Getting Down in the Guyanas

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Getting Down in the Guyanas

Prince Koloni Live at the Transamazoniennes Festival 2011

(photo by Marlon Bishop)

REPORT: The Transamazoniennes festival in French Guiana

by Marlon Bishop

" The people that do live in the Guyanas are a mix from all over the world. Hindustani, Javanese, Chinese, Hmong, Creole, European ex-pat, Jews – you name it, they have it. In Paramaribo, the Surinamese capital, Dutch-style wooden houses, Hindu shrines, and bumping nightclubs stand side-by-side. In the interior, there are Amerindians, Maroons, and Brazilian migrants who come to eek gold dust out of the forest. An insane variety of languages and creoles are used, and people switch back and forth between them effortlessly. One woman I met in Saint Laurent-du-Maroni spoke seven of them. No big deal." READ MORE.

LISTEN + DOWNLOAD: Maroni River Mashup: A Guyanas Mix

Download our exclusive, web-only mix featuring artists from Suriname and French Guiana. Mixed by international producer/DJ Geko Jones.

FEATURED ARTISTS

Prince Koloni

Hailing from a small village at the Maroni River Amazonian forest, on the river banks at the border between French Guiana and Suriname, Prince Koloni got his start at age 16 after forming a drumming group with his brothers and cousins called “Fondering” playing aléké. After living in Amsterdam for 7 years, Koloni returned to Suriname in 2004 to help found an event at the famous Guyanese festival the Festival les Transamazoniennes. In 2011, he released Jah is the Way on Transportation Records.

Chris Combette

Cayenne-born singer/songwriter Chris Combette started his musical career in Fort-de-France, Martinique. His music reflects his personality, which means in constant move. His productions cover all kind of sounds from the Creole and Caribic repertoire : biguine, mazurka, zouk, salsa, calypso, reggae or bossa nova.

Little Guerrier

Hailing from Suriname, Little Guerrier started writing at singing at a 16. He combines Rastafarian reggae with hip hop and dancehall while singing in Dutch, English, French, Bushi Tongo (cultural language from Surinam) and Patoi.

Viety Guys

The Viety Guys are one of the top “bigi pokoe” bands in French Guiana. Played on chorus-soaked guitars, keyboards, and drums, the result sounds something like West African dance-band music from the 1970s mixed with some Caribbean flavor.

Wanlov the Kubolor

Self-described as 'the last African Hippie-hopper...Skirt-wearing, barefooted, Ghanaian-Romanian human being,' Wanlov is a Ghanian-Romanian MC whose music incorporates various styles from hip-hop to reggae to various west African rhythms. He raps in both English, Wolof and pidgin and also is one half of electro-hip hop FOKN Bois with Ghanaian rapper M3NSA.

Nomadic Massive

The Montreal-based Nomadic Massive is a group of performers and skilled musicians that is “representing an open-minded Hip-Hop which finds its inspiration in the traditions of the past; combining live instrumentation, samples, and a wide array of vocal styles.” They are made up of a various background making for an energetic multilingual, multicultural, super-group.

Getting Down in the Guyanas

Aired January 25, 2012

We visit one of the world's last untamed natural and musical wildernesses: The Guyanas. Riding along bumpy jungle roads and in dug-out canoes, Afropop producer Marlon Bishop travels from Suriname to French Guiana for the Transamazoniennes Festival, located in the remote border town of Saint-Laurent-Du-Maroni. We enjoy the region's fascinating cultural stew, where French Creole, maroon, Amerindian, Hindu, Javanese, and Dutch elements all mingle together on the outer fringes of the Amazon and hear styles like kaseko, bigi pokoe, aleke, and kawina. We'll speak with local stars Prince Koloni, Little Guerrier and Chris Combete, as well as visiting acts such as self-proclaimed "African gypsy" Wanlov the Kubolor and polyglot rap crew Nomadic Massive.