Djekpa La You

An exceptional live performer and a brilliant songwriter, it’s not hard to see why Ivorian Dobet Gnahoré was chosen to take part in the ‘Mama Africa’ project last year to celebrate the life of the late Miriam Makeba. Keeping the bones of the musical line-up from her second album, Na Afriki, including her guitarist and songwriter partner, Colin Laroche de Feline, this follow-up has kept some of the elements that made that last album exciting whilst sounding more true to her live performances. The sweet melodies and brassy interludes remain, but there is more punch to this recording.

Having grown up in an artist’s commune in the Ivorian capital Abidjan, where she learnt everything from dance to pottery, Gnahoré is adept at skillfully turning her hand to just about anything. She sings in a range of African languages, from Bambara to Swahili, and in styles she is perhaps a true pan-African artist. Her songs swing from the quick Senegalese sabar drum burst of ‘Beussem’ to the Ivorian vocals and percussion on ‘Salde.’ The brass-players from Benin, the Gangbé Brass Band, are back to lend an additional burst of energy on ‘Deka’ and ‘Cote d’Ivoire’, the latter being a lilting ode to the singer’s home. ‘Kokpa’ is a tender guitar-led melody where the strength and subtlety of Gnahoré’s voice shines at its best, and on which she is joined by the South Africa singer Vusi Mahlasela, whose distinctive vocals make for a textured contrast to her own. While it’s not a recording to change the world – as her live performances hint she might one day – this is honest, heartfelt work from one of Africa’s great female artists.