Afropop Worldwide
on NCPR

May 23, 2012 - We tune up our ears to some of the Africa's great drumming voices—fuji and juju in Nigeria, sabar in Senegal—and to the travels of the drum to the Americas—samba in Brazil, rumba in Cuba, salsa in Puerto Rico and more. This show takes us into the polyrhythmic, multiple voices of live performances and into the homes of some of the world's greatest percussionists.

May 13, 2012 - Every year in Mexico City, tens of thousands of music fans flock to Vive Latino, one of Latin America's biggest music festivals. Cutting edge artists from across the Americas and beyond perform on four massive stages, showcasing some of the most exciting new music being made anywhere today. For the first time, Afropop Worldwide makes a pilgrimage to the biggest city in the Western Hemisphere to bring listeners a taste of the festival. We experience local legends Cafe Tacvba as they perform to 60,000 hysterical fans singing along to every word, the refreshing alt-norteo of Juan Cirerol, soul-stirring tunes from the captivating Carla Morrison, and driving electro-cumbia from Sonido San Francisco, just to name a few. Plus, exclusive interviews with Venezuelan disco-punkers La Vida Boheme, psychedelic Chilean sensation Astro, and Hello Seahorse frontwoman Lo Blondo.

May 12, 2012 - From the ancient time of hunters to the rise of the 13th century Empire of Mali, from the coming of Islam to the era of French colonialism, from the celebration of Independence in 1960 to the rise of Malian music stars to the world stage—Mali is unique among all the nations of Africa. On the 50th anniversary of Malian independence, this program takes a step back to look at the sweep of its history. There are reasons why this landlocked region of West Africa has been the cradle for so many cultural movements, and why Mali has produced more successful world musicians than any country in Africa. With renowned Professor Cherif Keita as our guide, we trace the story from the griots of old to the stars of today: Salif Keita, Ali Farka Toure, Toumani Diabate, Habib Koite and more.

May 03, 2012 - We explore the current pop music of Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, two countries where elements of hip-hop and international pop music have grafted themselves onto local styles to create whole new genres-ones robust enough to not only take over the local youth culture but also spread beyond their borders. In Ghana, hip-life—a synthesis of hip-hop and highlife—dukes it out with gospel music on the airwaves. In Cote d'Ivoire, music has blossomed despite a stubborn political crisis. The idiosyncratic local music of social comment, zouglou, has morphed into coupe-dandeacute;calandeacute;, a dance-driven style that has supplanted Congolese soukous as the sound of the moment in Francophone Africa and its Diaspora.

Apr 27, 2012 - Afropop's 5-part, Hip Deep series on Egypt concludes with a look back at the songs that fueled the Tahrir Square uprising in 2011, and ahead at where music is headed in post-revolutionary Egypt. We meet Dylanesque Tahrir Square troubadour Ramy Essam, Egyptian pop legend Mohamed Mounir, silenced political singer Azza Balba who rediscovered her art in the midst of revolution, and Karim Rush of Egypt's leading hip hop group Arabian Knightz. We hear new work from emerging artists: Eskenderella, Dina el Wadidi, the Choir Project, and rapper Ashraf el Samman. Egyptian ethnomusicologist Mina Girgis provides up-to-date commmentary from Cairo, and predicts that—whatever happens in the political sphere—newly empowered rappers and inspirational sha'bi DJs will join forces to create the new pop music of Egypt.

Apr 18, 2012 - Time to shake it up to kuduro from Angola, soukous from Congo, Retro- chicha from Peru, techno brega from Brazil, retro-funk from Nigeria, and lots of genre bending sounds. Featured artist include Titica, Black Bazar, Bonga, Chicha Libre, Josandeacute; Conde, Amadou and Mariam, the Funkees.