Posts Tagged ‘fatou’
Songlines Music Awards 2012 – And the winners are…
Posted on April 25th, 2012 in News, Recent Posts by Alexandra Petropoulos.
With the Songlines Music Awards now in their fourth year, we are delighted to announce this year’s winners.
The awards recognise outstanding talent in world music and are voted by Songlines readers and the general public. There are four categories: Best Artist, Best Group, Cross-Cultural Collaboration and Newcomer – the results from the initial vote generate the final nominees, the top four in each category.
The winners, selected by the Songlines editorial team and listed below, are published in the June issue of Songlines (#84).
A 16-track compilation album featuring the winners and all nominees is out now on CD and download (you can listen to tracks from the CD below). A Songlines Music Awards 2012 app for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch is also available to download for free from the iTunes App store.
And the winners are…
BEST ARTIST
Anoushka Shankar
(For the album Traveller on DG)
BEST GROUP
Tinariwen
(For the album Tassili on V2)
CROSS-CULTURAL COLLABORATION
Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile
(For the album Goat Rodeo Sessions on Sony Classical)
NEWCOMER
Fatoumata Diawara
(For the album Fatou on World Circuit)
Watch our short film on the Songlines Music Awards 2012 winners with live performances and an introduction by editor-in-chief Simon Broughton:
World Music Chart
Posted on March 1st, 2012 in News, Recent Posts by Alexandra Petropoulos.
The new Official UK World Music Album Chart is live with Rodrigo y Gabriela entering at the top with their new release with C.U.B.A.
You can listen to excerpts from each of the top 10 albums on our next podcast (#83), live on the March 16.
You can see the full chart (the top 20) as well as the Official UK World Music Compilation Album Chart here.
Fatoumata Diawara headlines at the Jazz Café
Posted on October 20th, 2011 in Recent Posts by Songlines Intern.
Mali’s rising star, Fatoumata Diawara, played her first London headline gig last week. Her debut album Fatou has caused quite a stir in recent months, with many lauding her freshness in a saturated market. Perhaps most striking is her ability to play the guitar, an unusual trait among female Malian singers, but one which indicates her modernity while she simultaneously draws on traditional Wassoulou roots.
It was a concert of two halves; the split defined by the presence – or lack – of Fatou’s guitar. Adorned in vivid reds and yellows, she stood poised and elegant behind her instrument and gently strummed as she sang. Despite her rich voice, the static position felt uncomfortable and I reluctantly found myself becoming restless. It wasn’t until half way through the set that things got going. The guitar disappeared and off came the pink-laced trainers. Her muscular body pulsed rhythmically and hair braids flew as she demonstrated her strength and agility as a dancer.
Back at the microphone, Fatou was visibly relaxed and her voice sounded more natural as she began to engage with the crowd and her band. The laid-back style of the album was replaced by up-beat funk-led grooves in the live setting. Only slightly disconcerting was her almost constant smile, at once charming and out of place as she sang of illegal immigration (‘Clandestin’), orphaned children (‘Sowa’) and genital mutilation (‘Boloko’). Although she has yet to demonstrate the strength and depth of her mentor and inspiration, Oumou Sangaré, as Fatou came into her own on Thursday evening she demonstrated that she can transcend her album’s smooth production and put on a damn good show.
Olivia Haughton
Fatoumata to play at Rough Trade
Posted on October 4th, 2011 in Recent Posts by Alexandra Petropoulos.
Fatoumata Diawara, the Malian songbird who has taken the UK by storm, will be performing in-store at Rough Trade East on October 13.
Once a backup singer for the famous singer Oumou Sangaré, Fatou recently struck out on her own with a debut solo album, Fatou, on World Circuit. The album has been well received – a Top of the World in our current issue – and concert reviews abound with her praises. Her style is charming and delightful, playing with Wassoulou rhythms with a husky voice and grounded guitar lines.
If you haven’t yet had a chance to catch her live, October 13 is the perfect opportunity. The show begins at 1pm at Rough Trade East on Brick Lane.
For more concert information, please visit www.roughtrade.com
You can read more about Fatoumata Diawara in our current issue (#79 October 2011).
