Afropop Worldwide

Marseille is the oldest city in France, founded in 600 BC, and is today the third largest city in the country. Situated on the south coast along the Mediterranean Sea, this port city, like all port cities, has welcomed travelers for centuries from the world over, bringing with them their culture, food, and music. This cross-cultural mixing continues to this day, and the 3^rdannual Babel Music Expo, a conference and showcase for world music exemplified this history. Over three days (March 20-22), there were 30 showcases, with artists from 21 different countries, for over 11,000 attendants of mostly musicians and music industry professionals. And while we couldn't see all the showcases, we tried to focus on those within our Afropop Worldwide wheelhouse, but we ventured out for some other performances that we were attracted to, as well.

The global music journey began Thursday night with a stellar performance by two virtuoso artists bridging the north and south hemispheres – Senegalese Kora player Ablaye Cissoko and French accordionist Cyrille Brotto. The two instruments together become a transcendent dance that brought forth the artistry of both artists. And with the added benefit of Cissoko's textured vocals, it will be a performance we will remember for some time.

Our favorite performance of the conference this year was Brazilian singer/songwriter Bia Ferreira. Ferreira has become known for her outspoken support both on and off stage for women's issues, and specifically LGBTQ related women of color issues, as well as her voice and guitar playing. While when we initially caught her at WOMEX in 2022, we were impressed with her performance, her admitted desire to confront audiences and feel discomfort often succeeded a bit too much. But now in her early 30's – we discussed this with Ferreira in our forthcoming interview – she told us how she came to embrace the message that love is a more potent tool for change than anger. She's currently touring as a solo act and will be releasing a live album from these shows. Taking the stage with just her acoustic guitar was all she needed to capture and enrapture the audience at her showcase.

Moroccan Yousra Mansour and French Brice Bottin, who began the band Bab l'Bluz back in 2018, often plant a flag in interviews stating they don't want to be labeled as a “world music band,” but rather be seen as just a “rock band.” And in their performance at Babel Music, they absolutely backed that up. They rocked the house. But it's a fine line they dance around with Mansour kicking headbanging solos on her electrified double-necked guembri while traditionally ululating vocally, and the hard rock beat of the drums is also accompanied by the rhythmic clanging of Gnawa castanets. They are not the first group by any means to meld North African music and Western rock, but with Mansour fronting the group – which in itself is a “scandelous” thing for a Moroccan woman even today – on stage you see all the rock and roll queens whose shoulders she is standing on – from Suzi Quatro to Joan Jett to Chrissie Hynde. We'll be featuring an interview with them soon.

We totally grooved to ExpéKa, who bill themselves as kind of a supergroup of talent from Martinique and Guadeloupe. They began in 2018 as a trio and have since grown to a sextet. The core of this project is based around the Ka drum, which has its roots in the music that took place on the slave plantations of the islands. The group notes that: “ExpéKa is not fusion. It's a multiplication of genres, stemming from the same roots, which complement and reunite. In short, a family reunion. The ka drum is the foundation and starting point. Each rhythm is in contact with the most diverse products of the Black diaspora, ranging from jazz to rap. ExpéKa is a reminder that Caribbean music and its multitude of variations are in perpetual motion.” And that comes across on the stage, whereas in one moment you are listening to a '70s jazzy drum and flute, and then shifts to hip-hop funk.

In addition to the evening showcases, there were also daytime showcases sponsored by various groups. We were looking forward to the one sponsored by our friends at Mundial Montreal, featuring Congolese-Quebec singer Joyce n'Sana, whom we adored, and the multi-instrumental Brazilian-Quebec artist Lara Klaus, but scheduling issues kept us from going. There was also one focused on Palestinian musicians in exile, which again we were able to catch only a snippet of. However, the daytime showcase we were able to catch was sponsored by "Villes des Musiques du Monde," which is a yearly celebration amongst 20 cities in France to showcase and celebrate world music. Each year, they award Le Prix des Musiques d'ICI to support emerging artists. The two winning artists from 2024 performed and both were highlights for us this year.

Algerian-French singer/songwriter Nassim Dendane's Dendana project impressed us not only with his music – a mix of desert blues, rock and Gnawa – but his story, so we nabbed him for an interview we will be posting shortly. As a new generation of immigrant musicians, he came to France to study not just music, but the music business. So when he couldn't find places to perform, he started his own venue, Le Royal Est, in Paris, to showcase not just himself but also other North Africans. It has become a community meeting and support center for other emerging immigrant musicians in the city.

The other winning artist is the group Aítawa, features Lyon-based Colombian artist Luisa Cáseres. Cáseres taps into her coastal Afro-Colombian rhythms you might know via Quantic or The Bongo Hop. All together, the group beautifully fuses a mix of the traditional sounds like the chimira and bullerenque with Afrobeat and soukous to create a delicious and danceable sound. We look forward to hearing more of them in the future as they are currently working on their first full album release.

For the best of the rest, we enjoyed Jawa, a more traditional Syrian group based in Belgium whose mission has been to preserve and perform interpretations of traditional Sufi music which has been threatened by the war in their home country. And it's the third year in a row we've caught Kin'Gongolo Kiniata, the Congolese “master upcyclers,” who play self-made percussion and stringed instruments assembled from discarded plastic bottles, metal objects and household items. First at WOMEX in 2023, then in 2024 at Nuit's d'Afrique in Montreal, and now here in Marseille. And we can't say we've tired of seeing them.

We were also smitten by Sami Galbi. Galbi grew up in Switzerland, his parents a Moroccan father and a French-Swiss mother, thus listening to both Western and Arabic music. His first musical forays were mostly rock, yet with some Arabic influence. But after a winter residency in Morocco armed with various analog synth electronics, he found himself digging into his roots and came out of that with a new take on rai and chabbi. His showcase had audiences dancing from the first beat. As well, his stage presence was as electric as his music. He is definitely a discovery we look forward to seeing again in the future.

Stepping away from African-related music, we were quite taken by Estonian Mari Kalkun's reimagining of her country's folk music using both the traditional kannel (much like a zither) and electronics that come together in a dreamy audioscape.

And finally BITOI, whose music is kind of indescribable. There are three singers from both Denmark and Sweden, accompanied only by Cassius Lambe, an Ethiopian-Swedish bassist. The band's name is an acronym for Bass Is The Only Instrument. Lambe creates a background with his instrument he feeds through electronics, while the singers vocalize a sort of language they've created based on the birdsongs of Northern Europe. As we said, it's hard to explain, but is beautiful and emotional music one has to experience to truly understand.

In addition, the expo also featured many industry seminars on subjects ranging from new narratives in traditional music in the face of current political challenges to creating safer spaces at venues for women.

All in all we had a great time and look forward to returning next year.