Artist Profiles: Omar Metioui
Omar Metioui was born in Tanger (Tangier), Morocco, in 1962. He studied Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Brussels. In 1973 he studied Western European…
Artist Profiles: Nass Marrakech
Abdeljalil Kodssi, Moulay M’Hamed Ennaji (a.k.a. “Sheriff”), Abdelkebir Bensaloum and Mohamed Bechar formed Nass Marrakech in 1991. All are members of Gnawa families or have…
Interview with Guiss Guiss Bou Bess
Senegalese-French band Guiss Guiss Bou Bess is set to perform a showcase today at the World Music Expo WOMEX today. The concert will take place…
Trinidad Calypso Legend, the Mighty Shadow, Dies
The outstanding calypso/soca singer and musician, the Mighty Shadow, died at hospital, in the early hours of Tuesday, October 23, 2018. He was 77. Ailing…
Interview with World Music Sensation Bokante
Bokanté, the world music phenomenon led by Snarky Puppy’s multi-instrumentalist and composer Michael League has released another superb album titled What Heat. Michael and the…
Artist Profiles: Majid Bekkas
Multi-instrumentalist and composer Majid Bekkas was born and still lives in Sale, Morocco. He learned Gnawa music through the teachings of the master Ba Houmane.…
Artist Profiles: M’alem Abdellah Boulkhair El Gourd
M’alem Abdellah Boulkhair El Gourd is a Master healer Gnawa musician born in 1947 in the Kasbah of Tanger, Morocco. The Gnawa are a group…
Artist Profiles: Master Musicians of Jajouka
The Master Musicians of Jajouka are an all-male group from Jajouka, a small village in the foothills of the Rif Mountains about a hundred kilometers…
The High-Energy Sound of Trains and Moonlight Destinies
Black Masala – Trains and Moonlight Destinies (Black Masala Music, 2018) Black Masala represents the modern brass band cross-cultural sound of the Washington DC area.…
Artist Profiles: Najat Aatabu
The emotionally charged voice of Najat Aatabu (Also spelled Aatabou, in French) is one of the strongest and most thrilling in popular Moroccan music, known…