Hotter than July World Music Festival (2017) in Dublin, Ireland

HOTTER THAN JULY FESTIVAL

This year, the Hotter than July Festival has been organised by:

• Improvised Music Company
• Big Bang Festival
• and Dublin City Council.

Unfortunately, on the day, it was pretty rainy, so I missed part of it for this reason! ☔

However, I listened to and filmed the last 3 bands who performed at the event! 😃😉

If any of you have filmed other bands, feel free to share the links in the comment box! 👍

In the meantime, enjoy these pictures!

ABOUT KAKATSITSI MASTER DRUMMERS

It is one of Africa’s leading traditional drumming groups. Kakatsitsi performs rhythms and chants from a variety of West African cultures in a modern funky style.

They are originally from Jamestown, Accra, Ghana.

You can follow them on Facebook or on this website.

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Although I had filmed live the Kakatsitsi Master Drummers, the video didn’t save on my phone. 😞

So, let me share with you a video of them taken at a different event. They gave a very similar performance at Hotter than July festival.

Do you start feeling the heat? 🔥

Well, this continued throughout the afternoon. All bands were really energetic and good!

ABOUT MANDEN EXPRESS

Now it’s the turn of Manden Express, the Irish based band. I uploaded a video of them just for you on YouTube! 🎁💗

You can follow them on Facebook or on their website.

Finally, the last band La Chiva Gantiva spent literally their stage time jumping around! 💪

ABOUT LA CHIVA GANTIVA

La Chiva Gantiva is a frenetic carnival‐punk racket. It detonates like a Molotov cocktail of:

• rock
• rap
• soul
• and ferociously funky Latin rhythms.

The band formed in Brussels (Belgium) by three Colombian immigrants, who met around a percussion kit. They wanted to produce an original music and assert their cultural roots.

Present La Chiva Gantiva’s members are from:

• Colombia
• Vietnam
• Belgium
• and Chile.

I’m sharing video snippets as well as an audio track of the entire song!

You can follow them on Facebook or on their website.

Like this blog? Hit ‘Subscribe’ on the right-hand side column! 👉👊🙏

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Femi Kuti’s afrobeat live concert at the Academy, Dublin (Ireland)

Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti (born 16 June 1962) is popularly known as Femi Kuti. He is a Nigerian musician born in London and raised in Lagos. He is the eldest son of afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti.

Femi’s musical career started when he began playing in his father’s band, Egypt 80.

In 1986, Femi started his own band, Positive Force. He began establishing himself as an artist independent of his father’s massive legacy.  🎷🎺🎸🎹🎤

Since then, he has continued playing the music style his father was famous for, i.e afrobeat. Afrobeat can be defined as ‘a complex fusion of:

•  jazz,
• funk,
• Ghanaian/Nigerian
• highlife,
• psychedelic rock
• traditional West African chants and rhythms.

Femi also follows his father’s legacy with his strong commitments to social and political causes.  You can notice this in his songs’ lyrics on his website:

https://femikuti.com/home

In this article you can see how engaged he is with the issues Nigerian people are currently facing: 😭😡

Nigerian musician Femi Kuti urges stars, fans to focus on Boko Haram victims

Do you like his music? Why not download a few songs or buy some of his CDs on Amazon: 💿💰

Femi Kuti’s music on Amazon

Now, let me share with you few videos from his live concert at The Academy, Dublin (Ireland) on Saturday 8th July 2017!!🔥

Since these videos were originally Facebook Live Streams, the quality may not be optimum for YouTube. 😳😓

I would recommend you to watch them on your mobile phone, as they have been filmed with my iPhone! 😉

Subscribe to my YouTube channel to stay up-to-date with upcoming videos!👍

DJ Qmutat playing Funk, Afrobeat, Jazz at Mojo Cafe, Hamburg (Germany)

DJ Qmutat

I have listened to German DJ Qmutat playing a nice mix of funk, afrobeat, jazz at Mojo Cafe, Reeperbahn 1, Hamburg on Friday 24th July 2015.

I hope you will enjoy the few video and soundtracks below. You can following him on Facebook, if you like his work.

Black party meets MS KOI hip-hop and dancehall boat party (Germany)

HAMBURG HARBOUR ACTIVITIES

First of all, if you have never been to Hamburg (Germany), I would like to tell you briefly a few facts about this beautiful town.

Hamburg is a city located at the river Elbe. It has a very dynamic harbour. Its harbour is named Germany’s “Gateway to the World”. It is also the largest port in Germany.

Secondly, the port of Hamburg is the second-busiest port in Europe (after the port of Rotterdam) and the 15th-largest worldwide. In 2014, 9.73 million TEUs (20-foot standard container equivalents) were handled in Hamburg.

Furthermore, Hamburg port isn’t only a shipping trading centre. It also offers:

• many boat trips,
• museums tracing the history of the harbour in the ‘Speicherstadt’ (recognised as a World Heritage by UNESCO),
• visits of old boats,
• lots of organised boat parties.

Black boat party

I have been to one black boat party. It lasted 4 hours between the boat leaving the harbour and coming back to it.

WHERE DOES THE ‘Black boat party’ NAME COME FROM?

Simply because the event took place on a boat, which had DJs playing black music such as hip-hop and dancehall.

WHAT iS ‘MS KOI’?

MS KOI is a ship for maritime events and parties since 2011.

MS KOI is a very modern boat composed of 3 different decks. On each deck, you have a bar and quality sound and light systems. Each deck has its own atmosphere with distinct music style.

The upper-deck is open-air and obviously most enjoyable during summertime when the weather is good. The lowest deck contains a cloakroom and seating space.

BLACK BOAT PARTY PICTURES AND VIDEOS

Let me share with you pictures, audio and videos from the event on 18th July 2015. I hope you’ll enjoy this as much as I did!

If you have issues playing some of the videos due to potential country restrictions, use this link: https://www.proxfree.com/.

Then type next to the lock picture the direct link to the YouTube video. Next, change country (to Amsterdam, Netherlands) in the ‘server location’ field, and hit ‘prox free’ button!

You can find more pictures on the following facebook fan page (21st July’s post):

https://www.facebook.com/mskoi.eventschiff/

Street School Dance Battles organised by Vigozone in Hamburg (2015)

STREET SCHOOL DANCE

While planning a holiday trip in Hamburg (Germany), I researched any interesting hip-hop dance events in the city.

I came across the street school dance battles event. I received a free ticket for the dance live performances.

The street school dancers were teenagers of different ages with one common goal: giving the best performance they could to the audience.

And what a show! I felt the dance level was pretty high! I watched incredible crew choreography and battles from all styles, such as:

• new style hip-hop,
• locking,
• popping,
• b-boying
• k-pop,
• dancehall,
• afrobeat
• salsa.

STREET SCHOOL DANCE EVENT STAKEHOLDERS

The host himself was pretty good at dancing. He was also very entertaining. 🎉

One of the judges and his dance partner performed their duet choreography.

If you’d like to know more about the stakeholders at this event, check their Facebook event page.

Now, impatient to see what it looked like? Please find below a small slide show.

I filmed:

• 4 battles,
• 5 crew/duet choreography
• 2 dance demonstrations from the presenter.

To watch them, I invite you to subscribe to my YouTube Channel!

If you encounter country restriction issues (blocked videos), I recommend you to download ‘youtube unblocker’ for Firefox and Google Chrome.

Nico and Vinz, Norwegian singing duo with african roots in video

Nico and Vinz

First of all, I hope you will find the Nico and Vinz singing duet as interesting as I do.

I particularly enjoy their music styles fusion. Hence why I wanted to share their information with you.

ABOUT THE SINGER-SONGWRITER DUET

Secondly, I will not bother you with too long explanations.

However, if you would like to know more about this duet, please read these 2 articles:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nico_%26_Vinz

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2014/05/25/on-the-verge-with-nico-and-vinz-am-i-wrong/9298633/

You can also check their Facebook fan page:

https://www.facebook.com/nicoandvinz

Alternatively, you can opt to watch their YouTube interview:

THEIR SONG LYRICS

Furthermore, you can also discover their song lyrics here:

http://www.metrolyrics.com/nico-vinz-lyrics.html

RELEASED ALBUM 

Finally, enjoy listening to their album!

Enjoy their music?

Then why not attend their next concert?

Or even better, purchasing their album available on Amazon?

Regular and occasional afrobeat events in Dublin, Ireland

DUBLIN AfroBEAT EVENTS 

Following a popular search for Dublin afrobeat events, please find below:

• few good DJ organisations
• live bands
• festivals/carnivals happening in and around Dublin.

1) DJs Weekly events with occasional guest singers from abroad:

• Every Saturday at Break for the Border with Rap Ireland. It’s 10 Euros. You can be on the cheap list if you get in touch with them. They will play a mix of:
  •  Hip-Hop
  • Afro-beats
  • RnB
  • Dancehall.

Give them a like on Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/officialrapireland

• Every Sunday at River Bar (Passion nightclub) with Boom Entz. The venue is located at O’Connell House Bridge. It’s 5 Euros in. They will play a mix of:
  • Hip-Hop
  • Afrobeats
  • Rn’B
  • Reggae.

You can follow them or add them as a friend on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/BoomEntz/

• Further events in and around Dublin are advertised in these public Facebook group pages:

https://www.facebook.com/afrobeat.segun?fref=ts

https://www.facebook.com/groups/afroclubent/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/africanmusicnetwork/?fref=ts

2) Live band concerts (you can listen to some of them on my Youtube Channel):

• Tig Linn with female and male singers (blessed with powerful voices). For their planned concerts, check their Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tig-Linn/211049728918708?fref=ts

• Dublin Afrobeat Ensemble with a male singer (blessed with a lot of charisma and energy).

For more information, check their Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/DublinAfrobeat?fref=ts

• Manden Express with a female singer. For more information, check their Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/mandenexpress?fref=ts

• You can also catch a few Afrobeat/Afrojazz live concerts at ‘National Concert Hall’.

Go to their website for more details:

https://www.nch.ie/Online/

3) Yearly Festivals and carnivals:

• Event organised generally at the end of May by ‘Africa Day’ about:
  • African music
  • fashion
  • arts and crafts
  • clothing
  • culture.

For more information, check their Facebook page and/or website:

https://www.facebook.com/africadayireland?fref=ts

• Event organised generally around mid/end August by ‘Nigerian Carnival Ireland’. The themes are on:
  • Nigerian music
  • comedy
  • food
  • fashion.

For more information, check their Facebook page and/or website:

https://www.facebook.com/nigeriancarnivalireland?fref=ts

Have you heard of any other nights worth mentioning? If so, drop a comment and we’ll add them to the list!

 

Hugh Masekela Afro-Jazz Live Concert in Dublin, Ireland (2014)

Hugh Masekela

A few weeks ago, I attended the Hugh Masekela concert in National Concert Hall organised by the Waltons World Masters.

I saw few papers around from this music organisation before that day. The papers detailed the artist biography with an offer to sign up for their newsletter. I subscribed and became the lucky winner of two tickets to watch this jazz concert!

Originally, I didn’t know much about Hugh Masekela and his South African band even though they are a well-known in the jazz world. Consequently, I had no particular expectations from them. However, I must say now: it was one the best concerts I have been attended!

Hugh Masekela, although already 75 years of age at that time, displayed incredible energy and musical talent throughout the whole show. He was a very witty, bright and young at heart artist.

His band and himself continued playing about 3-4 extra songs after the due ending time of the concert.

I also discovered the ‘Tig Linn’ support band, an afrobeat and afro-jazz Irish-Nigerian band from Dublin. Worth watching, too! They play a fusion of Nigerian and traditional Irish music.

Tig Linn is still going strong. They are still regularly playing live. To keep up-to-date of their next concert, follow them on Facebook. If you would like to book them for a concert, get in touch with them on their website.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY AND SUPPORT BAND INFORMATION

Click on the pictures to read more easily the brochures’ information:

LIVE CONCERT RECORDING

This video is from the repeat songs at the end:

Keep in mind that you will no longer be able to go to his concerts. Indeed, Hugh Masekela died on 23rd January 2018 at the age of 78. Repose in peace.

If you enjoy his music, you may want to buy it on Amazon.

Ajo Arkestra band’s live performance in Dublin, Ireland (2014)

AJO ARKESTRA BAND

Firstly, the Ajo Arkestra band is an underground group of musician friends from:

• Sicily
• Nigeria
• Cameroon
• Armenia
• Brazil
• and Cuba.

Furthermore, the band changed its name from ‘The Dublin Afrobeat Ensemble’ to ‘Ajo Arkestra’ a few years ago.

They perform regularly all over Ireland, where they play:

• in the coolest late night venues 
• with the best stage settings
• and the best DJs and bands around.

Their material is influenced by legends such as:

• Fela Kuti
• Antibalas
• and Tony Allen.

Their sound is saturated with hours of musical persistence. These guys master the long extended phrasing and heavy African ‘riddims’.

There  are live elements from:

• hip-hop
• funk
• jazz
• soul
• and disco at work.

Instrumentally speaking, their music is awash with:

• brass
• lead guitar
• and vocal harmonies.

There is never anything usual about this band.

The band records their first EP together in 2013.

To be updated about their upcoming shows, check their Facebook and Bandcamp.

AJO ARKESTRA LIVE RECORDING

Finally, I have recorded them play live at The Sugar Club, Dublin back in August 2014. Check the below slideshow and video of their performance!

Manden Express and Ghanian dancer guest live performances in Dublin (2014)

MANDEN EXPRESS

Manden Express is a thrillingly explosive Dublin-based international band. It fuses traditional and contemporary styles of West African music from the Mande Empire (Mali),  alongside infectious Afrobeat rhythms.

THEIR MUSIC STYLES

Manden Express is inspired by Wassalou (Oumou Sangare) styles and the explosion of new musical influences that merged with African music in the 1960′s.

They blend:

• kamele n’goni
• harp,
• Kora,
• djembé,
• drums

with electric bass and guitar to produce stomping grooves and hypnotic time patterns.

BAND’S CHANGES

The band went through a singer change. Indeed, Emma who used to be the band lead singer is now leading her own neo-soul band called ‘Fehdah‘.

This is how the new Manden Express band looks like now. You can view their last year’s performance with their updated line-up at Hotter than July’s festival.

LIVE RECORDINGS

I attended two of their live performances at the Sugar Club, Dublin on July and August 2014.

They had a special guest Godfred Asare, a Ghanian dancer, who accompanied them at their first show.

You may want to check their blog and their Facebook fan page for upcoming shows.

Enjoy the below pictures and videos from the events!