Our boy Baloji recently brought his culture melding blend of hip-hop, jazz, and vintage Congolese sounds to a bar in Williamsburg.* MTV Iggy was there to capture the intimate performance in which the Belgian/Congolese MC and his Sapeur-ed out live band ran through alluring renditions of “Nazongi” and”Independance (Cha Cha).”
The self-described ‘Afropean’ artist also sat down for a short interview in which he discussed his diverse influences, compared African music to punk, and spoke about his mom. Watch “Nazongi” and Baloji’s interview (above and below). Head on over to MTV Iggy for the rest of the performance.
*For our New Yorker readers, that’s definitely Pete’s Candy Store.
Video: Baloji ft. Konono Nº1 ‘Karibu Ya Bintou’
Congo’s word sorcerer Baloji tackles all sorts of black magic mysticism in this clip for “Karibu Ya Bintou” (“Welcome To Life In Limbo”). He’s joined on the track by the junkyard electronic sounds of Konono Nº1. The Kinshasa-streets video features plenty skull masks, open-trunk hopping, and local pro-wrestling. Baloji’s upcoming Kinshasa Succursale LP is out Nov. 14 via Crammed.