We’ve kept you up to date on the story behind DRC Music, Damon Albarn‘s collective of producers who went to Kinshasa, DRC and recorded an album with local musicians over the course of five days. Previously available as a digital download, Kinshasa One Two, was released today on CD and Deluxe Vinyl. The physical release has three additional tracks and a dope 20 page booklet.
To hear a track from the album go here. Purchase the album here. All proceeds go to Oxfam’s work in the DRC.
“Congo in Harlem” is the annual week-long series of film screenings, musical performances, panel discussions, and more taking place in Harlem Oct. 16-23. The program will be a great space to engage in dialogue about pressing issues in the Congo, in particular the upcoming presidential elections in late November. All proceeds go to a fund for emerging Congolese filmmakers.
We’re excited about the screening for Blood in the Mobile, (trailer above) a documentary film that explores the illegal mines in Eastern Congo where the minerals in our cell phones are extracted (we’ve written about it before). The filmmaker even makes his way into Nokia‘s corporate offices to confront executives about their mineral supply chain. We’re also looking forward to the special appearance by Djo Munga, acclaimed director of the narrative film, Viva Riva! For the full program of events click here.
In 2005 two French filmmakers stumbled upon a group of disabled street musicians in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo who called themselves Staff Benda Bilili (translation: “Look Beyond Appearances”). The filmmakers were immediately drawn to the band’s yearning to transcend societal standards and their capacity to endure the harsh realities of a war-ravaged country on the heels of a new beginning. They immediately began documenting what would become a five year odyssey following the band’s struggles and accomplishments, culminating into what has become a well-received documentary that opened at the Cannes Film Festival last year.
With their tricked-out tricycles, handmade instruments constructed out of trash and the Kinshasa city zoo as their backdrop, Benda Bilili’s story alone is enough to garner international intrigue. But its their music — which has roots in traditional Congolese folk and rumba-Soukous dance — that has captivated people all around the world. Harboring strong messages of hope, tolerance, and community action, the group have played a pivotal role in ushering in a new era of peace within the DRC. Yet, their statements resonate far beyond Congolese borders, as Bena Bilili’s ability to overcome their social status and physical ailments serves as an inspiration to anyone who has encountered the modern day struggles of today’s world, large and small.
Benda Bilili! is now playing at select theaters worldwide. For a preview of their magic, take a look at the music video for “Polio” below.
For more music from Congo, check out Damon Albarn‘s DRC Music project.
As we’ve told you, for the DRC Music project Damon Albarn, Dan the Automator, Jneiro Jarel and others travelled over to Congo to record an album in 7 days. So it’s not much of a surprise that the first official video for Kinshasa One Two lead-single “Hallo” shows footage of the producers, well, traveling over to Congo and recording an album. We get plenty Kinshasa-street clips here with additional peeks into the studios Damon and company used to record with local artists like Tout Puissant Mukalo and Nelly Liyemge, who both lend their voices to “Hallo.” Kinshasa One Two is available digitally now.
Apple’s announcement yesterday was a major buzz kill. The new iPhone will only be a version of the current 4th generation, and won’t be shatter-proof (we know a lot of you are walking around with busted iPhones). We wonder what folks working in the coltan mines in the Congo, where 80% of the world’s supply of this mineral can be found, thought about Apple’s unsatisfactory announcement. For them, it’s probably just another day on the job (we use the word “job” loosely because that would imply compensation for work done – which is not always the case).
For those who don’t know, coltan is one of the key minerals used in the iPhone’s circuit board, as well as the inner workings of many other electronics including computers. It is also what Adam Hochschild has described as one of four main reasons for ongoing deadly violence in the Congo. So much violence in fact, that it has been coined the ‘blood mineral’ – joining the ranks of the ‘blood diamond.’ In addition to the violence, working conditions in the mines can be also be deadly. We’re not here to preach, but it’s always good to be reminded of the price others pay for our technologies. For more information on how our cell phones fuel the war, check out the documentary Blood in the Mobile by filmmaker Frank Piasecki Poulsen.
To support efforts for peace in the Congo, check out Medecins Sans Frontieres, or Oxfam.
We’ve been talking about this one for a while — for Kinshasa One Two Damon Albarn enlisted a crew of producers, including Dan the Automator and Jneiro Jarel, to travel down to the Democratic Republic of Congo and record an album in 5 days with local musicians.
Released under the collective moniker DRC Music, all proceeds from sales will go towards helping Oxfam‘s work in the ailing country. The album is available in CD edition with an accompaniying 12-page booklet and deluxe LP with booklet and “14 x 300 x 300mm art cards housed in their own presentation sleeve.”
Stream three album tracks below. Buy Kinshasa One Two now from Warp Records/Oxfam!
DRC Music – Kinshasa One Two (see http://drcmusic.org ) by DRC Music
TRACKLIST
1. Hallo featuring Tout Puissant Mukalo and Nelly Liyemge - listen now above
2. K-Town featuring N’Gotshima and Bebson
3. African Space Anthem (A.S.A) featuring Ewing Sima of Tout Puissant Mukalo
4. Love featuring Love
5. Lingala featuring Bokatola System and Evala Litongo - listen now above
6. Lourds featuring Yende Bongongo of Okwess International
7. Respect Of The Rules featuring Loi X Liberal
8. We Come From The Forest featuring Bokatola System
9. Customs featuring Bokatola System
10. Virginia featuring Magakala Virginia Yollande and Yowa Hollande
11. Ah Congo featuring Jupiter Bokondji and Bokatola System - listen now above
12. Three Piece Sweet part 1 & 2 featuring Bebson
13. If You Wish to Stay Awake featuring Washiba
14. Departure featuring Bokatola System
Congolese rapper Lexxus Legal delivers this new video for hard hitting Kinshasa-street anthem “Fauchés” featuring Leslyman. Lexxus, also known as Alex Dende, is the leader and founding member of the group PNB (Pensée Nègre Brute). His forceful French verses aim at the ails that haunt his native DRC and Africa in general, which he cites as being “corruption, globalization, the inadequacy of the World Trade Organization… [and] the frivolity of some African leaders.” For the non-Francophones out there, fauché = without money.
(via AIAC)
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.
Back in July we announced that Damon Albarn would put together a group of producers called DRC Music and set out for Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo to record and sample Congolese musicians – well, he knocked it out of the park and the album, Kinshasa One Two, is available for pre-order today.
DRC Music collaborated with over 50 local Congolese artists, including Jupiter and the Okwess International, Bokatola System and Nelly Liyemge to record the entire album in under one week – 5 days to be exact. Proceeds from the album, set to be released digitally on October 3rd by Warp Records, will benefit the local performers as well as Oxfam’s work in Congo.
DRC Music is comprised of producers Actress, Dan The Automator, Jneiro Jarel, T-E-E-D (Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs), Richard Russell, Marc Antoine, Alwest, Remi Kabaka, Rodaidh McDonald and Kwes. Take a sneak peek at their creative process in the trailer for the project above, and listen to some tracks off the new project below.
DRC Music – Kinshasa One Two (see http://drcmusic.org ) by DRC Music
Reclaimed AK-47 Gunmetal Jewelry To Help Disarm DRC
Fonderie 47 is an interesting experiment, a project designed to help disarm the DRC by selling high-end jewelry crafted from reclaimed AK-47 gunmetal. Featured in today’s New York Times Style Section, Fonderie 47′s unique approach was inspired by a 2008 trip to Kenya during which the two founders, John Zapolski and Peter Thum, were struck by the number of AK-47′s they encountered. The Small Arms Survey reports and data claims there are upwards of 20 million AK-47′s in Africa today. Thum explains:
Their jewelry is hand crafted from the metal – the receivers, barrels and other steel components – of AK-47′s from the DRC which were confiscated by the government. It’s melted down and then reshaped, with gold added, into beautiful jewelry such as rings, earrings and cufflinks, by the jewelers Philip Crangi and Roland Iten.
Sales fund weapons destruction programs operated by nongovernmental organizations which help disarm the DRC, through the nonprofit arm of the project, Fonderie 47 Foundation. Fonderie 47 has demolished around 6,000 assault rifles so far. We’re down with this mission for sure – unfortunately with rings starting at $25,600 we’re gonna have to save our allowance for at least a few weeks before we can cop.