Jotna Nak Anonyma Listen Meune Gueune Nice Anonyma Listen

Anonyma
(Senegal)

Senegalese hip hop is a major artistic hotbed. The band Anomyma comprises three MCs who met each other at the end of the nineties. After releasing a clutch of singles, Loudness, Guan Abass and Omofenix brought out their first album, Sunrise, last May.

Mi amini Lameck Ditto Listen Wapo Lameck Ditto Listen

Lameck Ditto
(Tanzania)

Lameck Ditto, aka Lameck Kalengezi, is a 25-year-old Tanzanian artist and one of the voices of bongo flava, the country’s brand of hip hop. He first made a name for himself performing the duet Darubini Kali with Afande Sele. He has since produced several hits that have done well in the East African charts.

Kigala Namib Elemotho Listen Didimala Elemotho Listen

Elemotho
(Namibia)

Elemotho G.R Mosimane is a Namibian musician hailing from the Kalahari Desert. The author, composer and musician, who describes himself as a “musical activist”, entitled his first album The system is a joke. He mixes sounds from his homeland with the folk accents of Anglo Saxon music, singing in Setswana, English, and other Namibian languages. His work with the Franco-Namibian cultural centre led to the recording of a second album, Human released in 2009.

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GT the Guitarman
(Nigeria)

Twenty-eight-year-old GT the Guitarman comes from Lagos, Nigeria. He is a self-taught guitar player, yet his trademark sound is his voice. His first album, The Truth, attracted a following. The enterprising artist went on to set up his own label, Ember Entertainment, so that he could produce his new album.

Trouble Denis Larose Listen Differens Denis Larose Listen

Denis Larose
(Mauritius)

Yet another precocious artist! Denis Larose, who comes from the second largest town on Mauritius, Curepipe, started playing guitar at the age of 14. A fan of the American r'n'b group, Boyz II Men, the artist, who writes, composes, plays, arranges and produces music, rapidly moved his vocal register in the same direction. Following his first solo album in 2007, Princess Ebony, Denis Larose’s new collection is entitled Acap, (short for “a cappella”).

Mustapha Nasser Listen Ya Salam Nasser Listen

Nasser
(Mauritania)

Nasrdine ould Salem, or Nasser, is a young, 23-year-old hailing from Nouakchott, Mauritania, who writes, composes and plays music. He started playing music young, giving his first concert at 14, and in 1999 joined the group Walfadjri before moving to Senegal for personal and professional reasons. In 2009, he released his first album, Ailleurs, in which Mauritanian sounds converge with Francophone influences.

Ma différence Maryse Ngalula Listen Massamo Maryse Ngalula Listen

Maryse Ngalula
(DRC)

Maryse Ngalula is a young woman from Kinshasa, DRC. She started writing lyrics and playing the guitar as a teenager, moving naturally towards a form of African blues. From 2002 to 2009, she lived in South Africa to get a better impression of other musical worlds. In 2011, she was in France when she won the Visas pour la Création programme set up by the Institut Français. She spent her time as an artist in residency in Paris preparing an album.

Faut savoir Spyrow Faut savoir Listen Yeklo yehoun Spyrow Yeklo yehoun Listen

Spyrow
(Côte d'Ivoire)

Spyrow, who was born in Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire, took an early interest in music singing in his local church choir. In 2001, he produced his first demo, and the next year joined the reggae band Kingston Gang Star. Spyrow then embarked on a solo career in 2007. Following his first album in 2008, Jahmo Jahmo ("thank God"), which he put together in Abidjan and Dakar, the following year the reggae man brought out a maxi single, Blessed, with the group he set up, Jahmo Band.

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Takeifa
(Senegal)

Meet the Keïta family! The four brothers and one sister have been living their musical adventure since 1992, but things really got going in 2006, when they decided to move to Dakar from their hometown Kaolack, central Senegal. Their first album under the name Takeifa, Diaspora, came out in 2008. With their crossover style, they put forward values like respect for others and nature, which also feature on their latest EP Get free.

Akatoum Trio Teriba Listen Nonvi Trio Teriba Listen

Trio Teriba
(Benin) 
 
Trio Tériba (Yoruba for "humility") is a female trio from Benin made up of Zékiath, Tatiana and Carine. The three young women were discovered on the television show Benin-Cadence in 2002. With its mix of traditional and more modern sounds, their collection puts the emphasis on a cappella and polyphonies.