Africa / Congolese Rumba / Cumbia / Folk / Soukouss

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024 | Final Evening With a Congolese and Colombian Flavour

by Jacob Langlois-Pelletier

Around 6pm on Sunday at the Festival international Nuits d’Afrique, it was the turn of Blaise LaBamba, a Congo-Kinshasa-born artist who has been based in Montreal since 1999, to take the big outdoor stage. From the outset, the 2022 Syli de Bronze winner’s intentions were clear: LaBamba would get the crowd dancing to infectious Congolese rumba, zouk and soukous.

On stage, the former member of General Defao’s Big Stars is accompanied by a host of musicians, dancers and backing singers. The Congolese singer’s various offerings are enhanced by guitar, drums, keyboards, synthesizers, percussion and numerous whistle blasts. The latter dictate the many swaying movements of the dancers on stage and people in the crowd.

The frenetic pace of the performance certainly charmed the impressive throng of festival-goers lining the TD – Radio-Canada stage. Clapping their hands on numerous occasions, the crowd showed their appreciation for the long instrumental flights of Blaise LaBamba and his band. It was hard to ask for a more festive offering to kick off this final evening of FINA 2024 activities.

Stephanie Osorio charms us with some cumbia

After having had a blast with Blaise LaBamba, fans on hand were treated to a gentler, more controlled offering from Stephanie Osorio, Colombian and Quebecer by adoption. Established in Canada in 2010, the singer-songwriter has been on the road for over a decade, and recently reaped the rewards of her efforts. In addition to being crowned “Female Artist of the Year” at the Latin Awards Canada in 2022 and 2023, Osorio has shone internationally thanks to her contribution to the theme song of the popular American series The White Lotus.

In March 2023, she released Fruta del Corazón, her first solo album at the confluence of cumbia, pop, folk and Afro-Latin. A large proportion of the tracks on this project were performed at her show.

Dressed in a long, colorful skirt, Osorio is confident on stage, maracas or guitar in hand. Like LaBamba, the singer is well surrounded; saxophone, bass, guitar, drums, various percussion instruments and flutes. A few minutes after her entrance, the Colombian compared her music to fruit. “There are a lot of different flavors and smells in what I do,” she explains.

Although she draws some of her inspiration from her Carthaginian roots, Osorio incorporates many contemporary elements into her music. Towards the end of her performance on the Loto-Québec stage, the singer offered a superb a cappella moment. The crowd fell silent in admiration, lulled to sleep by her hushed voice.

With no glitz or glamour, Stephanie Osorio took us to a place where it’s hotter than Montreal on this July evening.

Crédit photo: André Rival

Africa / Central African traditional music

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique – Les Aunties, from Ndjamena to Montreal

by Sandra Gasana

Nine women, quite ordinary, in the image of other Chadian women, mothers, all dressed in orange skirts and black tops, sitting in a circle, each with her microphone and calabash.

In fact, they always massage their calabashes before tapping them. And despite heavy rain from the very first minutes of the concert and for a good part of it, the audience remained on hand, with their umbrellas or raincoats, for those who had planned ahead.

Depending on the song, one of them starts singing, while the other eight respond in unison. Sometimes, they walk in circles, with one singing and the others providing backing vocals. At other times, one of them sings, another starts dancing around her, and the others stay behind. In short, we had several configurations on stage, but all of them captivated the audience’s attention, fascinated to see these ladies of a certain age on stage.

Right next to the stage, I could see the great Chadian star Afrotronix, who had come to encourage his compatriots. It was only at the end of the show that we learned that he was behind the group. “It’s a movement that’s just beginning. We grew up seeing our mothers, and it was these women who made us what we are today,” he says, mentioning in passing that his mother is in the audience.

Les Aunties often talk about women and their right to education in several tracks that evening, as well as domestic violence. “Montreal woman, how are you doing ?” asks one, then replacing Montreal, with Kinshasa, Cameroon and Ndjamena. At this point, we hear applause from the crowd, and it soon becomes clear that Montreal’s Chadian community is represented.

At a certain point in the show, they all wear a traditional Chadian dress, over their original skirts, and continue to sing together, seated or standing, with or without calabash, in a circle or in a row. During a song, the title of which I don’t know, the music is quieter and they line up as if going to a mosque for prayer, before taking off their traditional dress and returning to their initial attire. Sometimes, one of them takes center stage, and all the women around her encircle her, addressing her sympathetically and obviously singing for her.

At some point during the concert, each of them takes the floor and addresses the audience in their native language. This is where Afrotronix takes on the role of translator, translating the words into French.

No way!” she says to the applause of the crowd. It’s clear that these women are not afraid of words, and that they speak from experience in their desire to break the silence. From that moment on, it was madness on stage: we witnessed dance performances by several members of the Chadian community who came to perform traditional dance steps, in the center of the circle formed by Les Aunties.
The step they often performed consisted of moving shoulders and chest movements, rather like Ethiopia’s Eskesta. A percussionist also joined in, improvising on one of the tracks, while one of Les Aunties was at the turntables, headphones on and console in front of her. From time to time, Afrotronix came to adjust buttons on DJ Aunty’s console. In fact, the entire Chadian artistic community was on hand to contribute to the success of this original group on Saturday night. Moral of the story: there’s no age limit to following your dreams. If Les Aunties have done it, then anyone can.

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Africa / afro-soul / Hip Hop

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique – Fredy Massamba Was Blessed with Some Rain

by Sandra Gasana

Rain is often associated with a blessing in many African cultures, and certainly in other parts of the world. As the concert was about to end on Saturday evening, the rain may have kept some festival-goers away, but many stayed till the end of Fredy Massamba’s first-ever concert in Montreal.

For the occasion, he was accompanied by the one he calls “master” Donald Dogbo on drums, Willie Bareto on keyboards, Christian Obam on bass, Charles William Mpondo on guitar, Hendry Massamba on backing vocals and percussion, and Floric Kim on backing vocals. The two backing singers had arrived three days ago from Brazzaville for the occasion. And what a great idea it was to include them in this show!

From the very first track, he plunges us into his world, with the drum, or Ngoma, at its center, a track featured on his most recent album Trancestral. “I have three albums to my credit: Ethnophony, Makasi and Trancestral,” he reminds the crowd. “I invite you to take a journey together between Brussels, Brazzaville, Kinshasa, Douala, Ndjamena and here in Montreal,” he adds.

He then takes a step back in time with Zonza, featured on his debut album Ethnophony , which is much more groovy and lends itself well to a festival performance.

You can tell that Fredy is particularly fond of the African continent. He talks about it in several songs, lists many of them and even wears a white shirt with maps of Africa on it. The choice of the two backing singers was a wise one, as they contribute enormously to the success of the band. They do a remarkable job on stage, and you can feel their complicity with Fredy, who seemed to appreciate their presence.

He mentions the women of Kivu, of Goma in the track Bidilu Bio, and denounces “this war that makes no sense”. The song starts gently, highlighting the artist’s soulful voice, and suddenly moves into reggae, making you want to move despite the sensitive subject matter. Increasingly at ease on stage, he in turn gives the backing singers (very well dressed) space to shine, having opportunities to take turns singing verses, all the while involving the audience.

“I was told I had to sing a love song. Where I come from, in Congo, we have Koffi Olomidé, Fally Ipupa, Lokua Kanza. There’s no shortage of love songs,” he tells a smiling audience, before performing Makwela.
We discover his rapping talents on the track Nkembo, but the most touching moment is when he suggests inviting Papa Wemba (Paix à son âme) on stage.

He “goes and looks for him” backstage and gives us the impression that he’s with the great artist who left us a few years ago. His imitation is remarkable, and moves festival-goers who knew the great Congolese star. Fredy tells us that he always wanted to do a featuring with Papa Wemba, but never got the chance. Hence the symbolic gesture.

And it was after this emotional moment that the rain came down on the Radio-Canada stage (Coincidence? I don’t think so). First the backing singers and Fredy entered together on the song Zua Idée, before being followed by all the musicians. “Even in the rain you’re here!” he says gratefully. You can see the professionalism of the musicians when a situation like this happens. The band carried on as if nothing had happened, Fredy singing with the same ardor. The rain didn’t discourage the audience; on the contrary, they were impatiently waiting for it to stop so they could get back to dancing. And that’s exactly what they do for the last song of the show, Ntoto, during which he takes out his famous bottle on which he has fun blowing, and which we had mentioned in our interview a few days earlier (PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique | Fredy Massamba, a Congolese (from Montreal) on 3 Continents – PAN M 360). And so ends Fredy Massamba’s very first show, blessed by a summer rain shower.

“Thanks to Nuits d’Afrique, my dad Touré, my friends, my family, RFI, Hangaa Music, Vanessa Kanga, and you, watching me in the rain.”

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Salsa

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024 | Andy Rubal’s fiery salsa

by Frédéric Cardin

Andy Rubal has been on the professional music scene for barely 10 years, but has already titillated the ears of salsa lovers. This 2013 graduate of Havana’s Instituto Superior de Arte garnered a nomination for his debut album at the Cuba Disco Awards in 2017, in the Best Salsa Album category. He moved to Montreal shortly afterwards and immediately became part of the Quebec music ecosystem, performing a duet with Florence K. Rubal’s salsa heard yesterday at Club Balattou is classic, even predictable, but boy does it light up the stage and the audience. Rubal (Rrrrrrrrubal!) masters the energy and direction of his artistic-musical scenario with remarkable assurance. And it’s easy to see why he’s so quickly made friends in the Montreal artistic community : he’s brimming with charisma, but also sincerity. He recently performed in Nights of Havana at the Montreal Casino. There’s little doubt that the whole of Quebec and Canada will soon recognize him in the street. Excellent playing from the musicians in his ensemble, even in a reduced format compared to his usual offering. Aye aye aye!

Africa / afro-rock

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024| Jimmy Belah Trio: beautiful afro-folk, sometimes lacking panache

by Frédéric Cardin

Jimmy Belah is the leader of BIM (Bénin International Musical), a spectacular blend of Beninese traditions, pop, rock and hip hop, to be heard on July 19 on the Parterre stage in the Quartier des spectacles. Don’t miss it! But that’s not why I’m telling you about Jimmy here. This excellent multi-instrumentalist (guitar, drums, harmonica) and very good singer is also pursuing a career in a streamlined formation, the Jimmy Belah Trio. It was this avatar that we heard last night at Balattou Club. With his simple three-guitar proposal (Belah sometimes switches to drums, or adds a harmonica), the artist offers a seductive Afro-folk, generally soft and airy. Let’s say in a ratio of two-thirds of the performance divided into two sets. For perhaps a quarter, he lights the fuse a little with blues- and funk-tinged afro-rock, then for a few numbers sprinkled here and there, he sets the fire with heavy, well-launched rock. One piece, for my money, stood out from the rest: a generous expression of traditional music, vocals and percussion that’s it, which transported the audience into an authentic village celebration. We were spellbound. I would have taken more. There’s nothing to say about the musical quality: Belah’s voice is beautiful, well-balanced and pleasant. He plays acoustic guitar well, and drums even better. Yaovi Atcho on electric guitar and Babatoundé Boni Obinti on bass: convincing. That said, I would note a downside in terms of stage dynamics. The presentation often lacked conviction, as if he didn’t really want to be there. Jimmy’s relationship with the audience was bland and withdrawn. Several transitions seemed approximate and uncoordinated. At first, I thought I was attending the sound check. Too bad, because this is good, beautiful music. I dare to presume that BIM will have a completely different attitude on Friday.

latino / Latino / Salsa

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024 – Athenea, A Woman of Many Roots

by Sandra Gasana

“I was born in Cuba, but I’m actually a quarter Ethiopian, a quarter Haitian, a quarter Chilean and a quarter Spanish,” she tells us in the middle of her show. Indeed, the Lady in Red from head to toe (I’m not exaggerating, even her hair was red) charmed us during her outdoor performance at the Festival Nuits d’Afrique.

Arriving with an array of musicians on stage, including her husband Ricardo on keyboards, the band’s musical director, and an excellent pianist, she blew us away from the moment she took to the stage. She is accompanied by a percussionist, a drummer, a saxophonist, two trumpeters and a guitarist. She decided to open with a cover of Gloria Estefan’s Mi Tierra, but followed this up with one of her own compositions. And it’s here that we discover her talents as a percussionist and dancer, as well as playing the maracas.

“The next one is a composition of mine, Amarga Gloria, and it’s about the contradiction that exists with immigration. We think all our problems will be solved, but we’re going to run into other problems here.”

She alternates between salsa and cumbia, and sometimes changes rhythm in the same song, which adds richness and depth to the track. She has a great stage presence, taking up space and revealing herself completely, interacting with her audience. And there’s no denying her talent for staging dramatic finales! But hey, you had to play the game!

She surprised us with her cover of Papaoutai, which she interpreted very well and allowed us to discover that she sings in French. My favorite was her Spanish rendition of the Jacksons’ Blame It On The Boogie, which I really enjoyed. She finished with a few classics from the salsa repertoire, before getting us all up and dancing, and allowing each of her musicians to do their solo.

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Africa / Reggae / West African traditional music

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024 – Omar Mbaye: Take-off for Dakar!

by Sandra Gasana

“You’re ready to take off for Dakar!!!” These are the opening words of Omar Mbaye, who arrives on stage wearing white pants and a patterned African shirt. With his guitar, he is accompanied by two backing singers, including one called Amina, a keyboardist, a drummer, a bassist and a percussionist who acts as host at times. No sooner had he taken to the stage than he asked us to sing along.

The Loto Québec stage wasn’t very busy at the start of the show by the Senegalese newcomer to Montreal, but that wasn’t the case at the end. Although a little shy at the start of the concert, festival-goers loosened up as the show went on.

“This song is about protecting and educating children. I’m an ambassador for this cause,” he announces at the outset.

He puts his guitar aside for his second track, which he dedicates to all the mothers of the world. The song is gentle, and you can already hear the beginnings of a light Mbalax. He takes the opportunity to get us dancing, asking us to follow his steps.

It’s on the third track that he reveals his penchant for reggae and dancehall, which is sure to get the audience moving. The percussionist manages to set the mood, and uses a stick to tap his djembe, accentuating the sound and giving it a Senegalese feel.

The weather was perfect for the second day of the Nuits d’Afrique outdoor festival, and a few Senegalese could be seen cheering on their compatriot. A number of benches and chairs were available for some of the older festival-goers who wanted to enjoy the show without having to stand the whole time.

My favorite track is the one he sings with Amina, the backing singer, who sings her parts in English. Perhaps a translation of the lyrics by Omar Mbaye, who sings in Wolof? In any case, he chooses to end the show with a return to Mbalax, the musical style we talked about at length with Def Mama Def during my interview with them. By the end of the show, we had landed in Dakar, thanks to Omar Mbaye.

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Africa / Afrobeat / Haitian Vodou / Voodoo

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique – Afrovibes Opens the Ball

by Michel Labrecque

On this Tuesday afternoon, very hot but cloudy, the public space of the Nuits d’Afrique Festival was still in the making. The African village was finishing filling its displays, a Brazilian woman was giving dance lessons to a very small, but very attentive, audience.

On the Esplanade Tranquille, around a hundred people were seated, in the ambient humidity. It’s not easy to be the first group to launch the free music programming of the Festival Nuits d’Afrique.

This thankless task was that of Afrovibes, the voodoo-afrobeat ensemble from Montreal, led by percussionist Emmanuel Delly. Eight musicians, one singer, in front of a largely deserted audience, at the start. Ungrateful, I told you.

But it started to groove very quickly; the group is tightly woven. A trio of percussionists, facing a battery of three guitars, a keyboardist and a flawless bassist. And the singer who wraps it all up in a sensitive way. Everything was pretty tight.

I didn’t expect anything from this group. It was a cover assignment, in other words PANM360 asked me to go. I was pleasantly surprised. Not that Afrovibes is reinventing music, but he delivers a solid and super danceable performance. The three guitarists, one black, one white and one white, are hyper complementary between the solos and the riffs. The mix between Haitian and African influences is richly integrated, with a touch of America.

I enjoyed listening.

Little by little, people came to dance. An audience of all ages and colors, fascinating for a journalist to observe.

Afrovibes would have deserved a better niche. But someone has to start the festivities. The group will tour a lot in Quebec this summer. To monitor.

In closing, I ask a quick question: why is this type of group, from Quebec, so rarely present in the variety shows on our TV?

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Electronic / Électronique

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique – Pahua : A Latina Tornado

by Michel Labrecque

Pahua, real name Paulina Sotomayor, is a Mexican DJ, producer and songwriter. She plays folktronica, this new genre that mixes traditional sounds and electronic music.

Her concert began late, which made me miss a large part of the recital by the Brazilian Luis Salgado, at Balattou, which was otherwise very good, in a very different register.

As soon as she arrives on stage, Pahua envelops the audience with her disarming smile, her enthusiasm to be among us. She is surrounded by computers, but also by percussion and two musicians, an electric guitarist and a percussionist, both wearing enormous white glasses.

Palhua composes, sings and is also a percussionist. Which gives a more percussive version in concert than that of his first album, Habita, released at the end of 2023. Groove quickly took hold and a majority of the audience started dancing. A mixture of cumbia and other Latin American rhythms stirred up Le Ministère.

The electronic arrangements, mixed with traditional recorded instruments, notably accordion, flutes and trumpet, add musical material to the rhythm. There are also more meditative, more folk moments.

Paulina Sotomayor also knows how to sing and clearly enjoys it. In addition, behind the stage, a video constantly shows images of both the urbanity and the nature of Mexico and Latin America.

Because, if Pahua is Mexican and proud of it, we sense in her a desire to embrace all Latin American cultures. She will also, in a future project, be interested in Brazilian baile-funk, she told us in an interview.

On her album Habita, she multiplied collaborations with musicians from across the continent, from Costa Rica to Chile. It is part of a larger ecosystem of folktronica, which would benefit from being better known here.

Pahua is undoubtedly a Mexican artist to follow. And Le Ministère public seemed to enjoy it to the fullest.

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Afro Funk / Afro Latin / Dancehall / musique du monde / Reggae

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024: Rumba de Bodas, Italian coffee roasting

by Alain Brunet

From Italy, Bologna to be precise, Rumba de Bodas illustrates the groove culture of Europe’s thirtysomethings.

It’s no longer exclusively a question of funk, soul or R&B adapted to the flavors of the month, but of a more global integration, with Afrobeat, highlife, reggae, dancehall, ska, Afro-Latin, reggaeton and even a few housy flirts on the menu… Italian-style, needless to say.

We’re talking about this Italian group invited to Balattou on Sunday. Rumba de Bodas joyfully proclaimed their inclination for “exuberance and freedom” and the “cabaret style that has endured on the roads of Europe since 2008”.

And here they are for the first time at Nuits d’Afrique in MTL. A fine visit, to be sure.

Competent instrumentalists on keyboards, guitar, bass, drums, saxophone and trumpet, a cohesive and motivated band, all headed by Rachel, an explosive singer, inhabited by groove.

Rumba de Bodas certainly encourages movement, at least nodding and shaking the shoulders, but it also suggests active listening. It’s fair to say that the quality of the arrangements and the on-stage performance attract our attention for all the right reasons. These artists have their own style, and it’s sure to catch on! A must-have for your hard drive.

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Africa / Kora

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 202 | All United by The Kora

by Michel Labrecque

The kora is one of the most fantastic African inventions. This 21-string harp, made of calabash (a large, very hard squash) and cowhide, invented at the end of the 17th century, allowed West African griots to create complex music with very rich harmonic possibilities.

My first auditory contact with this instrument occurred in the summer of 1979 (that doesn’t make me any younger…) in a post-hippie bar in Olympia, in the United States, during a community radio meeting. The Mandingo Griot Society record was playing and everyone at our table stopped talking; some started dancing. “What is this instrument, it’s so beautiful,” someone cried. We had to do our research later. There was no internet or cell phones.

From the mid-1980s, the African wave swept across the West, bringing us multiple koras in its wake.

The Night of the Kora has become a staple of the Nuits d’Afrique festival. To embody it in 2024, who better than Prince Diabaté, nicknamed the “Jimi Hendrix of the kora”. Originally from Guinea Conakry, from a lineage of griots, these traditional Mandingo singing journalists, Prince Diabaté is an innovator of the kora, having sometimes merged with modernity, the WahWah pedal, rap and symphonic music. The prince of alternative Kara.

However, at Gésu, this July 14, Prince Diabaté presented himself in a more intimate format, solo, with his all-red kora, with his name engraved on it. Is it for lack of resources or for concern for authenticity? Regardless, the result delighted the rather large audience.

Prince Diabaté completely merges with his instrument. He manages to extract unknown, unpublished notes, sometimes in cascades, sometimes gently. He also sings in a pleasant voice, or declaims words of traditional songs or compositions. He also sometimes hits the body of his instrument with force, to create rhythmic surprises.

For me, there is something strangely timeless about this performance. I can not explain it. This sound, based on centuries-old traditions, is surprisingly current.

Opening act, Malian-turned-Montrealer Diely Mori Tounkara. “We’re going to have fun tonight,” he said from the outset. Diely is less flamboyant than Prince Diabaté, but his more meditative playing, using a lot of reverb, is not without interest, quite the contrary. This distinguished artist of Montreal diversity gave us an excellent time. To cap off the evening, the two musicians played together, alternating improvising one after the other.

The audience, predominantly white but with a significant African component, was won over. There were no more races, languages, differences. Everyone was united by the kora.

Photo Credit: Peter Graham

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Dancehall / Reggae

PAN M 360 at Nuits d’Afrique 2024 | Queen Omega, From the Top of Her Throne

by Sandra Gasana

Willy B Rose was the host for the long-awaited show by the Queen of Reggae, here to accompany Entourloop, with whom she’s been collaborating for several years now. Much to my surprise, we kicked off with Queen Omega, the majority of the audience having come to see the French group who has many fans in Montreal.

The Trinidadian reggae icon was accompanied for the occasion by The Royal Souls, made up of Ons Barnat on keyboards, Thomas Broussard on guitar, Thierry “Titi” Lechauve on bass and David Dub Akom on drums.

First, the musicians set the stage for Royalty, whose voice can already be heard in the distance. And what better way to kick things off than with Fittest, from her most recent album Freedom Legacy, one of her signature tracks. With her long orange dress and legendary signature turban, she takes to the stage like a queen. She segues seamlessly into Make a Sacrifice, during which there was a minor technical hitch with the microphone, followed by Judgement, with audience participation on the chorus. She jumps around the stage, does military steps at times, in short, this Queen is in good physical shape.

“It’s good to be here in Montreal,” she says, not speaking the language of Molière despite her many stays in France. On Dirty Minds, she talks about corruption, which she wants to eradicate, before continuing with Bite the Dust.
“I feel your energy, thank you very much. It’s time for renewal,” she announces.
She does a magnificent cover of Amazing Grace, which she has renamed Jahmazing Grace, adding her own little touch, mixing reggae and dancehall. At times, we felt like we were in a church in the USA. She jumped in the air, danced with the guitarist, sometimes in a trance, singing Glory and ending with a Hallelujah.

She takes a leap back in time when she sings Ganja Baby, from her 2004 album Away from Babylon. “Kudos to the Canadian government for legalizing ganja here. Weed isn’t a drug, it’s a plant, but you shouldn’t abuse it,” she reminds the audience, who seem to appreciate her lyrics.
She’s completely on fire during the track Elevate, but my favorite moment of the evening is undoubtedly when she shares a new sound like Head Above the Water, with its subsequent message of encouragement. “Even when things seem insurmountable, tell yourself it will pass! Don’t give up!” she said to appreciative applause.

“Do you remember I Can’t Breathe? Do you remember Black Lives Matter?” she asks the crowd before playing Elimination. She does a few dance steps, even does the robot at one point, in addition to dancing and jumping around the stage. One thing’s for sure, this queen has an undeniable stage presence and is tireless.
She couldn’t leave without paying tribute to women, which she does in Black Woman. “Encourage women, love them, worship them!” she declares. And addressing women directly: “Women, keep your crown on your head and keep your head up! I love you.”

She saved the best for last, including the global hit that made her world-famous, the track No Love, followed by Local, on which she claims to be an international singer and ambassador of Reggae. This gave the crowd a chance to let off steam and get ready for L’Entourloop.

I was left wanting more. An hour’s performance wasn’t enough for the spectators who came to see Queen Omega. Let’s hope she comes back for a full show very soon.

I had time to see a few minutes of Entourloop before leaving Mtelus. I didn’t know the band or the concept at all, but what I understood was that they’re a DJ duo of a certain age, who mix reggae sounds as well as dancehall, dub, ragga, downtempo and hip-hop, accompanied by a trumpet player and two MCs who liven up the evening by singing and rapping mainly in English. The room was mainly made up of French people, and on the screen behind them were animations of all kinds. When I left, people were having a blast.

Photo credit: Nuits d’Afrique

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