Most of the rhythms of modern music have their origins in the African culture influences. Rock’n roll, rap, hip hop, reggae, ska, R&B, and many others come from black people that introduced something totally new to the music that white people listened and danced with. This was without any doubt because of its African origins.
Bill Haley – The Comets- wrote “Rock around the Clock” (main theme of the Richard Brooks film, “The blackboard Jungle”, during the early 50’s, and it was the first hit of the history of rock. Haley produced country music until he was delighted by and started to carefully listen what black people were doing. So it arose rock’n roll. At that time, black music was called “race music”, but some time later, a producer said: “if someone is able to transmit the force that black singers transmit, he will get millions of dollars”, and this one was Elvis Presley.
We could go through the story of each of the musical rhythms that came up during the XX century, and in all of them we will find African roots and lots of small but really interesting stories like the one from Rap.
Rap origins are in West Africa. In Senegal it was known as tasou. And it was during the early 70’s when African people realised that Americans where using their rhythm.
Tasou is a way of singing from an ethnic group called Laobe, which are a nomad population group that trade horses, asses and other animals. Laobe’s tasou talks about the courage that laobe men have, since they do not ask for anything to their women, but go out looking for something to improve their families’ life.
One of the traditional tasou is from the Serrere tribe in a verse that talks about laobe men that must live in a decent way and not fall into the bandalism that some nomads practise in order to escape from the tough conditions they find in their daily life.
Also the Griots (the artists’ ethnic group), which are very well recognized musicians, used the tasou and its rhythm to sing the glories of the kings and important people from each genealogic group. So the griots and their taous were the memories of the tradition and the history of the different dynasties, and a way to preserve the African culture and history until today.
In Fapman we want to get back the strengths of African music in its most genuine way, get back to the origins to get the best of Africa through the music.
Bill Haley – The Comets- wrote “Rock around the Clock” (main theme of the Richard Brooks film, “The blackboard Jungle”, during the early 50’s, and it was the first hit of the history of rock. Haley produced country music until he was delighted by and started to carefully listen what black people were doing. So it arose rock’n roll. At that time, black music was called “race music”, but some time later, a producer said: “if someone is able to transmit the force that black singers transmit, he will get millions of dollars”, and this one was Elvis Presley.
We could go through the story of each of the musical rhythms that came up during the XX century, and in all of them we will find African roots and lots of small but really interesting stories like the one from Rap.
Rap origins are in West Africa. In Senegal it was known as tasou. And it was during the early 70’s when African people realised that Americans where using their rhythm.
Tasou is a way of singing from an ethnic group called Laobe, which are a nomad population group that trade horses, asses and other animals. Laobe’s tasou talks about the courage that laobe men have, since they do not ask for anything to their women, but go out looking for something to improve their families’ life.
One of the traditional tasou is from the Serrere tribe in a verse that talks about laobe men that must live in a decent way and not fall into the bandalism that some nomads practise in order to escape from the tough conditions they find in their daily life.
GAS NGOLI GAS
KOR KUMBA LAIBE GAS
YIPIN MBIDEL, YIPIN TCHAR
Ô KORES SADE NGUT
A GU DA NGA A DAMEL
A BE KEL KASSO NA
IAM KASSO NE WARA
A MINYA NGA TA SUTU
A WAR O NDJAS O NDEB
I TAPTIN MBETCHE NGUEL
ANDUM KAGA MODJU FEL
ANDUM KAGA MODJU FEL
KOR KUMBA LAIBE GAS
YIPIN MBIDEL, YIPIN TCHAR
Ô KORES SADE NGUT
A GU DA NGA A DAMEL
A BE KEL KASSO NA
IAM KASSO NE WARA
A MINYA NGA TA SUTU
A WAR O NDJAS O NDEB
I TAPTIN MBETCHE NGUEL
ANDUM KAGA MODJU FEL
ANDUM KAGA MODJU FEL
Also the Griots (the artists’ ethnic group), which are very well recognized musicians, used the tasou and its rhythm to sing the glories of the kings and important people from each genealogic group. So the griots and their taous were the memories of the tradition and the history of the different dynasties, and a way to preserve the African culture and history until today.
In Fapman we want to get back the strengths of African music in its most genuine way, get back to the origins to get the best of Africa through the music.
