Featuring a plethora of guest artists including John Paul Jones and Devendra Barnhart, this February will see Malian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Rokia Traoré release her sixth album, Né So. Produced by John Parish of PJ Harvey and Tracy Chapman acclaim, accompanying this release is her 2016 tour, kicking off at the Roundhouse next month.

Rehearsed in Bamako, recorded in Brussels and Bristol, and starring musicians auditioned from across West Africa, Né So is both a return to fundamentals and a step forward from her previous album of rave reviews, Beautiful Africa. It draws deeply from the musical traditions of Mali, but also exhibits a dynamic rock edge. The album is filled with pain and joy, infused with challenges and hopes, and always nurtured with an uncompromising frame of mind.

Her title track shown below demonstrates this uncompromising ethos. It is a striking free verse that depicts in a few strophes the distress of uprooted peoples.

Having performed alongside the likes of Paul McCartney, Damon Albarn and the Kronos Quartet, Traoré is remarkable not just for the range of her powerful and emotional voice but also for her ability to reinvent. Her cultural mixing combined with her compelling onstage presence will undoubtedly deliver an explosive and engrossing performance.

Podcast: Out Of Africa #17

In this show, we travel through the sounds of fado, desert blues, afro-Cuban jazz, afro-Cuban, afrobeat, Arabic reggae, and reggae! We kick off the show with the melancholic voice of Mariza, from Portugal, in “Quem me Dera”, a song was written for her by the Angolan singer-songwriter Matias Damásio. We…

Artists: A-Wa , Alborosie , Ballaké Cissoko , Brand New Wayo , Charles Aznavour , Daymé Arocena , Fatoumata Diawara , Jacques Brel , Marcia Griffiths , Mariza , Matias Damásio , Monomono , Nahawa Doumbia , Neissatou , Nikkle Mai , Peter King , Rokia Traoré , Segun Robert , Sona Jobarteh , Yaaba Funk

Podcast: Rendez-Vous à Bobo – A Rendez-Vous with the Djeli N’goni (July 2020)

Rendez-vous with Lucas Keen for an appointment to meet the little boat shaped lute played across the West African Sahel since the time of Mansa Musa.   Hear the story of the djeli n’goni, get the job description for a griot, and learn where this iconic instrument which is the…

Artists: Baaba Maal , Bassekou Kouyate , Djenba Seck , Lucas Keen , Mansour Seck , Rokia Traoré

Event Review: Africa Express – The Circus @ The Big Top (London; Friday 29th March 2019)

 If you have attended any of the previous Africa Express shows, you know they never disappoint your thirst for music. For hours and hours, they stun you with a deluge of quality acts and unexpected collaborations, not only featuring the exceptional artistry of the musicians involved but also their welcoming…

Artists: Batida , Blur , Damon Albarn , Django Django , Dobet Gnahore , Ellie Rowsell , Georgia , Joan As Policewoman , Krar Collective , London Community Gospel Choir , Mounir Troudi , ONIPA , Rokia Traoré , The Turbans , Tony Allen