Vwadèzil – Kite Ti Pati’m Kanpe
With Carifesta, the all-Caribbean arts festival, taking place in Haiti from 21-30 August, there’s no time like the present to put a spotlight on Haitian music. Thankfully, journalist Susana Ferreira can point us towards artists that should not be overlooked: her comprehensive Buzzfeed article, published in early July, described the speedy, springy rabòday, a style of electronic music that emerged from the post 2010 earthquake era. Providing essential cultural context, Ferreira describes the origins of the music that has become a soundtrack to Haitian carnivals. Vwadèzil’s Kite Ti Pati’m Kanpe, expressing a political point (with just enough sexual innuendo), was particularly popular in the 2015 carnival season. Read, learn and listen.
Kabaka Pyramid – Phenomenon
Kabaka put his finger on the pulse with his excellent and politically instructional Well Done. Phenomenon continues to demonstrate that Kabaka is one of the best singjays in Jamaica. Shifting from chatting to chanting effortlessly, Phenomenon has a feel that reaches back to the 1990s, helped by classic production from Bobby Digital, the man behind Sizzla’s Black Woman and Child — arguably one of the best, if not the best, album of the 1990s. Like Well Done, Phenomenon is a strong reggae track with a memorable chorus. Kabaka claims he’s a “phenomenon” – in keeping with the man’s tag line, that just might be accurate.
Lady Saw – Summer Love
At last weekend’s Reggae Sumfest, Marion Hall (aka Lady Saw) made history by becoming the first female artist to close the show on dancehall night. She took to the stage just before 6am and kept the crowd transfixed, regardless of the early hour. Though Lady Saw is one of the most veteran of veteran artists, she can still mix it up with the best of them. Yes, though she’s often flirted with Christianity, she’s more known for more crassness (what Jamaicans call “slackness”), but Summer Love is quite clean, and with its strong hook and assertive attitude, it’s a perfect summer anthem. Saw knows she looks good and is just as happy to have a drink (or a few) as she is to fall in love.
Peter Ram – All Ah We
It’s Barbados carnival this weekend – aka Cropover – so let’s shed some light on Bajan carnival hotness. Two-man production team De Red Boyz specialise in groovy soca and have a number of strong tracks this season: All Ah We is no exception. There’s a little bit of a Bunji, and – dare one say, EDM – feel to this track. Peter Ram has been at it for decades, and unleashed the beyond catchy Pledge back in 2003. It’s therefore nice to hear him produce something that sounds so current.
Imani – Fire Meh
Also ready for Cropover is Imani. She has only been around for a couple of years (Me is a nice 2013 offering), but this season’s Fire Meh is a classic soca jam with that telltale bounce. There’s something a little of the Britney Spears-esque tenor of Imani’s voice and the smoothness of the production, too. It’s a carnival tune, but it provides a pretty poptimist, infectious offering, while the bridge of the song, also produced by De Red Boyz, gives way to that soca uplift that’s welcome in the lead up to this weekend’s festivities. Heck, it’s already made it to the Sweet Soca finals.
