‘A patchwork’: Doing it the French way

The French will be making it happen with groups from the Francophonie: Lokua Kanza, from DRC, Bibi Tanga & The Selenites from Paris and Boubacar Traoré from Mali.
The Alliance Francaise in Harare, The French Embassy and the French Institute have come up with what they call “a patchwork”, an assemblage of “rich and spirited conversations between jazz, soul, folk and hip-hop and African styles of music”.
The patchwork includes a mixture of African rhythms, the headliners Lokua Kanza, from DRC, Bibi Tanga & The Selenites from Paris and Boubacar Traoré from Mali.
Lokua Kanza and Bibi Tanga will both perform on the Telecel Main Stage on April 29 while Boubacar Traoré will go to the 7 Arts Theatre in Avondale the following day.
Lokua Kanza is back by popular demand: He thrilled HIFA audiences in 2006, and fans will without doubt be delighted to hear he’s returning!
The future of funk is being written right now by a pair of Parisian groove theorists, namely, Bibi Tanga and Professeur Inlassable. Singer, bassist and bandleader, Bibi Tanga, bridges the divide between the arty South Bank of the Seine and the gritty suburbs, where he grew up as an immigrant from the Central African Republic.
Bibi’s music is marked by slinky, sinuous basslines and a wicked falsetto that conjures up Prince and Curtis Mayfield, while producer Professeur Inlassable (The Tireless Professor) digs deep beneath the cobblestones of Paris to unearth the sound and spirit of another era.
The duo forges a stunningly original new sound, and creates a space where Afro-futurism meets steam punk, Fela Kuti jams with Sidney Bechet, and Marcel Duchamp gets down to Chic.
Boubacar Traore is one of those strong men who reflect the history of a country, the hopes and despair of a people.
He draws the material for a striking blues of sadness subsided, revealing a powerful voice and sweet guitar playing as if Kayes and Bamako were both on the soggy banks of the Mississippi.