Blog
Empezamos con novedades con el camerunés Franck Biyong que rinde homenaje en su último trabajo
a la música africana de la Edad de Oro, los años 70. Seguimos con los ritmos actuales de la
maliense Black AD, y con la cantante de origen congoleño Liz Ikamba, que siempre se aproxima
la jazz y al soul, y además, un remix de un tema del fantástico Estrellas de Guts, donde
exploraba las conexiones entre las músicas africanas y caribeñas.
En la segunda parte, reggae con el maestro del balafón Jahkasa, chimurenga de Zimbabwe con
Biggie Tembo, ngoma de Tanzania con la International Orchestra Safari Sound y para terminara
dos de las grandes estrellas senegalesas, Cheikh Lô y la Orchestra Baobab. Disfruta
Track List
Franck Biyong - Kabasele Kingdom
Franck Biyong - Lipanda
Black AD - Dounia Kow
Guts - Medewi Remix
Liz Ikamba - Mama Afrika
Jahkasa - Nee Chikora
Biggie Tembo - Mozambique
International Orchestra Safari Sound - Usilipuke Kucheka
Cheikh Lô - M Beddemi
Orchestra Baobab - Sibou Odia
Global A Go-Go is a weekly two-hour world music radio program that I've been
hosting since 2004. It's usually produced live in the studio and can be heard
on both the FM radio band and as a webstream simulcast. It is rebroadcast on
other radio stations, and it's available as a podcast as well.
LIVE RADIO
Global A Go-Go originates in the studios of WRIR Richmond Independent Radio 97.3 FM
in Richmond, Virginia, USA, from which it is broadcast live every Sunday from 1 to 3
PM Eastern time USA. A live broadcast has a certain energy and realness that's hard
to duplicate in any other format -- that's what I'm aiming for each week.
WRIR World's NACC Top Ten
1 ANGELICA GARCIA | Gemelo | Partisan
2 ZAWOSE QUEENS, THE | Maisha | Real World
3 LOS GAITEROS DE SAN JACINTO | Orgullo Colombiano | OM Producciones/Bad Vibes Good Friends
4 JACOB F. DESVARIEUX AND GEORGES DECIMUS (KASSAV') | Yelele | Heavenly Sweetness
5 SEXTETO FANTASIA | Estamos En Algo | El Palmas
6 SUPERFONICOS | "La Semilla" [Single] | Spaceflight
7 LA LOM | "Danza De LA LOM" [Single] | Verve
8 FRANCK BIYONG | Radio Masoda | Tangential
9 ROLANDO BRUNO Y EL GRUPO AREVALO | Cosas Raras | Peace & Rhythm/Electric Cowbell/DJ Cajon
10 MERIDIAN BROTHERS | Mi Latinoamerica Sufre | Ansonia/Bongo Joe
WRIR World's NACC Adds
1 ANCIENT ASTRONAUTS | Cypher Kabaka | Switchstance
2 CHEO | Refresco Vol. 1: Cheo Goes Latin[EP] | Nacional
3 CATHY FINK AND MARCY MARXER WITH CHAO TIAN | From China To Appalachia | Community
4 FOREST LAW | Zero | Bongo Joe/Total Refreshment Centre
5 DOBET GNAHORE | Zouzou | Cumbancha
6 HEMPOLICS, THE | "Fisherman Row" b/w "Night & Day" [Single] | ZeeZee
7 HERMANOS GUTIERREZ | Sondido Cósmico | Easy Eye Sound/Concord
8 JAHILL | "Miss & Mr Rub-A-Dub (feat. Marina P)" [Single] | 3/8/Evidence
9 BARRINGTON LEVY | "Praise His Name" [Single] | 17 North Parade
10 L'IMPERATRICE | Pulsar | Microqlima
Franck Biyong: “I just want to tear down the barrier that separates African music from the mainstream”
Jun 15, 2024
308 views
By Daniel Brown
Frustrated by the state of popular African music, Franck Biyong decided to create his own ‘Afrolectric’
sound inspired by Le Grand Kallé, Fela Kuti, Manu Dibango and the greats of yesteryear
Franck Biyong cuts an elegant figure both on- and off-stage. The tall, bespectacled Cameroonian could
pass for the academic professor his parents always hoped he would become. Certainly, his aesthetic
approach towards production, composition and guitar playing has a pedagogic side, allying explorations
of his heritage with a prescient notion of what the musical future holds. Biyong contends that it was a
brace of gigs at London’s Jazz Cafe in 2001 with his band Massak that kickstarted his career: “the crowd
literally went nuts. Those two gigs really put us on the map.” Since then, Biyong has led us to the fault
lines and bridges between the musics of sub-Saharan Africa and the West, giving birth to 20 category-defying
albums along the way. Now, with Radio Masoda, the 50-year-old says there is a form of closure to the Afro-music
library he’s created, something between Afro-jazz and what he calls ‘Afrolectric Rock.’ It’s a voyage I’ve
tracked from a distance, ever since I heard his second album, Haiti Market. At the time, I described it as
‘a sumptuous collage of Afrobeat, soul, funk and jazz by this little-known Franco-Cameroonian combo [destined]
for greater things in the near future.’ Seventeen years later, the Nairobi-based artist has scaled several
pinnacles before arriving at what he calls a crossroads: “This latest album was born just before the pandemic,
not far from here,” he tells me during a long exchange on a rainy day in central Paris. “I was discussing the
different directions African music is going with scholars from Cameroon, Nigeria and Benin. The most popular
sounds now are the new African electronic music everyone calls Afrobeats or amapiano. We were wondering if
African music is doomed to be a permanent novelty because it continues to be linked to the reissues of music
from the 1960s-80s. Or is there a modern way of expressing our music while making it more accessible and
yet deeper than the enjoyment factor? So, I began composing around this notion, hoping to shake things up.”
Part of this shake-up is Biyong’s critique of how poorly African pioneers have been honoured for their works.
“Since Fela disappeared, we haven’t managed to create what reggae music created in terms of permanence. I
wanted to pay homage to these giants before they fall off the radar.” The result is eight tracks that take
listeners on what Biyong describes as “a musical safari.” It begins with a stop in ‘Kabasele Kingdom’ where
he pays homage to Congolese rumba legend Le Grand Kallé: “We failed to revere this founding father of African
music in the way Cubans revere Machito or the Arab world worships Oum Kalthoum,” he admits drily. Then there
is Tony Allen. Appropriately, the first notes Biyong recorded for Radio Masoda were by Afrobeat’s consummate
drummer. A shadow crosses his brow: “There was this major Felabration here in Paris in 2019 and all these
former Africa 70 musicians were there. I will always remember how Tony seemed to act like it was a bit of a
farewell. He was gracious and satisfied that there was a new generation willing to carry that Afrobeat sound
further. Right after the concert, I asked Tony to record a drum solo in our studio, not really knowing what
I would do with it. And then, five months later, he died.” Silence. “Tony was the complete innovator, and he
has yet to be recognised for his pioneering work. He innovated by pouring his apala Yoruba and Ghanaian Fanti
roots into this new genre Fela Kuti was forging. Fela’s former percussionist Chief Udoh Essiet and I basically
built the song ‘Oladipo’ around that solo. It was important to pay homage to someone who had made such a giant contribution to African music, or modern music, full stop.” In this album, Biyong also pays tribute to another
giant who fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, Manu Dibango. “His early work has been all too easily forgotten.
Manu recorded some fantastic records, like 1982’s Waka Juju and Countdown at Kusini in 1975, which was one of
the standout Blaxploitation records. Yet, young people have a hard time identifying with him because his music
is complex, with a lot of changes in harmonies and little room for improvisation. It was a bit further away
from African elements which float around here and there.”
Like Dibango’s early works, musical genres in Radio Masoda cascade from one song to the next, sometimes in
the same song: from rumba to Afrobeat, from jùjú to highlife and soukous. And always with the undertow of
Biyong’s trademark Afrolectric groove. “I’m hoping listeners’ ears are inspired to keep on listening as
rhythms, harmonies and moods change.” Biyong is faithful, too, to the experimental nature which characterises
his long career. Take ‘Lipanda’, led by the Lingala singing of French vocalist Mary May alongside Biyong’s
Nigerian Pidgin vocals and a soukous guitar solo played in an unusual minor mode. This fuses with jazz-rock
bass and a funky horn section, giving the song an Afrobeat feel that’s both danceable and destabilising.
“I just want to tear down the barrier that separates African music from the mainstream,” affirms the
soft-spoken artist. “I think that the best way African music can progress is by working in a musical
context where you don’t really expect an African musician.” Biyong evokes Keziah Jones, an old-time
friend who crashed genres with his 1992 song ‘Rhythm is Love’: “No one expected this groove feel,
a vibe quite different from pop, funk, soul and rock – and a bit of all of those, but unique
in so many ways.”
Keziah might just be part of Biyong’s future now that Radio Masoda is closing a chapter. They’re even
toying with the idea of setting up a ‘supergroup’ around their electric guitars. But, for the moment,
the multi-instrumentalist prefers to focus on the new possibilities offered by his eight-piece band
Afrobrainz. They have been setting the Nairobi scene alight with their brand of Afro-electric funk-rock,
drawing from a metropolis which has seen an exponential rise in musical talents recently: “There’s
something very special happening in East Africa just now,” says Biyong, with conviction. “Nairobi
is seeing a new fusion of genres, with a major input from exiled Congolese musicians. We’re trying
to grow an alternative to the African Nigerian sound led by Burna Boy. We’ve been pushing this new
style partly thanks to Afro-soul singing in Kiswahili. This is an incredible language, very melodic,
with a musical flow that can be understood from Rwanda and Tanzania to Kenya and right down to the
Comoros.” For the first time, Biyong will be bringing Afrobrainz to Europe as the headliner for the
Tropical Pressure festival in July: “It’ll be great to test our electronic repertoire there. If all
goes well, Tangential Records and I hope to bring out a live album, and follow it up with a
studio production.”
Franck Biyong’s thirst to produce and share remains unquenched despite a punishing output these past
two decades. Behind the calm demeanour and soothingly deep voice, he retains the restless desire to
leave a mark: “I think people like myself – who were lucky to have a musical education that forged
complex technical abilities and unbelievable space to innovate – have something of a responsibility
to the younger generations to guide them to the next phase of African music. For a time, I want to
share that centre stage with them. I want to create a unit which takes us away from music based on
individual brilliance and towards the more collective approach we used to have in the 1970s.
Then, perhaps, I can take a step back and enjoy the new threshold from the sidelines.”
This article originally appeared in the July 2024 issue of Songlines.
Global A Go-Go is a weekly two-hour world music radio program that I've been hosting since
2004. It's usually produced live in the studio and can be heard on both the FM radio band
and as a webstream simulcast. It is rebroadcast on other radio stations, and it's available
as a podcast as well.
LIVE RADIO
Global A Go-Go originates in the studios of WRIR Richmond Independent Radio 97.3 FM in Richmond,
Virginia, USA, from which it is broadcast live every Sunday from 1 to 3 PM Eastern time USA.
A live broadcast has a certain energy and realness that's hard to duplicate in any other format
-- that's what I'm aiming for each week.
WRIR World's NACC Top Ten
1 KUMBIA BORUKA | Santa Suerte | self-released
2 MDOU MOCTAR | Funeral For Justice | Matador
3 FRANCK BIYONG | Radio Masoda | Tangential
4 KIKI VALERA | Vacilon Santiaguero | Circle 9
5 BASSEKOU KOUYATE AND AMY SACKO | Djudjon: L'Oiseau De Garana | One World
6 LOS DAYS | Dusty Dreams | Too Good
7 MIGHTY JOSHUA | Dreaducation | self-released
8 IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE | Pull The Rope | Merge
9 DELROY WILSON | The Cool Operator | Gorgon
10 MERCI YAYA BONGO: LES GROUPES D'ANIMATION FEMININS DU GABON, 1982-1989 | VARIOUS ARTISTS | Secousse
WRIR World's NACC Adds
1 ALLA BOARA | Work & Song | self-released
2 BEAUTIFUL NUBIA AND THE ROOTS RENAISSANCE BAND | Sonso | EniObanke
3 BONBON VODOU | Afrodiziak [EP] | Heavenly Sweetness
4 LOS GAITEROS DE SAN JACINTO | Orgullo Colombiano | OM Producciones
5 ANGELICA GARCIA | Gemelo | Partisan
6 LA LOM | "Danza De LA LOM" [Single] | Verve
7 L'ETRANGLEUSE | Ambiance Argile | La Curieuse
8 ORQUESTA OLIVIERI | Orquesta Olivieri | Vampisoul
9 SANDMAN PROJECT | Where Did You Go? | Batov
10 SUPERFONICOS | "La Semilla" [Single] | Spaceflight
New & Recommended at WRIR World
Amadou & Mariam | "Mogolu" | Because Music
Belgicains, Les: Na Tango Ya Covadia 1964-70 | (various artists) | Covadia
Bitchos, Los | "La Bomba" | City Slang
Biyong, Franck | Radio Masoda | Tangential Music
Bongo Hop, The | Satingarona Pt. 1 | Underdog
Bruno, Rolando Y El Grupo Arevalo | Cosas Raras | Peace & Rhythm / Electric Cowbell / DJ Cajon
Combo Daguerre | "Les Assassins" | Barbes
Gaiteros De San Jacinto, Los | Orgullo Colombiano | OM Producciones
Ghana Special 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In The Diaspora, 1980-93 | (various artists) | Soundway
Halgan, Sahra | Hiddo Dhawr | Danaya
Jembaa Groove | Ye Ankasa | We Ourselves | Agogo
LA LOM | "Danza De LA LOM" | Verve
Meridian Brothers | Mi Latinoamerica Sufre | Ansonia / Bongo Joe
Mighty Joshua | Dreaducation | Mighty Music
Nortec: Bostich + Fussible | "TSM 2024" | Nacional
Orquesta Akokan | "Con Licencia" | Daptone
Oumbadougou, Abdallah | Amghar: The Godfather Of Tuareg Music, Vol. 1 | Petaluma
Qwanqwa | Live | self-released
Superfonicos | "La Semilla" | Spaceflight
Systema Solar | "Ponte Bonito" | self-released
Thiam, Tidiane | Africa Yontii | Sahel Sounds
Valera, Kiki | Vacilon Santiaguero | Circle 9
The New & Recommended list as a Spotify playlist: spoti.fi/3KqxSkS
Global A Go-Go is a weekly two-hour world music radio program that I've been hosting since 2004.
It's usually produced live in the studio and can be heard on both the FM radio band and as a
webstream simulcast. It is rebroadcast on other radio stations, and it's available as a podcast
as well.
LIVE RADIO
Global A Go-Go originates in the studios of WRIR Richmond Independent Radio 97.3 FM in Richmond,
Virginia, USA, from which it is broadcast live every Sunday from 1 to 3 PM Eastern time USA.
A live broadcast has a certain energy and realness that's hard to duplicate in any other format
-- that's what I'm aiming for each week.
WRIR World's NACC Top Ten
1 ROLANDO BRUNO Y EL GRUPO AREVALO | Cosas Raras | Peace & Rhythm/Electric Cowbell/DJ Cajon
2 DIZZY MANDJEKU AND ODEMBA OK ALLSTARS | Odemba Nostalgie [EP] | Zephyrus
3 FANIA ALL-STARS | Latin-Soul-Rock | Fania/Craft
4 BOBBY VALENTIN | Young Man With A Horn | Fania/Craft
5 NORTEC: BOSTICH Y FUSSIBLE | "TSM 2024" [Single] | Nacional
6 OKWY OSADEBE AND HIGHLIFE SOUNDMAKERS INTERNATIONAL | Ifunanya | Odogwu/Palenque
7 MASTER PLUS | Va En Serio | Nacional
8 LES BELGICAINS: NA TANGO YA COVADIA 1964-1970 | various artists | Covadia
9 EMEL | MRA | Little Human
10 RAIL BAND | Rail Band | Mississippi
WRIR World's NACC Adds
1 FRANCK BIYONG | Radio Masoda | Tangential
2 MANU CHAO | "Viva Tu" [Single] | Because
3 FLAVIA COELHO | Ginga | Le Label
4 MADALA KUNENE | 1990: The Hidden Years Recording | Bella Union
5 REHMAN MEMMEDLI | Azerbaijani Gitara, Vol. 2 | Bongo Joe
6 JON MOON | Live That Life [EP] | Yutman
7 ALICIA SVIGALS | Fidl Afire | Borscht Beat
8 TIDIANE THIAM | Africa Yontii | Sahel Sounds
9 TROKER | Tierra Y Libertad | self-released
10 KIKI VALERA | Vacilon Santiaguero | Circle 9
New & Recommended at WRIR World
Adooni, Florence | "Uh-Ah Song" | Philophon
Amadou & Mariam | "Mogolu" | Because Music
Belgicains, Les: Na Tango Ya Covadia 1964-70 | (various artists) | Covadia
Bitchos, Los | "La Bomba" | City Slang
Biyong, Franck | Radio Masoda | Tangential Music
Bongo Hop, The | Satingarona Pt. 1 | Underdog
Bruno, Rolando Y El Grupo Arevalo | Cosas Raras | Peace & Rhythm / Electric Cowbell / DJ Cajon
Combo Daguerre | "Les Assassins" | Barbes
Ghana Special 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In The Diaspora, 1980-93 | (various artists) | Soundway
Halgan, Sahra | Hiddo Dhawr | Danaya
Jembaa Groove | Ye Ankasa | We Ourselves | Agogo
Liraz | "Haarf" | Batov
Meridian Brothers | Mi Latinoamerica Sufre | Ansonia / Bongo Joe
Mighty Joshua | Dreaducation | Mighty Music
Nortec: Bostich + Fussible | "TSM 2024" | Nacional
Orquesta Akokan | "Con Licencia" | Daptone
Oumbadougou, Abdallah | Amghar: The Godfather Of Tuareg Music, Vol. 1 | Petaluma
Qwanqwa | Live | self-released
Systema Solar | "Ponte Bonito" | self-released
Thiam, Tidiane | Africa Yontii | Sahel Sounds
Valera, Kiki | Vacilon Santiaguero | Circle 9
The New & Recommended list as a Spotify playlist: spoti.fi/3KqxSkS
On this A World in London, DJ Ritu mixes Afrobeats, Anatolian soul, Bhangra,
Jazz, Sufi Classical, Latin grooves, and a song for Palestine, by global music
artists MC Solaar, AySay, Master KG, Kehlani, Lluis Gomez, Gabi Guedes, Maher
Zain, the Youthsayers, Madala Kunene, Franck Biyong, last week’s guests,
Orchestral Qawwali Project, and more! Listen at Resonance 104.4fm on
Wednesday 29th May at 6.30pm, or anytime worldwide at Mixcloud/DJ Ritu.
CLICK: https://bit.ly/AWILum153
ARTIST - TRACK - COUNTRY
Lluís Gómez – Crunch Sister – Spain
Master KG – Tshwarelela – South Africa
Indian Man ft Emmanuel Jal – Sudan Module – UK/Sudan
MC Solaar – Modernidad – France
Daada – Song For You – Colombia/Germany
Olcay Bayir – Edle – Turkey/UK
Afrodream – Ethnique – various
Ovelhanegra – Ja Raiou – Brasil
Franck Biyong Music – Lipanda – Cameroon
Kehlani – After Hours – USA
Kaka – Heel – India
Various – BhangraBeat 2.0 – India
AySay – Moda – Turkey
Madala Kunene – U-Congo – South Africa
Pradarrum & Gabi Guedes – Gabi’s Groove – Brasil
Vidya – Adi Shanti – Sweden/India
Youthsayers – We Keep Playing – UK
Orchestral Qawwali Project – Rang – UK/Sri Lanka/Cyprus
Tasha Smith Godinez, Harpist – Passion Flower – USA
Maher Zain – Ya Habibi Ya Falastin – Lebanon/Sweden
29/5/24 – AWIL 395. AWIL:Unlocked 153.
All DJ Ritu shows at https://www.mixcloud.com/djritu/
Goin’ Global Gigs Guide: Check the AWIL-Radio Facebook group page.
Recommended in London: June 7 Dan Whitehouse & Gustaf Ljanggren
Tuned In London at Finnish Church SE16, June 8 Eve Polycarpou @
Zedel’s, June 21 Najma Akhtar @ Zedel’s, June 27 DJ
Ritu @ Glastonbury Festival, June 29 Kuch Kuch
Bollywood Nights @ Sway Bar.
#awil #aworldinlondon #globalmusic #radio #thesoundofdiverselondon
#london #world #worldmusic #jazz #folkmusic #djritu
#connectingculturesthroughmusic for 18years.
Live on Wednesdays 6.30pm Resonance 104.4 https://www.resonancefm.com/
Online worldwide anytime at #mixcloud. Join us on Facebook group A World
in London + Twitter & Instagram @aworldinlondon @djritu1
#orchestralqawwaliproject #mcsolaar #masterkg #kehlani
#afrobeats #afropop #latinmusic #bhangra #sufimusic #classicalmusic #nationalservice
The Margaret Hooligans – The StoneHengers
Single | 21/05/2024 | Piety Street Publishing
3:12 | Digital
Alternative Rock / Garage Rock
Bala Cynwyd, PA, USA
From the upcoming album ThunderHole Rock’n’Roll
Previous ex ante songs off The Margaret Hooligans‚ upcoming fourth longplayer have been very serious in content. The new song The StoneHengers appears a lot more jolly and positive instead, and it reminds of their song Hey Love from previous album Saturday Night in Bartertown. But is there a dark message hidden between the stelae of this upbeat, catchy Garage Rock anthem?
elkks – dawn heart dawn
Album | 01/03/2024 | La Double Vie
38:57 | 13 tracks | Vinyl/Digital
Slowcore / Blackgaze
Hamburg, Germany
If you were looking for the soundtrack for sitting in the woods silently with a heavy or broken heart while pondering about wildfires or love, you have just found it. The thirteen tracks on dawn heart dawn take the listeners into a deep world of dreams that were born between the trees. Combining Electronica, Blackgaze, Post Punk, Folk and other genres, elkks successfully spites genre purists, and creates a unique musical spere beneath consciousness.
7/10 Mangoes
Franck Biyong – Moonwatching 2
Album | 15/12/2023 | Afrolectric Music / Akhetaton Records
25:19 | 7 tracks | Digital
Progressive Rock / Afrolectric
Yaoundé, Cameroon
Award-winning musician Franck Biyong, the spear head of the Afrolectric sound, and the great ambassador of African Rock music enchants the listeners with twenty-five minutes of timeless sounds. Moonwatching 2 is a mind-expanding journey through time and space, a sonic reverie full of colour and beautiful surprises. Franck Biyong and his band present handcrafted, high quality sounds ready to move hearts and minds across the world.
9/10 Mangoes
VonRaphael L. Genovese
Mai 21, 2024 #2023, #2024, #Afrolectric, #Afrolectric Music, #Akhetaton Records, #Alternative Rock, #Bala Cynwyd, #Blackgaze, #Cameroon, #elkks, #Franck Biyong, #Garage Rock, #Germany, #Hamburg, #La Double Vie, #MusoSoup, #Pennsylvania, #Piety Street Publishing, #Progressive Rock, #Slowcore, #The Margaret Hooligans, #USA, #Yaoundé
I've been playing a lot of Colombian music lately. La Perla played live in WRIR's Studio C on May 4 before their performance at Get Tight Lounge; when they were here I spun another 40 minutes of music by other current Bogotá bands. Then Meridian Brothers, also from Bogotá, played Get Tight on May 13 and you heard their music on Global A Go-Go as well.
But the Colombian musical scene extends way beyond Bogotá. This week on Global A Go-Go you'll hear four more current Colombian bands from across that big country, including Rancho Aparte from Cali who will be headlining the Richmond Folk Festival this fall.
Also this week (Sunday May 19, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): The unique Ethio-jazz of Qwanqwa; the latest from Dutch-Indonesian hipsters Nusantara Beat; probably the two best American Congolese bands right now: Occidental Brothers Dance Band and Loboko; a great new juju single from Franck Biyong; and burger highlife, the sound of the Ghanaian diaspora.
Podcast: radio4all.net/program/117955
All the podcasts: radio4all.net/series/Global%20A%20Go-Go
Artist | Country | Song | Recording | Label | Year
Oliver Lake | USA | Separation | Matador Of 1st & 1st | Passin' Thru | 1997
Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros | England UK | Global A Go-Go | Global A Go-Go | Hellcat | 2001
Qwanqwa | Ethiopia-USA | Indet Nesh | Live | self-released | 2024
Noori & His Dorpa Band | Sudan | Qwal | Beja Power! Electric Soul & Brass From Sudan's Red Sea Coast | Ostinato | 2022
Nusantara Beat | Netherlands-Indonesia | Mang Becak | Mang Becak - Single | Bongo Joe / Lamunai | 2024
Yol Aularong | Cambodia | Yuvajon Kouge Jet | Cambodian Psych-Out | Defective | 2007-197x
Leenalchi | South Korea | Tiger Is Coming | Sugungga | Zanpar | 2020
Khun Narin | Thailand | Lai Sing | Khun Narin's Electric Phin Band | Innovative Leisure | 2014
Jacobo Vélez Y La Mambanegra | Colombia | Santa Noche | Santa Noche - Single | Tambora | 2024
Systema Solar | Colombia | Ponte Bonito | Ponte Bonito - Single | self-released | 2024
Papayebrass | Colombia | Verano En Santoto | Verano En Santoto - Single | Tambora | 2024
Rancho Aparte | Colombia | Bundemente | Re-Evolución | self-released | 2023
Orchestre Afro-Negro | RD Congo-Belgium | À La Mode | Les Belgicains: Na Tango Ya Covadia 1964-70 | Covadia | 2024-196x
Occidental Brothers Dance Band International | USA-RD Congo-Zambia | Mokili | Likambo Te | self-released | 2024
Loboko | RD Congo-USA | Ekenge | Kanyunyi - Single | Names You Can Trust | 2023
Sir Shina Peters & His International Stars | Nigeria | Yabis | Sewele | S.P. | 1986
The Lijadu Sisters | Nigeria | Bayi L'ense | Mother Africa | Afrodisia | 1977
Franck Biyong | Cameroon-RD Congo-France | Lipanda (feat. Mary May) | Lipanda - Single | Tangential Music | 2024
The Godfathers | Ghana-Sierra Leone | Ebe Yi Yie Ni | Ghana Special 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In The Diaspora, 1980-93 | Soundway | 2024-1980
A.B. Crentsil's Ahenfo Band with A.P.M.S. | Ghana-Canada | Ma Mendwen Me Ho | Toronto By Night | Wazuri | 1985
Jewel Ackah | Ghana | Eko Awar A Bisa | Electric Hi-Life | Asona | 1986
Basic Soul Show hosted by Simon Harrison + Reviews by Reg Dancy
TRACKLISTING
Dina Ögon – Jag Vill Ha Allt [Playground Music]
Bruno Berle – Te Amar Eterno [Far Out Reecordings]
Baiana – Saudade Samba [Baiana Records]
Amanda Whiting – No Turning Back [First Word Records]
Finn Rees – Looking Up [Mr Bongo]
Potatohead People feat. Shafiq Husayn & Ivan Ave – Angelwings [Bastard Jazz Recordings]
Guru feat. Bahamadia – Respect The Architect [Chrysalis]
Clyde Beats – Unconditional [Atjazz Record Company]
Forss – Funk For Nerds [Sonar Kollektiv]
Zero T – Jazz Type Thing [V Recordings]
Lay-Far – The Breath Of Ocean (Marco Lazovic Remix) [STVOL/In-Beat-Ween Music]
Myth – Bumble Bee [Computer Integrated Audio]
Skygaze – Wagwan (Divorce From New York Remix) [Flumo Recordings]
Bruk Rogers feat. Wipe The Needle – Jelly Head [Tru Thoughts Recordings]
Cyclonix – I Need (Dub) [Ascii Trax]
Murky Waters – Check Yourself [Main Squeeze]
musclecars – There’s Space For Us All [BBE Music]
Sonic Juncture – Can’t I Just Be? (Alton Miller Remix) [Dealt With Records]
Lea Lisa – Poem For The Lost Souls [Smallville Records]
All Is Well – Tranquility (Yuu Udagawa Remix) [Compost Records]
Emanative – Messimalism (Above Thought) [Home Planet Recordings]
Jorge Bezzera – Reverence [Atjazz Record Company]
Marijata – Otanhunu [Soundway Records]
Franck Biyong feat. Mary May – Lipanda [Tangential Music]
Global A Go-Go is a weekly two-hour world music radio program that I've been hosting since
2004. It's usually produced live in the studio and can be heard on both the FM radio band
and as a webstream simulcast. It is rebroadcast on other radio stations, and it's available
as a podcast as well.
LIVE RADIO
Global A Go-Go originates in the studios of WRIR Richmond Independent Radio 97.3 FM in Richmond,
Virginia, USA, from which it is broadcast live every Sunday from 1 to 3 PM Eastern time USA.
A live broadcast has a certain energy and realness that's hard to duplicate in any other format
-- that's what I'm aiming for each week.
WRIR World's NACC Top Ten
1 LOS BITCHOS | "La Bomba" [Single] | City Slang
2 LES BELGICAINS: NA TANGO YA COVADIA 1964-70 | various artists | Covadia
3 MDOU MOCTAR | Funeral For Justice | Matador
4 CEU | Novela | Urban Jungle
5 LINDIGO | Oye Maloya | Helico
6 YEMAYA LA BANDA | Asimetricas | Cultur'el
7 MEKLIT | Ethio Blue [EP] | self-released
8 BROOKLYN SOUNDS | Brooklyn Sounds! | Vampisoul
9 BLACK ROOTS | Roots | Nubian
10 LUCIANA DEMINGONGO | Une Plume Une Voix Une Guitare | Une Plume Une Voix Une Guitare
WRIR World's NACC Adds
1 LES BELGICAINS: NA TANGO YA COVADIA 1964-70 | various artists | Covadia
2 FRANCK BIYONG | "Lipanda (feat. Mary May)" [Single] | Tangential
3 BRUNA BLACK AND JOHN FINBURY | Va Revelacao | Green Flash
4 DUB CARAVAN | The Struggle (feat. Arab Drumz) [EP] | Dread Camel
5 IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE | Pull The Rope | Merge
6 L.A.B | L.A.B VI Deluxe | Easy Star/Loop
7 HOWIE LEE | At The Drolma Wesel-Ling Monastery | Mais Um
8 NORIO MAEDA AND ALL-STARS | Rock Communication Yagibushi | Wewantsounds
9 MIGHTY JOSHUA | Dreaducation | self-released
10 JOAO SELVA | Ao Vivo Na Opera | Underdog
New & Recommended at WRIR World
Adooni, Florence | "Uh-Ah Song" | Philophon
Amadou & Mariam | "Mogolu" | Because Music
Belgicains, Les: Na Tango Ya Covadia 1964-70 | (various artists) | Covadia
Bitchos, Los | "La Bomba" | City Slang
Biyong, Franck | "Lipanda" (feat. Mary May) | Tangential Music
Bongo Hop, The | Satingarona Pt. 1 | Underdog
Dynamq | "Khamsa Degiga" | River Nile Entertainment
Fakoly, Tiken Jah | Acoustic | Chapter Two
Galbi, Sami | "Rruina" | Bongo Joe
Halgan, Sahra | Hiddo Dhawr | Danaya
Jembaa Groove | Ye Ankasa | We Ourselves | Agogo
Joy, The | "You Complete Me" | Transgressive
Liraz | "Haarf" | Batov
London Afrobeat Collective | Esengo | Canopy
Mighty Joshua | Dreaducation | self-released
Newen Afrobeat | Grietas EP | Lichens Family
Otava Yo | Loud And Clear | ARC
Oumbadougou, Abdallah | Amghar: The Godfather Of Tuareg Music, Vol. 1 | Petaluma
ShazaLaKazoo | Chorba | Asphalt Tango
Systema Solar | "Ponte Bonito" | self-released
Thomas, Pat | "Gye Wani" | Soundway
The New & Recommended list as a Spotify playlist: spoti.fi/3KqxSkS