The Gambia to Kenya - All Vinyl A to Z of Africa

Join me on a journey across Africa, from Algeria to Zimbabwe, one country, one record at a time.

Episode 5 is here for you to enjoy https://soasradio.org/music/episodes/ep-5-the-gambia-to-kenya-all-vinyl-a-to-z-of-africa

Take a trip with me to The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Kenya. This week we hear from the Globetrotting Ghanaian musician who earned the title The Divine Drummer; the leader of a pioneering dance company who was imprisoned in a Guinean concentration camp; and the Kenyan musician who wrote and recorded one of the most popular songs in Africa.

1 – Konte Family – Masaane Siise (Virgin)
2 – Guy Warren – Waltzing Drums (RCA Victor)
3 – Des Ballets Africains De Keita Fodeba – Minko-Sodia (Vogue Productions)
4 – Ramiro Naka – Tchon Tchoma (Island Records)
5 – Fadhili William And The Black Shadows – Malaika (Equator International)

This radio programme is part of the A World In London Radio Series, more information at http://djritu.squarespace.com/

Lockdown here in London has had its challenges and I've been blessed with a fairly carefree life for the past month or so. Although I have missed my nights sketching in the clubs and nightspots of the capital I've used my time to research my first ever radio programme. Every evening I'm been trying to track down vinyl, records and shellac from Africa, and nearly every day a new package is brought by the postman. I've now managed to find a record from each African country and brought these together in eleven 20 minute programmes on SOAS radio.