Sauti Sol: an African acoustic band that consists of 4 members; Bien-Aime Baraza, Willis Chimano, Delvin Mudigi and Polycarp Otieno who met in high school and originally started as an accapella group. The band is inspired by the choices, consequences and challenges that the Kenyan youth face and the need to revamp the music industry with a different unique sound that cuts across all age groups. Musically, they are inspired by Fadhili Williams, Daudi Kabaka and other established African artists such as Salif Keita and Lokua Kanza.

MySpace

“Blue uniform” YouTube Video

“Sunny days” YouTube Video
 
”Lazizi” YouTube Video  












Ashimba: a Tanzanian singer songwriter and guitarist based in Bagamoyo north of Dar es Salaam. Ashimba has a unique style that combines his roots in the East African traditional music, his mastering of different Tanzanian languages and a very playful voice. The lyrics are telling stories about life as a young man, it tells stories of Tanzanian tradition and of family or women loved or lost. Expressed through the unique and powerful voice of Ashimba and his guitar, the songs can’t help going straight to your heart, whether you understand the lyrics or not.

Official site

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two

YouTube Video Three






Oudaden: a group of Berber musicians from Morocco that feature traditional handheld drums.

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two









Afel Bocoum: musician from Mali, noted as a singer and guitarist. He began his career as a member of Ali Farka Toure's group ASCO, and Toure is often regarded as his mentor.

Official site

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two

Link to buy ‘Alkibar’ on Amazon
 









Bassekou Kouyate: has transformed the traditional music of the ngoni into the modern world of today. With his band Ngoni Ba he has created a new lineup as a quartet with a band's style of playing. The ngonis they play are still acoustic as in the old days, but Bassekou invented a bass ngoni even lower in pitch than the ngoni ba (low ngoni), and added extra strings to make their instruments harmonically more flexible. In the process Bassekou opened up the magic of an age-old music that he and his band have been playing for their entire lives, to people all over the world. Bassekou Kouyate has now become the ambassador of the ngoni. He has brought this ancient instrument back to where it used to be: to the center of Malian music.

Official site

 MySpace

 YouTube Video

Link to buy ‘Segu Blue’ on Amazon














Burkina Electric: the first electronica band from Burkina Faso, in the deep interior of West Africa. With its main base in the music scene of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso's capital, it is, at the same time, an international band, with members living in New York, U.S.A. and Düsseldorf, Germany, as well as in Ouaga. In Burkina Electric's music, the traditions and rhythms of Burkina Faso meet and mingle with contemporary electronic dance culture, making it a trailblazer in electronic world music.

Official site

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two

Link to buy 'Reem Tekre' on Amazon



Oswin Chin Behilia: belongs to that select group of singers/songwriters whose music combines memorable tunes with lyrics that reflect social and personal concerns. Mention his name to a fellow native of Curacao in the Netherlands Antilles and his face lights up with fond recognition. Both young and old consider his song Plegaria, for instance, as the Folk alternative to the national anthem, while Sun is universally regarded as one of the classic love songs in Papiamentu, the creole language spoken on the islands of Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela. Lots of his songs have been covered by a host of his native island's finest musicians.

Official site

YouTube Video One
 
Link to buy ‘Live’ on Amazon







Insingizi: trio from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe offers uplifting performances filled with harmonious a cappella singing, traditional chants, hand percussion, and superb choreography. Their songs possess a gentleness and honesty that stir the soul, conveying a wide range of challenges facing people today. Insingizi's music is filled with hope, optimism and faith, including such stirring compositions as Amasango, which means heavenly gates, a song that imparts the group's message of the ultimate answer to the world's seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Wherever they go, the purity of their vocal interplay is overwhelmingly beautiful, the lyric is ultimately hopeful, and the inherent tone of their message is true to their spiritual beliefs.

Official site

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two
 

Link to buy ‘Voices of Southern Africa Vol. 2’ on Amazon




Dobet Gnahore: singer, dancer and percussionist from the Ivory Coast, inherited the force of the “Bété“ tradition from her father, Boni Gnahoré. Dobet sings in a range of African languages including Bété, Fon, Baoule, Lingala, Malinke, Mina or Bambara. On stage, her voice, her charisma and her huge presence, the result of several years theatrical and choreographic work, has great audience appeal.

Official site

MySpace

YouTube Video One

YouTube Video Two

Link to buy ‘Na Afriki’ on Amazon





Deolinda:  a project from Lisbon inspired by fado and its traditional roots in order to create original songs based on portuguese traditional and popular music. It came to life in 2006, by the hands of 4 young musicians with diverse musical backgrounds and experiences (such as classical music, jazz, ethnical and traditional music), searching to recreate a sound rooted in popular music through the crossing of different musical languages and musical research serving as a base for the group's original compositions.

Official site

MySpace

”Clandestino” YouTube Video

”Fado Toninnho” YouTube Video

Link to buy ‘Cancao ao lado’