and opportunities New York offers for Colombian musicians. Produced by Morgan Greenstreet. Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop, on Instagram @afropopworldwide and on Twitter @afropopww. Subscri

The confederations and clans collectively known as the Tuareg descend from the oldest inhabitants of North Africa. They lead a mostly nomadic existence across the Sahara Desert, in the lands we now know as Algeria, Libya, Niger and Mali. Tuareg communities have long felt neglected by independent African governments, especially in Mali, which has endured a succession of rebellions. In 2012, a Tuareg uprising led to a year-long crisis in which the Malian north separated from the country and fell under harsh control by Islamic extremists. Ironically, these extremists banned music, which in the hands of modern bands like Tinariwen had been a crucial means for expressing Tuareg aspirations. This broadcast unravels the complex history and provides a vivid portrait of the Tuareg predicament in Mali today. The program samples a rich variety of Tuareg music and includes conversations with Tuareg musicians and cultural authorities in the wake of Mali’s crisis, along with University of Houston anthropologist Susan Rasmu

Ethiopia was the first Christian nation in Africa, and the only African country never to be colonized. With ethnomusicologist Kay Kaufman Shelemay and Ethiopian music scholar and compiler Francis Falceto as guests, this Hip Deep program explores the role of the Ethiopian church and monarchy in building the country's unique brassy pop music. We sample the hot sounds of "swinging Addis" on the eve of the 1974 revolution. Produced by Banning Eyre. 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 PGM #512 [Distributed 12/29/2016]

In hard times and boom times, people in Ghana know how to party. In this program, we hear the regional pop and neotraditional music that animates festivals, funerals and community celebrations across the county. We travel to the lush Volta region in the east to hear Ewe borborbor, agbadza and brass band music. In the northern city of Tamale, we hear Dagbani traditional music, hip-hop and pop, and visit the vibrant Damba chieftaincy festival in nearby Yendi. Back in the bustling metropolis, Accra, we get down to the latest pop hits and underground styles moving hips in the capital city. Produced by Morgan Greenstreet. 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 PGM #745 [Distributed 12/22/2016]

An Afropop Closeup Encore. Originally distributed on 11/08/2016. The Caribbean island of Jamaica has long been blighted by unacceptably high levels of politically motivated violence, a nightmarish by-product of its firmly entrenched two-party political system. This podcast reveals the early beginnings of Jamaica’s dramatic partisan divisions, and highlights the role that the island’s music has played in commenting on and challenging such divides. Produced and hosted by David Katz and Saxon Baird. Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop and on Twitter @afropopww. Subscribe to the Afropop Worldwide newsletter at www.afropop.org/newsletter/ [Distributed 12/20/2016]

Every year, the world-famous Apollo Theater and New York’s World Music Institute pack the house for a stellar lineup of established and emerging artists from the African continent. This year was especially impressive. We bring you concert highlights and interviews with artists from Ghana, Sudan, Niger and Zimbabwe. You’ll hear Alsarah and the Nubatones, inspired by the rich cultures of Nubia, Jojo Abot’s arty, dancehall-meets-Afrobeat grooves, Bombino’s joyous Tuareg rock, and the discovery of the night for many Afropop fans: Mokoomba from Zimbabwe, featuring phenomenal lead singer Mathias Muzaza, who spanned nods to Salif Keita, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, as well as a Congolese soukous animation that had the crowd up and dancing. Special bonus: a taste of the acoustic “traditional” set Mokoomba performed the next day up the Hudson. Produced by Sean Barlow. Follow Afropop Worldwide on Facebook at www.facebook.com/afropop, on Instagram @afropopworldwide and on Twitter @afropopww. Subscribe to the Afropop Wor

Georges Collinet and Banning Eyre survey the best African and African diaspora music of 2016: from desert blues to Afrobeats and neo-cumbia, vintage reissues, and groundbreaking experiments. This fast-moving conversation interweaves juicy clips from over two dozen albums. Lots of musical ideas for your holiday shopping list. Produced by Banning Eyre. 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 PGM #744 [Distributed 12/08/2016]

Producer Jake Hochberger brings us to the southernmost island in the Caribbean, Trinidad. Trinidad is the birthplace of the steel drum, calypso and soca music, and is home to the largest Carnival celebration in the world. Here we encounter the musical and philosophical movement called rapso--an infectiously danceable rhythmic oration style that comes with a philosophy championing a Trinidadian identity in the face of a colonial history and a globalized present. We meet three generations of artists, from the founding King of Rapso, Brother Resistance, to the emerging musicians behind the American hip-hop influenced trapso sound. Brother Resistance shares stories of how local rhythms and participation in Trinidad’s Black Power movement influenced him to define his music as the most recent manifestation of an ancient oral tradition, as passed down from the West African griot. Omari Ashby of Kindred, Wendell Manwarren of 3Canal, and Ataklan bring us into the Trinidadian cultural matrix, where speed-rapping Carniv