Nahawa Doumbia - 2020.Feb.04 KIT Dusseldorf

Nahawa Doumbia live in 2019

Early this year, before the virus hit our lives, there was live music to be enjoyed. One of those highlights I could catch from the German COSMO radio station [former FunkHaus Europa], Nahawa Doumbia at KIT in Dusseldorf.

Biography

Nahawa Doumbia was born in 1960 in Mafélé (Mali), a little village located near the border between Mali and Ivory Coast. A few days after she gave birth to Nahawa, her dying mother predicted her daughter a great career as a singer, though she did not belong to the griot caste.
"Nobody was allowed to sing in my family. That is why it has been so hard for me to come to music. One day, agents of the malian Ministry of Culture came to see my father and told him that I should take part in the "Youth Week" local event. He refused but I eventually was able to take part in it. Then I came to Bamako to compete at the "Youth Biennial", an event showing young artistic talents from Mali. I have been prized in 1980 with one of my songs. It was the very beginning of my career..."
Nahawa is now a star in Mali. The charm of her thin, childish voice made her one of the vocal references from western Africa. The queen of Didadi - a rhythm from Wassoulou region danced by young people at ceremonies and celebrations - decided to return to Wassoulou instrumental tradition with balafon, djembe, kamélé n'goni and guitars.
In 2011 the critically acclaimed blogger and ethnomusicologist Brian Shimkovitz chose Nahawa's early tape La Grande Cantatrice Malienne, Vol.3 to become the first official release on his new Awesome Tapes From Africa label. It received rave reviews worldwide. In 2015 Nahawa Doumbia played at the Le Guess Who? festival in Utrecht to great acclaim. This year, 2020, she was back with her band, still singing and swinging as ever before, untill the Corona-virus struck us all... Meanwhile she recorded her new album Kanawa, to be realeased early next year [2021]!
source: Mali K7 [from 2004] with recent additions from EarthBeat

NAHAWA DOUMBIA - 2020.Feb04 KIT Dusseldorf COSMO

setlist: 1.Mbalima Nyuma / 2.Nkaranka Tji / 3.Djon Konian / 4.Ntana / 5.Dunukan / 6.Sogo Duno / 7.Korodia / 8.Yan Kadi / 9.Sokono Wuluni

line-up: Nahawa Doumbia - vocals / N'Gou Bagayoko - guitar / Drissa Sidibe - n'goni

When downloading enjoy a 2015 Malian videoclip from Nahawa

For your full information an extensive discography and collected articles about Nahawa are all included in the download.

For who has enough time now between Christmas and New Year and is interested to see a very good film, I highly recommend to watch a beautiful film directed by Idrissa Ouedraogo from Burkina Faso. Have seen it several times at various locations, even once on Guinean TV in the court-yard of the compound I was staying then. I think it's very fitting in this Corona-virus year, which has hit our elderly the hardest.
You can watch Yaaba [1989] at youtube [with subtitles, if needed!]

By The Way NEVER Forget:

"il faut me pardonner - you must forgive me"

Pap Djah's last words before left on his own in the Sahara desert (in Niger)