Malian kora player and composer Ballaké Sissoko and Gambian multi-instrumentalist and composer Sona Jobarteh recently gave life to an inspiring collaboration resulting in their new single and video ‘Djourou‘. “Ballaké sought out Sona for a collaboration with a specific wish to connect with the younger generation of kora...
Tag Archives: Gambia
![Album Review: Fofoulah – Daega Rek [Glitterbeat Records; November 2018]](http://www.rhythmpassport.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/fofoulahcover-335x335.jpg)
No matter what your final verdict on Daega Rek is, (Fofoulah’s new album released by Glitterbeat Records), what you can’t deny is its originality and unorthodoxy. The second work from the London-based band is more than able to bewilder, confuse and stupefy its listeners thanks to its unrestrained approach, but...
Two intriguing new realities enriching the London’s music scene will please the Rich Mix audience on the 24th of November. Hejira and Susso will stage an exciting double-bill bringing to Shoreditch their musical interpretation of East and West African tradition. After a journey to Ethiopia, South-East Londoners Hejira fell in...
Not your usual kora player and not even your usual griot is perhaps the best way to introduce Jally Kebba Susso in a few words. Yes, he comes from a griot family and plays the kora, but his artistry gives these characteristics a distinctive twist. If you attend his gig...
Sona Jobarteh is the picture of determination. That’s not just because of her consciousness, musicianship, poignant voice or effect produced by the bright-red dress she wore during her latest London gig at Rich Mix part of EDF London Jazz Festival; it’s something which is intrinsic to her figure. From ‘Jarabi’ to the...
Sona Jobarteh hails from one of the most renowned Griot families in Western Africa. A family with a long tradition of producing remarkable artists, minstrels and storytellers, little more than 30 years ago, the Jobarteh family gave life to Sona: the first “female Kora virtuoso to come from a prestigious...